#TIFF25: “DEAD MAN’S WIRE”

By Amanda Gilmore

Director Gus Van Sant returns to telling stories about real world events with this unbelievable true crime story. Dead Man’s Wire recreates the fascinating true story of the 1977 kidnapping that made aspiring Indianapolis entrepreneur Tony Kiritsis (Bill Skarsgård) into an eccentric outlaw folk hero.

Tony feels swindled by Meridian Mortgage Company. A company he partnered with to open a local shopping centre. After years of hollow meetings, Tony’s had enough. So, he takes Meridian Mortgage Company president Richard Hall (Dacre Montgomery), who happens to be the Meridian founder’s son, hostage. He refuses to let him go unless he gets a public apology and his money back.

Van Sant transports us into 70s Indianapolis. The grainy cinematography, soundtrack, and costume design make us time-travel. It’s a time before social media. When primetime news anchors and radio jockeys were household names.

Dead Man’s Wire is a retelling of this strange kidnapping. Van Sant and Screenwriter Austin Kolodney don’t want to tell you how to feel. Instead, they give you the facts. This allows us to decide for ourselves if we judge Tony or the privileged elite. Tony became an outlaw folk hero for some in ’77 for what he did. How he stood up for himself against the corporate elite. Here, the filmmakers allow us to see him similarly, but also for his faults.

At the centre of this outstanding crime thriller is Skarsgård, who has easily given one of his finest performances. He’s a bucket full of charisma that allows us to empathize with Tony just as the citizens in Indianapolis did during those 3 days in ’77. There is an outstanding supporting performance from Coleman Domingo, who plays a pivotal role as a radio disc jockey who gets pulled into Tony’s negotiations.

Dead Man’s Wire screens at TIFF ’25:

Sun. Sept 7 at 12:00 PM at VISA Screening Room at the Princess of Wales

Mon. Sept 8 at 3:30 PM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto

Thurs. Sept 11 at 12:30 PM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto

Sun. Sept 14 at 6:50 PM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto

#TIFF25: “BLACK RABBIT” REVIEW

By Mr. Will Wong

BLACK RABBIT has all the makings of prestige television and it premieres as part of this year’s Primetime programme. The suspenseful upcoming Netflix release sees among others, star Jason Bateman and Laura Linney taking turns directing episodes of this Limited Series.

We meet Restauranteur Jake (Jude Law) thriving with this Michelin-starred establishment, for which the Series is named, and he’s about to expand further. The New York Times is about to do a feature, and in comes his troubled brother Vince (Jason Bateman), who is dealing with vices and debt. His resurfacing could mean everything Jake working for getting destroyed as seams begin to split beneath him and other problems come to light and chaos begins to unravel.

While it takes a moment to get going, we were fully immersed by the second episode, as we witness for Jake how we can rise above the soil, though sometimes we are unable to escape our roots. Yet another tremendous performance by this talented Ensemble, led by Law and Bateman, the latter flexing his ability in a role unlike any other he’s played.

Thankfully, the Series arrives on the streaming service September 18, 2025 but those of us who can’t wait, can see it at TIFF ’25 as follows:

Sunday, September 7
TIFF Lightbox
Premium
Closed captions (CC). Audio description (AD)
3:30 pm

Monday, September 8
Scotiabank Theatre Toronto
Closed captions (CC), Audio description (AD)
9:30 pm

#TIFF25: “ROOFMAN” REVIEW

By Nicholas Porteous

In Derek Cianfrance‘s Roofman, the nicest robber you’ve ever met (Channing Tatum), makes a temporary home inside a Toys R Us, and manages to fall for one of the employees (Kirsten Dunst). How will he juggle a growing relationship with a single mom and avoid getting caught in her place of work? If you find the premise unbelievable, you’re wrong. It’s a true story.

Roofman is a joyfully unexpected genre hybrid. It’s a romcom about two divorcees starting over, it’s a true crime story about a one-of-a-kind criminal, and it’s a Mrs. Doubtfire-esque thriller, where the tension around Dunst discovering Tatum’s true identity grows as their relationship–and his relationship with her family–deepens. Tatum, as Jeffrey Manchester, is one of the most entertaining characters in recent memory. He’s so resourceful, so endlessly sharp and inventive, and it’s a pleasure to watch him outsmart virtually every situation he’s thrown into. It’s impossible not to root for the guy with his back quite literally against the wall, and to wonder where he’s going next, or how he can possibly reconcile his criminal status with his deep-rooted family man instincts. He’s also wonderfully goofy. Cianfrance, known for his dark and tragic lead male characters, has found a comic muse in Manchester, who also fits perfectly into his filmic lineage of complex and often contradictory personalities.

