Here, in my order of preference, are the films I saw at the 2008 festival:

 

·          My Favourite: The Hurt Locker

I had a particularly difficult time picking a favourite this year, as there were really four or five strong movies that I saw, but none that was really outstanding, so I opted for the one that did the best job of grabbing my attention and keeping me engaged throughout. The Hurt Locker, about an American bomb squad in Iraq, definitely did that, to the point where only near the end did I really come back out into being conscious that I was sitting in a theatre watching a movie. It's hard enough to build suspense, but to be able to maintain it so consistently for so long is a remarkable achievement, and The Hurt Locker not only does that, but also provides interesting, realistic, multi-dimensional characters and excellent cinematography.

 

·          Honourable Mention: Flame & Citron

Like The Sun Also Rises last year, this was a movie I picked almost at random only because there was no movie in that time slot that I really wanted to see, but it greatly exceeded my expectations, enough so that I can call it my second-favourite from this year. This taut film noir based (apparently very closely) on the actual exploits of the Danish Resistance in World War II kept me in every bit as much suspense as most Hitchcock films, and its production values were every bit as good as your typical Hollywood period piece (although it's actually a Danish film, not so surprisingly). I think it's fair to say it stands in good stead with such Hitchcock thrillers as Torn Curtain and Saboteur, and such period dramas as The Untouchables and Road To Perdition.

 

I also recommend:

·          Slumdog Millionaire – For the fourth time (in ten years of going to the festival…a good batting average, considering I can only see fewer than 10% of the films in any given year) I got to see the People's Choice Award winner, but for the first time I'm not calling it my favourite. It's not difficult to see why it won (and appears to be the favourite to win the best picture Oscar) with its uplifting underdog-making-good plotline and the always-entertaining style of director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, Sunshine, 28 Days Later) and I'm certainly not saying I didn't like it, because I actually recommend it quite highly. My problems with it are strictly with the screenplay; it's just that I felt that the plot was a little too formulaic, and while The Hurt Locker and Flame & Citron worked hard to build suspense, Slumdog Millionaire's script seemed to often undermine it, and that made the difference for me.

·          Rocknrolla – Guy Ritchie's latest sees him return to the pure British gangster genre and this is a fine but not particularly innovative contribution to it. It's certainly entertaining, with plenty of cool Ritchie flair, but it's not as clever as Snatch.

·          Unmistaken Child – The lone documentary on my schedule this year follows a Buddhist monk as he searches for the reincarnation of his master, a high-ranking lama. (He gets his marching orders from the Dalai Lama himself.) The idea of taking a two- or three-year old child from his family to be raised in the monastery seems like a rather barbaric concept to our western eyes, but there are some scenes here which, if truly unscripted, uncoached, and unprompted seem pretty darn convincing. I found it fascinating, and I'd certainly recommend it for anyone with any interest in Buddhism or eastern culture.

·          $9.99 – This stop-motion animation feature is based on several short stories by an Israeli author, and it certainly has a literary feel. It takes good advantage of the opportuinities of animation, while still portraying a very realistic world. All put together, the whole package makes for a philosophical headscratcher with an emphasis on various types of relationships (e.g. boy/girl, father/son, brother/brother) that leaves you with plenty to think about afterward.

·          Sauna – This Finnish horror movie about a Swedish/Russian expedition to mark their border after a war in the 16th century impressed me with its production values, but thinking back upon it, there really wasn't a lot to it, so it's really its resourcefulness and cleverness that I should be impressed by. There's not much in the way of heart-pounding suspense and jarring reveals like Hollywood horror flicks, but there is a foreboding atmosphere and an interesting moral/religious subtext that makes this the kind of psychological horror film I tend to enjoy.

·          Tale 52 – I don't want to reveal too much about this Greek film, but it certainly evokes such great dark psychological films as Repulsion and The Machinist. It's not as good as those, though, so I would definitely recommend seeing those above this one, and I would not recommend this for the faint of heart.

 

Also worth seeing:

·          My Mother, My Bride, and I – I was actually very surprised and impressed by the intelligent writing and courageous acting in the first two thirds of this German movie about a mama's boy who goes to Romania to buy himself a wife, but the third act blew the deal for me, as I found it overwrought and unbelievable. I should qualify that by saying that there was apparently a mistake in the subtitling (as the director revealed and apologized for in the Q&A afterward) which contributed significantly to the way the movie lost me, but even allowing for that, I don't think it's quite cohesive enough for me to recommend.

·          Treeless Mountain – This South Korean film about two girls separated from their mother has a cinema verite feel and an unhurried pace, which won't be to everyone's taste, but I liked the way that it gave the viewer the girls` viewpoint and maintained unpredictability.

·          Uncertainty – In a similar way to Sliding Doors, this movie explores two possible timelines in the lives of a young couple in New York. I very much enjoyed the first half or so (any movie that begins on the Brooklyn Bridge gets a head start in my affections) but then somewhere in the second half it got to the point where it felt to me like a stale acting exercise within a stale writing exercise. It did get tied together reasonably well by the end, almost well enough (but not quite) for me to recommend it.

·          Management – With virtually any other cast, the wheels would have come off this ambitious script and it would have become a ludicrous farce, but fortunately the filmmakers got Jennifer Aniston, Steve Zahn, and Woody Harrelson, and they manage to hold it together at the seams and turn this into the fairly charming romantic comedy it strives to be.

