The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has emerged as one of the premiere annual cinematic celebrations in the world. In unique fashion, the downtown festival paints itself as a showcase for the people, where A-list celebrities arrive on the red carpet for gala screenings also open to the general public. Meanwhile, industry production heads often use TIFF as the initial platform from which they launch their Oscar campaigns. The inevitable result is a slew of films—half of which are memorable artistic ventures and half are star-powered crowd pleasers—that shut down the streets of Toronto and studd them with celebrities.
As I tragically missed out on the unmitigated splendor and communal gaiety of Queen’s Frosh Week for the first time in four years, my consolation is a first-time TIFF experience. Not too shabby, methinks. Hundreds upon hundreds of green-shirted volunteers are peppered throughout Toronto’s downtown corridor where every night the likes of Brad Pitt, Charlize Theron and Colin Firth emerge from limos, transforming before your star-struck eyes, from distant idols into tangible people. The festival seizes the city in its grasp for a week and a half, changing the tone of the streets and cultivating an atmosphere of world-class excitement.
As I fake press credentials and tread in the unauthorized areas of the red carpets, there have been moments in which my cavalier charms have smoothed my way into some close encounters with the A-list. Of course, there have also been moments in which such natural charisma proved to be about as effective as Larry David explaining himself, leaving me to be picked up like a rag doll and immediately removed from the premises by some colossal British volunteer named Winston.
That said, my first night at the festival was a success, spent at the Gala Premiere of Guy Ritchie’s bid for a return to respectability, RockNRolla. The director of such genius British underworld action-comedies as Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch has since married Madonna and sunk into a self-indulgent abyss, releasing two movies (Swept Away and Revolver) that might compete with John McCain’s Republican National Convention acceptance speech for entertainment value.
As a huge fan of his earlier outings, I was obviously ecstatic and—along with the rest of the 1,500-person line—fervently hopeful that Ritchie had once again found the sweet spot. After Gerard Butler (300), Jeremy Piven (“Entourage”), Chris “Ludacris” Bridges and Guy Ritchie himself stormed the red carpet of the historic Elgin/Winter Garden Theatre for their North American debut, the test began. What ensued were two hours of razor sharp direction, philosophical ruminations, absurd violence and absolute hilarity.
The dark comedy follows bumbling crooks, small-time music producers, a junkie rock star and a Russian billionaire all in the pursuit of a little action. While not quite at the level of his first two efforts, RockNRolla is definitely a step in the right direction as Ritchie does what he knows best: pure, blistering, crowd-pleasing entertainment.
Although Paul Gross’ noble Canadian war-epic Passchendaele was the official festival kick-off, it was Ritchie’s flick that had the audience in a riot from start to finish, unofficially opening the festival with an emphatic announcement of his return to form.
Check out the next two issues of the Journal for more reviews and continued coverage of TIFF.
Next issue will feature a review from the premiere of the Coen brothers’ Burn After Reading starring Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Tilda Swinton and John Malkovich.
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