The ensemble is absolutely stacked. Peter Dinklage is a standout as an insufferable Toys R Us manager. Ben Mendelsohn is unexpectedly wholesome as the local church pastor. LaKeith Stanfield, Uzo Aduba, and Juno Temple all turn in memorable work. Kirsten Dunst brings warmth and dimension to Leigh Wainscott that feels all her own. She deserves a bit more development in the screenplay, but the chemistry between Dunst and Tatum largely fills in any gaps.

Roofman succeeds as a comedy, a romance, a moving story of found family, and an unpredictable crime saga. It’s a brilliant and surprising genre mashup for Cianfrance, and a worthy addition to your list of must-sees at this year’s Festival.

Roofman screens at TIFF ’25:

Sun. Sept 7 at 10:00 AM at Roy Thomson Hall

Fri. Sept 12 at 3:00 PM at TIFF Lightbox

Sat. Sept 13 at 9:20 PM at Scotiabank Theatre

Sun. Sept. 14 at 9:15 AM at Scotiabank Theatre

#TIFF25: “THE MAN IN MY BASEMENT” REVIEW

By Amanda Gilmore

Willem Dafoe plays a mysterious man who rents Corey Hawkins’ basement in this unsettling adaptation of Walter Mosley’s novel of the same name.

Charles Blakey’s (Hawkins) life is falling apart since his mother passed away. He fills himself up with booze, can’t get a job and worst of all: he can’t afford to keep the family home. This sends him on a quest to search through family heirlooms to see if anything is worth money. He quickly realizes that selling antiques may take a while to turn a profit. So when the mysterious Anniston Bennet (Dafoe) knocks on his door proposing a handsome sum to rent his basement, Charles can’t help but accept.

Director and Co-Writer Nadia Latif unnervingly adapts the novel by fabled mystery writer Walter Mosley (who happens to also be co-writer of this adaptation). Latif uses imagery and sound design to evoke a chilling atmosphere where tension lurks in every corner. With each revelation that Charles comes to, the more eerie The Man in My Basement becomes.

As the story unfolds, mask heirlooms are discovered. They have a deep effect on the psyche of Charles. When he wears them, he is mentally taken to his past. A past that he’s buried deep within himself. His history is further brought to his surface through his conversations with Anniston in the basement. Anniston’s dark history unsettles Charles but also reminds him of something within himself.

The Man in My Basement takes a little while to kick into high gear. It becomes enthralling once the two men begin their conversations in the basement. We learn about the history of both regrets, decisions, and choices. Dafoe and Hawkins give intense performances that anchor this story about two very different people confronting their own evil.

The Man in My Basement screens at TIFF ’25:

Fri. Sept 5 at 9:30 PM at TIFF Lightbox

Sat. Sept 6 at 3:30 PM at TIFF Lightbox

Sun. Sept 14 at 10:15 AM at TIFF Lightbox

#TIFF25: “THE LOST BUS” REVIEW

By Amanda Gilmore

Director Paul Greengrass brings the events that transpired during the California Camp Fire to the big screen. Greengrass and Co-Writer Brad Ingelsby adapt Lizzie Johnson’s non-fiction book, Paradise: One Town’s Struggle to Survive an American Wildfire. Here, they focus on one story during that disaster. A busload of school children, their teacher Amy (America Ferrera), and the bus driver Kevin (Matthew McConaughey).

In a rush to return home to his sick son, Kevin instead accepts a call requesting help for 23 children stranded at Ponderosa Elementary School. While on the road attempting to get the children back to their parents, the disaster escalates. And they find themselves stranded in the heat of the blaze.

The Lost Bus may be a docudrama, but it’s shot like a horror/disaster film. Greengrass introduces us to the beginning of the fire with ominous music and a collapsing electric pylon that causes a cable to fall to the ground. From then on, different viewpoints from first responders and citizens show the horror exploding due to the fire becoming uncontrollable. We actually hear the decision was made to stop fighting the fire and save as many lives as they can.

Greengrass literally engulfs each frame in flames. Danger is around every corner. There is a sense of urgency throughout the runtime that is thanks to quick edits and camera work that thrusts audiences into the horrific tragedy. Especially when we are with the children on the bus. There are lots of VFX being used here. For the most part, they achieve the goal of transporting the audience into the fire. However, there are times when the visuals appear too artificial. Especially when they are shown next to actual live footage of the blaze.