·          Afterwards – This well-made Canadian film about a man with the ability to see when people's death is imminent strikes a good balance between being mysterious and making a supernatural premise credible, and features a pretty decent plot. It could have moved a little faster I suppose, but I think ultimately the main reason I'm not ranking it higher is just that the subject matter (death) is inherently dark and depressing, so it's difficult to get excited about it.

·          Passchendaele – Although it's slathered with extra cheeseball and schmaltz, I actually found myself quite enjoying Paul Gross's big-budget World War I story, up until the climax which made very little sense to me and undermined much of what credibility it still had. I've read some criticism that it's hardly a war movie at all, because only relatively small portions of the movie are set on the battlefield, but I actually saw that as one of the movie's strengths, because it does a great job portraying the war on the home front as well. (It also scored some bonus points with me because of the not-so-subtle fact that the small-minded bigot in Calgary is named Mr. Harper.) It may not be the Great Canadian Movie, but at the very least we now have a genuine Canadian war epic we can call our own.

·          The Brothers Bloom – Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo star as con men and Rachel Weisz as their mark in this sprawling fantastical adventure. I always enjoyed adventure movies like this as a preteen and teenager, so this appealed to me on that level and will probably appeal most to that demographic (it's mature enough that it should probably be the upper end of that demographic) but I guess I'm getting too old and unwilling to suspend my disbelief, because I felt that this one wore thinner as it went on, and was tattered and threadbare by the end. I want to give director Rian Johnson his props, because the playful tone was great, and the actors did a fine job too (I particularly liked Rachel Weisz's guileless heiress) but I think the script was just too far over the top for me to recommend it.

·          In the Shadow of the Naga – It's a little transparent and predictable, but this Thai Buddhist morality tale of a heist gone wrong works well enough as a piece of entertainment with its heart in the right place.

·          Kabuli Kid – Made in Kabul, this is the story of a cab driver who one day finds a baby left in his cab by a burqa-clad woman. How he deals with it provides a glimpse of contemporary life in Kabul and the associated challenges. I guess I was hoping for something more than that, so I came away slightly disappointed by its simplicity, but really there's nothing wrong with this earnest and forthright film.

·          A Film With Me In It – I wasn't sure what to expect from this Irish film, so I was caught off guard when it revealed itself as a dark farce, but that's a good thing in my view. I'm not generally a big fan of farce, but this one does a very good job of walking that line between funny and ridiculous. If you like your humour jet black, this is a good one for you.

·          PA-RA-DA – Apparently based on a true story, this film about a French social worker who travels to Romania to work with street kids there is by turns inspiring and devastating. If I wanted to be disparaging about it I could say it had a bit of an after-school special feel to it, but shot in a verite style with many actors who themselves are or were street kids, it has a gritty realism to it that elevates it above that, and really, I want only to encourage its laudable goals.

·          New York, I Love You – An omnibus film tribute to New York from the same people who made Paris, Je T'aime, I should preface this by saying that it was presented as a work in progress, and the producers fell all over themselves in introducing the screening asking that nobody review the film based on the fact that it wasn't finished. However, I wanted to include it on my list somehow, and this is where I've ranked it, giving it the benefit of the doubt where it seemed like a bit of spit and polish would make a difference. Certainly both the cast and the filmmakers they had involved are very impressive, and there are some real nuggets of greatness (the sequence with Cloris Leachman and Eli Wallach was a standout for me) but there were some real clunkers too, so a mixed bag overall.

·          Toronto Stories – Another omnibus film bringing together the talents of four Canadian filmmakers (David Weaver, Sook-Yin Lee, Sudz Sutherland, and Aaron Woodley) this one is more consistent and cohesive, but a little less interesting too. Now that I'm reading that description again, perhaps the movies reflect the cities themselves in that way…although I think it's moreso a matter of how the city is used in each movie; New York, I Love You would not work very well set elsewhere, whereas Toronto Stories would not be much different if it was set in Ottawa or Vancouver.

 

I don't recommend:

·          Two-Legged Horse – Made in Afghanistan, apparently at great peril to the entire cast and crew, this Iranian film seems to attempt to use a crippled boy's cruelty to his mentally challenged but able-bodied servant as a metaphor for man's wider inhumanity to man, and I think it works to some extent, but overall I think the darkness and meanness that pervade the whole film outweigh the benefit most people will get from it. A much better film along similar lines is one I saw last year called Buddha Collapsed Out of Shame, which was actually made by this filmmaker's sister. (They're both from the prolific and famous Makhmalbaf family.) I would definitely recommend that one over this one.

·          Adam Resurrected – Jeff Goldblum stars as a holocaust survivor living in an Israeli asylum in this odd character study. Although he initially seems to have it together better than even most of the staff, his weaknesses come to the fore as the movie progresses. I didn't care for the Altman-esque sound editing and Goldblum's Adam grated on me before long, with his nonstop droning monologue.

 

Avoid:

·          Parc – Piers Handling's precis in the programme book convinced me to go see this by calling it surreal and invoking David Lynch, but he really oversold this plodding and confusing French film. It somewhat succeeds as an indictment of suburbia, but there seemed to be little logic to the structure, which obscured the plot rather than advancing it, and I found the pace and tone often mind-numbing.

 

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