#TIFF25: “BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER” REVIEW

By Mr. Will Wong Director Edward Berger is back after a strong showing last awards season with Conclave. This time around, we are doing 180 from the church and going right to the casino. We meet Lord Freddy Doyle (Colin Farrell), a swindler, running from Detective Cynthia Blithe (Tilda Swinton) as he continues to live above his means, landing at an opulent casino in Macao. Here he meets a hostess named Dao Ming (Fala Chen), who is sympathetic to his vices, and they strike a connection ... Read more

#TIFF25: “THE WIZARD OF THE KREMLIN” REVIEW

By Nicholas Porteous Olivier Assayas dives into the personal and political history of Vadim Baranov (Paul Dano), a Russian operative often referred to as "the new Rasputin", largely responsible for the rise of Putin (Jude Law). Baranov took an unconventional path to power via theatre and reality tv, both of which play no small part in his ideology, as well as the tactics he used to cement Putin's reign. The Wizard of the Kremlin is based on a novel of the same name (by Giuliano da ... Read more

#TIFF25: “THE VOICE OF HIND RAJAB” REVIEW

By David Baldwin Hind Rajab is a six-year-old Palestinian girl on the phone with Red Crescent volunteers. She is trapped in a car in Gaza and begging for help – her family in the car with her have been killed and the vehicle is under Israeli military fire. With no real options available, the volunteer team stays on the phone with the young girl as they try to organize her rescue. Even if you already know the tragic outcome of this true story, THE VOICE OF HIND RAJAB is ... Read more

#TIFF25: “FRANKENSTEIN” REVIEW

By David Baldwin Dr. Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac) is found gravely injured by the crew of a ship stuck in thick ice. They bring him on board to tend to his wounds and are suddenly attacked by The Creature (Jacob Elordi), a man shrouded in cloth and tattered clothes. They quickly realize he’s not there for them – he’s there for Frankenstein. Of course, if you know anything about FRANKENSTEIN, you know there is so much more to this story and this is only ... Read more

#TIFF25: “SWIPED” REVIEW

By Mr. Will Wong Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Lily James delivers a tremendous performance in Rachel Lee Goldenberg's SWIPED as Whitney Wolfe, founder and CEO of online dating platform Bumble, prior to that co-founder of Tinder. And she did it all before she turned 30. This Film however, isn't a celebration of success as much as it is a story about a woman's battle with misogyny, betrayal, and being resilient. We first meet Whitney in her college days where she meets Justin (Jackson ... Read more

#TIFF25: DAY SIX SIGHTINGS – COLIN FARRELL, JODIE FOSTER, FALA CHEN, SHU QI, MATT JOHNSON, JAY MCCARROL AND MORE

it's a bittersweet feeling as we near the half-way point of tiff50. but we are thrilled that we finally get a chance to see some films, which is always what has made this festival so special for us! make no mistake though, there are still some very notable names in-town! some day six sightings: •shu qi (pronounced "shoo chee") at tiff for girl •rebecca zlotowski and jodie foster at tiff for a private life •colin farrell and fala chen at tiff for ballad of a small ... Read more

#TIFF25: “TRAIN DREAMS” REVIEW

By Nicholas Porteous Train Dreams is the story of Robert Grainier (Joel Edgerton), a guy from the early 1900s. He cuts down trees. He gets married. He has a kid. He lives a life. I'm not going to get any more specific than that because you really need to see Train Dreams to uncover its indescribable depths. It's about the inherent richness of a long life, and the way things come together, or the way they don't. It's poetic, soulful, and intent on defying any pat explanation ... Read more

#TIFF25: “WAYWARD” REVIEW

By Mr. Will Wong One of the Festival's biggest surprises comes out of the Primetime programme in Netflix's WAYWARD, written, directed by and starring Toronto's Mae Martin. The Limited Series centers is set in a small town. We meet a detective Alex (Martin) and their wife Laura (Sarah Gadon) who are expecting a child, as they move back to the town here Laura grew up. We also meet best friends Abby (Sydney Topliffe) and Leila (Alyvia Alyn Lind), who are in the rebellious years of their teens. ... Read more

#TIFF25: “NOUVELLE VAGUE“ REVIEW

By David Baldwin Today, we know (or at least know of) Jean-Luc Godard as one of the most famous and influential directors of all time. But before he became the legend, Godard (Guillaume Marbeck) was just a film critic writing for the prolific Cahiers du cinéma in the late 1950s. He is jealous of his colleagues for having made films, so he sets out to make his own. Despite never having made a feature-length film, Godard wants to do things his way and ... Read more

#TIFF25: “TUNER” REVIEW

By Mr. Will Wong Filmed right here in Toronto, Academy Award winner Daniel Roher gets a full circle moment with his Thriller TUNER premiering at TIFF '25. The Film centers on Niki White (Leo Wooddall), a once aspiring Pianist whose aspirations were curtailed as he developed a condition that made him sensitive to noise. Niki translates his skills unexpectedly, using his special abilities to hear, the help mobsters execute their heists being able to hear safe combinations. He meets a ... Read more