The Lost Bus pays homage to the everyday heroes during the California Camp Fire. It also features indelible performances from its entire cast. Particularly, the formidable Ferrera as a level-headed teacher fighting her own instincts to show her fear, and a strong McConaughey as a man searching for redemption.

The Lost Bus screens at TIFF ’25:

Fri. Sept 5 at 9:30 PM at VISA Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre

Sat. Sept 6 at 9:45 PM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto

Fri. Sept 12 at 8:15 PM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto

Sat. Sept 13 at 1:30 PM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto

#TIFF25: DAY THREE SIGHTINGS – CHANNING TATUM, KIRSTEN DUNST, CHRIS EVANS, ANYA TAYLOR-JOY, RIZ AHMED, COOPER HOFFMAN AND MORE

sorry! we thought we posted this but it remained in drafts! these days have been rather long and exhausting!

Some sightings from day three!

•victor garber at tiff for you had to be there
•tom blyth and david jonsson at tiff for wasteman
•riz ahmed at tiff for hamlet
•kirsten dunst, channing tatum, and dwrek cianfrance at tiff for roofman
•diego boneta at tiff for killing castro
•andrew barth feldman, cooper hoffman, maude apatow and nico parker at tiff for poetic license
•imogen poots, tessa thompson, nina hoss, tom sturridge at tiff for hedda
•bobby deol at tiff for the monkey in a cage
•padma lakshmi, jeremy renner, andrew scott, toni collette (here fpr waywsrd) at tiff celebrating wake up dead man: a knives out mystery
•chris evans, anya taylor-joy, romain gavras, jade croot, m.i.a. and yung lean at tiff for sacrifice (chats coming soon).

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Live from the Red Carpet for SACRIFICE!

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#TIFF25: “JOHN CANDY: I LIKE ME” REVIEW

By Mr. Will Wong

With the distinction of being tiff50′s Opening Night Gala, there couldn’t have been a more worthy selection than JOHN CANDY: I LIKE ME, giving a true national hero his long due flowers.

Actor/Director Colin Hanks, with celebrated Ryan Reynolds among others, listed as Producer, pays tribute to this icon in this Documentary. Often when we think of John Candy and his legacy, we think big laughs and big personality, but it is via a star-studded lineup for talking heads here that we get a more intimate glimpse into Candy and what made him tick, in addition to his struggles and pain. Names like Candy‘s son Chris, Steve Martin, Tom Hanks, Martin Short, Bill Murray, Macaulay Culkin, Catherine O’Hara, and Eugene Levy speak candidly with anecdotes that paint a picture of a sensitive, generous, and caring man who was a people-pleaser, delivering what audiences wanted and expected of him. Even if he was at odds sometimes with the work he had to do.

The Film explores the topic of his appearance constantly being mentioned and scrutinized, when he saw others beyond their shells and exteriors, never quite getting that same level of empathy back. And of course, having lost his father at a young age, he operated with the dark cloud of maybe him suffering a similar fate as well, which is so tragic.

JOHN CANDY: I LIKE ME is the public eulogy this icon didn’t receive after his premature passing and Hanks nobly takes the time to ensure that his story is told on forever to a new generation.

JOHN CANDY: I LIKE ME screens at TIFF ’25 as follows:

Thursday, September 4
VISA Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre
Premium
Closed captions (CC),
Audio description (AD)
6:00 pm

Roy Thomson Hall
Premium
Closed captions (CC),
Audio description (AD)
8:00 pm

Thursday, September 11
Scotiabank Theatre Toronto
Closed captions (CC),
Audio description (AD)
9:00 pm

Friday, September 12
Scotiabank Theatre Toronto
Closed captions (CC),
Audio description (AD)
9:00 am

Saturday, September 13
Scotiabank Theatre Toronto
Closed captions (CC),
Audio description (AD)
9:00 am

Sunday, September 14
Scotiabank Theatre Toronto
Closed captions (CC),
Audio description (AD)
9:25 am

#TIFF25: “CHRISTY” REVIEW

By David Baldwin

Christy Salters (Sydney Sweeney) went from being a college basketball player in the late 1980s to being one of the pioneers of women’s boxing, going by the nickname “The Coal Miner’s Daughter”. Behind closed doors however, Christy was enduring abuse and degradation at the hands of her 25-years-older husband and boxing coach Jim Martin (Ben Foster).

