Ten years in and the Toronto After Dark Film Festival has become something of a behemoth on the Toronto festival scene. This year's iteration is already under way, and they aren't having trouble moving tickets. Screenings are back at the Scotiabank Theatre again this year.
If you get a chance to go, do so. It's still a joyous atmosphere full of converted genre fans. Even though the movies aren't always great — although the lineup last year included the near-masterpiece The Babadook — you will enjoy them for a little more than they are worth because of the shared experience.
After a sold out opening night of Tales of Halloween and The Hallow, there are still some tickets left (at press time) for Synchronicity at 7 p.m. this evening as part of sci-fi night. It's good if you take their word for it.
Like Blade Runner? You'll love SYNCHRONICITY. See this smart sci-fi thriller! Trailer: https://t.co/hGnwWsZhAe Tix: https://t.co/TwwR1kdCwC
— Toronto After Dark (@TADFilmFest) October 14, 2015
Hyperbole aside… it does have Michael Ironside. Lazer Team will follow it up at 9:30 p.m. with director Matt Hullum in attendance. Check out the full schedule here for more details on zombie night, A Christmas Horror Story and a second screening of The Hallow.
Love Exists: The Films of Maurice Pialat
The way the timing works out I would be remiss not to note that TIFF's retrospective on French director Maurice Pialat begins Oct. 22. There will be more on this series next week as we will take a look at the bulk of the slate, but here's a look at what comes out at the top of the lineup.
Pialat was a bit of a cranky uncle figure, off to the side of the French New Wave, but greatly admired by the likes of Francois Truffaut. His commitment to realism separated him some from that gang of young genre-bending experimenters. There’s also the ever-present grumpy, abusive patriarchal figure in his films that gives them an echo of past generations, even then, and their reputation for an underlying meanness.
His films also tackle aimlessness and ennui expertly however, and when he does punctuate malaise with spurts of violence, it comes out tellingly frank. His work hasn't ever really climbed into the pantheon the way it might have I suppose, but this retrospective can't hurt his cause. He's always been a divisive figure, loved by some, including stars like Catherine Deneuve and Gérard Depardieu (the latter maybe not someone you want as a character reference), but was booed at Cannes in 1987 when his Under the Sun of Satan (Oct. 23 at 6: 30 p.m.) won the Palme D'Or.
That film will be introduced by his widow Silvie Pialat (now a noted producer of films like Stranger by the Lake) who wrote the adapted screenplay. She will also introduce his feature debut L'enfance nue Oct 22 at 6:30 p.m. It's a masterful character study of a volatile child who is shuffled between foster families. Truffaut co-produced the film but it is much tougher than his seminal The 400 Blows, even though it occupies some shared ground. I think it is essential viewing.
His film Loulou (Oct 24 3:30 p.m.) is still an interesting exploration of wandering sexual desire. It benefits some from strong turns by French stars Isabelle Huppert and the aforementioned Mr. Depardieu. I thought it might date worse, but it is still effective, even with Pialat's looming old-fashioned mindset. It was another collaboration with Arlette Langmann, who co-wrote L'enfance nue, and collaborated again with Pialat on what was probably his best film. But more on that next week.
Image: Film Reference Library
Toronto Screengrab of the Week
Last week was Bride of Chucky, but we're still aiming to scare you in October…
This 1961 gimmicky creeper is getting the deluxe 3-D restoration treatment at the TIFF Bell Lightbox and premiers Oct. 23. Like I just wrote, tune in next week for more…
