#TIFF19: “THE TWENTIETH CENTURY”

Review by George Kozera for Mr. Will Wong

Take a heaping cup of Guy Maddin’s influence, sprinkle liberally with Wes Anderson’s imaginative plot machinations and way with words then finally add just a wee bit of Tim Burton to keep you slightly discombobulated and you have the recipe for Canadian director, Matthew Rankin’s, most bizarre and audacious Feature debut THE TWENTIETH CENTURY. This off-kilter, off-the-wall “biopic” of how William Lyon Mackenzie King became Prime Minister of Canada is genuinely funny and the personification of the words original and unique. There are so many elements and twists in this movie that I won’t reveal because THE TWENTIETH CENTURY has to be seen and savoured to fully appreciate the bizarre world we have just entered. Daniel Beirne (as Mackenzie King) has captured a piece of my non-conformist heart with his hysterical performance.

Want to see a movie flaunts gender roles, watch a competition that includes clubbing puppet baby seals and sexualizes footwear while maintaining romantic subplots and Quebec’s need to be unique? Do not walk…run to see THE TWENTIETH CENTURY. To quote a line used often in the Movie, you will love it “as sure as a winter’s day in spring”.

THE TWENTIETH CENTURY screens at TIFF Tue, Sep 10, Ryerson Theatre at 11:59pm, Thu, Sep 12 Scotiabank Theatre at 9:45pm and Sat, Sep 14 Scotiabank Theatre at 1:30pm