Last month, the Toronto International Film Festival proved it could still shock and awe its faithful festival-goers when it announced that a documentary — on rock gods U2, no less — would open its 36th edition for the first time. With the festival filling out the rest of its slate this week and the opening night only a month away, the intense process of picking your 2011 TIFF flicks has officially begun. Here’s what has us buzzing so far.
Friends With Kids
Starring Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph and Jon Hamm, and directed by Jennifer Westfeldt (Hamm’s real-life girlfriend), think of this movie as a more domestic version of this year’s hugely successful and hugely funny Bridesmaids, where everyone gets married and has babies.
Moneyball
Baseball and Brad Pitt: a winning combination for both dudes and chicks. Based on a true story, it’s the classic underdog sports flick. Add in Jonah Hill for comic relief and Philip Seymour Hoffman for overall awesomeness and this is sure to be a fan favourite.
W.E.
This directorial effort by the one and only Madonna is said to be a compelling romantic drama revolving around the affair between King Edward VIII and American divorcee Wallis Simpson (trivia note: these characters appeared in last year’s big fest hit, The King’s Speech). The film’s costumes are also rumoured to be out of this world, but who are we kidding? We just want to see Madge (too bad she’s not actually in the movie).
The Ides of March
A TIFF favourite, George Clooney returns to the festival with his newest film — a political drama — in which he pulls triple duty as writer-director-star. A celebrity who’s also known for his passion for politics, we’re interested to see Clooney’s take on the hit play by Beau Willimon. Oh yeah, and some hot guy named Ryan Gosling is in it, too.
Elles
Proving that ELLE Magazine isn’t just about fashion, this French film stars Oscar-winner Juliette Binoche as an investigative journalist for the women’s mag. She follows two young female students who turn to prostitution to fund their university studies.
Machine Gun Preacher
The newest film from director Marc Forster is gaining attention as a true story of a former drug dealer who undergoes an astonishing transformation and finds an unexpected calling as a crusader for hundreds of Sudanese orphans. What’s probably most astonishing, though, is the transformation of star Gerard Butler from muscle-head to method actor.
Comic-Con: Episode IV – A Fan’s Hope
Trekkies, Wookies, and other nerds-we-love surely won’t feel alone as Morgan Spurlock (the brave soul of Supersize Me) explores the comic book convention, which was once a fringe-like event and is now a massive pop culture touchstone attended by over 140,000 each year.
Sarah Palin – You Betcha!
Would the real Sarah Palin please stand up? Nick Broomfield makes it his duty to find out everything he can about the hockey mom for this film, which, unfortunately, does not include any cameos by Tina Fey.
God Bless America
Remember Bobcat Goldthwait? He was usually the go-to actor for wacky characters in the ‘80s and is best known for his screechy is-he-drunk-or-is-that-his-real-voice voice. Anyway, now he’s a director, apparently, and his take on the disenfranchisement of all that’s sacred in the USA is sure to be just as wacky and funny as he is.
Lovely Molly
From the director of the huge indie hit The Blair Witch Project comes this chilling story of a newlywed who begins a descent into evil upon returning to her family home, obviously taking the adage “you can’t go home again” to a whole other scary level.