TIFF Next Wave
This is the fifth year that TIFF has run its youth focused mini-fest (Feb. 12 to 14). The idea is that high-schoolers, or to 14 to 18-year-olds, get a peek at a selection of indie films offered for free (for the most part) on TIFF Bell Lightbox screens. This year there are some classic films dealing with teen angst like Ghost World (Feb. 13 3:00 p.m.) and Wes Anderson’s debut feature Bottle Rocket (Feb. 13 12:00 p.m.) to sweeten the pot.
Among the more recently made films screening on Saturday Feb. 13 are a documentary called Takin’ Place (3:30 p.m.) directed by Cyrus Dowlatshahi about the South Side Chicago neighbourhood of Englewood. The area has been dubbed “Chi-raq” — as in the Spike Lee film from 2015 which had its detractors but also some very impassioned praise — Takin’ Place meets the denizens of a neighbourhood ripped apart by crime and violence and chronicles their attempts to get through it all. It’s a memorable human portrait.
There’s also a screening of the Best Foreign Film nominee at the Oscars, Mustang (9:00 p.m.) and Michel Gondry’s new film Microbe and Gasoline (6:00 p.m.) Saturday. On Sunday there's another slate, but among the films is Chloé Zhao’s new offering about two siblings, a brother and sister of the Oglala nation, living on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota called Songs My Brother Taught Me (6:30 p.m.).
Saturday morning features a “talent lab” for aspiring directors while tonight at 7:00 p.m. is a riff on battle of the bands where six local groups from high-schools play film scores they created to a pre-selected short film.
It all takes place at TIFF Bell Lightbox and the full lineup is available here.
Screening Roundup
The late David Bowie is getting a belated film send-off as there are couple of screenings of his most-memorable on-screen turn as Jareth in Jim Henson’s Labyrinth coming up. One is at the Royal Feb. 16 at 7:30 p.m. and the other is at the Bloor Gladstone Library tonight at 6:00 p.m.
If you have seen Labyrinth too many times, The Royal is showing Todd Haynes’ examination of 70s glam rock and fictional rock star Brian Slade (hmm…who could that be?) Velvet Goldmine starring Ewan McGregor, Christian Bale and Jonathan Rhys-Myers. Saturday Feb. 13 at 7:00 p.m. and Sunday Feb. 14 at 9:00 p.m.
Some great options coming up at the Revue Cinema this week as well as Art for Eternity counterprograms Valentine’s Day with Last Tango in Paris on Feb. 14 at 9:00 p.m. and Geoff Pevere looks at another of the great screenwriters, Ben Hecht, with Howard Hawks’ original 1932 Scarface on Feb. 15 at 6:45 p.m.
Another Valentine’s Day possibility is a ‘Galantine's Day' screening of Ridley Scott’s Thelma & Louise Feb. 13 at 11:15 p.m. at Rainbow Cinemas Market Square.
Finally for horror aficionados, Rue Morgue is hosting a showing of Don Coscarelli's Phantasm II in honour of the recently departed Angus Scrimm Feb. 18 at 8:00 p.m.
