Heretic: I was glad the trailer for the latest Scott Beck and Bryan Woods only gave you a little Red Riding Hood/Big Bad Wolf idea while concealing some of the greater twists in a film where Hugh Grant delivers a career-standout performance.
Jane Austin Wrecked My Life: This was the TIFF film that I told everyone about who asked what I loved there. It’s a great rom-com as it builds on a love of the history of rom-coms.
Twisters: This was probably the most fun I had in a cinema this year, and I’m still upset I could not take advantage of a 4DX screening even when they brought it back. Even in a regular cinema, the sound mix was so effective it felt like you were in the storm that I was shocked when the Oscar shortlists came out and it missed in the sound category.
The Beast: This near-fi feature surprised me, partially because I went in blind like I often do if it’s not a film I’m bombarded with trailers for at the AMC, but also because I don’t even know if a trailer could have properly prepared me for this film that now having sat on it for almost a year reminds me of some of my favourite Black Mirror episodes, which is probably why I was so drawn to it.
Wicked: I’ve been a fan of the show for most of my life. It was my first Broadway musical; I have a poster signed by the Original Broadway Cast. I have been skeptical about the film existing since forever as its release date got pushed and pushed again with no casting announced, and then it’s split into two parts. I went into the film unsure if I would leave wanting to see part two, the fact that I’m waiting for November to come around again to see the finale means they were making good.
Universal Language: I am still thinking about the set design in this film, of the Kleenex Repository, and of the Tim Horton’s made up as Tehran Tea House. Others are taken with the film too as it made the Oscar shortlist for International Feature Film.
Conclave: Good actors, good dialogue, and a lot of backstabbing by people who claim to be pious, what’s not to enjoy?
Thelma: This is such a funny movie full of heart, and while Thelma may not always be tech-savvy, she’s not shown to be incapable, which is why you are more than ready to ride with her as she goes to get back the money that was conned from her.
Dìdi: I love coming-of-age films, and while I think every narrative can be looked through the lens of coming-of-age because characters transform/evolve, the genre is more defined by films like Dìdi, but within that landscape, you rarely get films centering the male experience or the Asian-American one making Dìdi unique as it deals with themes universally relatable in the awkwardness of growing up.
Nickel Boys: I have never seen another film like it. I think we’ll see other filmmakers try the same or similar style with similarly interior/internal characters, and they say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but I hope RaMell Ross is flattered in other ways this award season.
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