For much of its running time, CHRISTY is your standard sports Biopic. It is based on a true story, and it hits all of the triumphant, disappointing and inspiring beats you expect. Co-Writer/Director David Michôd does not stray too far from the formula and does a more than admirable job telling Christy’s story. When the film is not focusing on boxing, it pivots into being the story of a woman who does not fit in and is made to suffer for it. While I wish Michôd and his Co-Writer Mirrah Foulkes went a little past the surface level with many softened elements, they wisely maintain restraint when it comes to the scenes of abuse (although one scene is just as shockingly brutal as it needs to be).

Though the supporting cast is uniformly solid – with Foster delivering another impeccable performance as a really shitty and deeply disturbed individual, Merritt Wever nailing some truly devastating scenes, Katy O’Brian stealing scenes left and right, and Chad L. Coleman positively slaying as Don King – the film belongs to Sweeney. She gives an absolute knockout performance as Christy, landing each right hook harder than the last both figuratively and literally. Her alternatively physical and vulnerable work here is some of the strongest of her career and should easily silence all of her haters.

CHRISTY screens at TIFF ‘25:

Fri. Sept 5 at 2:00 PM at VISA Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre

Sat. Sept 6 at 11:00 AM at VISA Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre

#TIFF25: “IF I HAD LEGS I’D KICK YOU” REVIEW

By Amanda Gilmore

Writer-Director Mary Bronstein brings us into a mother’s escalating anxieties in this claustrophobic pressure-cooker.

Linda (Rose Byrne) can’t catch a break. Her husband is away on a work trip, leaving her to care for their sick daughter while still working daily as a mental health counsellor. It’s clear from the jump that Linda is struggling with debilitating mental health issues herself. And if the pressures of her daily life weren’t enough, the ceiling of her apartment literally caves in. Thus, forcing Linda and her daughter out of their home and into a motel. This causes her mental health to spiral out of control.

Motherhood has never been depicted quite as honestly, or harshly, as under Bronstein’s meticulous vision. We follow Linda as she suffers through crippling anxieties that come along with being a mother of a sick child. Someone who has no control over the health and well-being of their kin. This lack of control extends to her own life and the apartment she resides in.

Bronstein transports the audience into Linda’s mind. Extreme close-ups create a claustrophobia that parallels the chamber in which Linda is being held captive by her mind. It’s an incredible feat of filmmaking to be able to place your audience in the psyche of the character. This is integral. Without forcing the audience to empathize with Linda, they wouldn’t lock in with her for the 2-hour runtime. Linda makes some questionable decisions—downright wrong ones. But Bronstein has allowed us to feel her agony. 

At the centre is the greatest performance of Byrne’s career. She’s fearless as a woman having the walls around her come crumbling down. Someone drowning and not knowing how to come up for air. It’s desperate, raw, and heartbreaking.

If I Had Legs I’d Kick You screens at TIFF:

Fri. Sept 12 at 8:30 PM at Royal Alexandra Theatre

Sat. Sept 13 at 12:00 PM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto

#TIFF25: “SOUND OF FALLING” REVIEW

By Amanda Gilmore

Mascha Schilinski’s Cannes Jury Prize–winner follows the lives of four women from different generations who all lived on the same farm in northern Germany. This particular farm sits on a tumultuous region, one that saw both world wars and defined East and West Germany. The four generations of women are: Alma (Hanna Heckt) in the early 20th century, Erika (Lea Drinda) in the 1940s, Angelika (Lena Urzendowsky) in the 1980s, and Lenka (Laeni Geiseler) in the present.

Sound of Falling braids past and present throughout the narratives and timeframes. We watch as these women live and struggle with facing the confines and cages their world has thrust them into. Regardless of the decade, one thing is certain: each of these women is under the suppression of men, both within their homes and at large. Some are forced to be servants, while others are looked at as objects.

Schilinski uses emotive and cerebral filmmaking that realizes on the visuals to tell the story. The dread that follows these women in their lives is mirrored by the incredible cinematography by Fabian Gamper. The camera feels like a ghost following these women and girls. Haunting them. It creates an atmosphere that oozes with dread at every frame.

The first hour takes a bit to settle into. It feels almost meditative. We are waiting to see what story unfolds. Once we understand the lives of these women, we see the story for what it is. It’s a film that touches on its country’s troubled history while remaining intimate.

Sound of Falling screens at TIFF:

Sun. Sept 7 at 5:45 PM at TIFF Lightbox

Mon. Sept 8 at 7:00 PM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto

Sat. Sept 13 at 7:30 PM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto