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How have the SAG and WGA strikes affected this yearsToronto International Film Festival?
In form, not much.
In certain respects, things even ran smoother without the actors.
In content, though, the strike was all too noticeable.
On the ground, the No.
1 topic of discussion was the curiously low-wattage lineup.
NoMaestro, noPoor Things; in their place,Dumb MoneyandNext Goal Wins.
With no talent attending, the films needed the festivals more than the festivals needed the films.
In practice, results were mixed.
What would the bevy of moonlighting thespians mean for the quality of the festival?
To find out, I made it my mission to watch as many of the actors films as possible.
I wound up seeing eight of them, one shy of the number Id intended.
(ThePitch Perfectstar plays the unlucky contestant, a struggling actress fed up with the male gaze.)
She definitely did not make it easy for herself, one critic friend told me.
Half of the film is a 19th-century love story between Mortensens Danish immigrant and Vicky Kriepss French Canadian feminist.
Still,The Dead Dont Hurtlooks fantastic, especially the western scenery.
Is it faint praise to come out of a film raving about the location scout?
Theres a lot going on!
I was dreading the horror-comedyHell of a Summer, co-directed by Finn Wolfhard and his buddy Billy Bryk.
ButHell of a Summerturned out to be surprisingly watchable, a less annoyingBodies Bodies Bodies.
(The other half were ripped off fromThe Big Lebowski.)
And its not fun.
Say what you will aboutThe Goldfinch, but at least it never did that.
