Oscar buzz for a based-on-true-events drama
Anna Kendrick, Oscar nominated for Up in the Air, has been gaining traction as a young movie performer to watch (the Twilight movies, 50/50) but her musical skills were first revealed nearly fifteen years ago when she earned a Tony nomination as a 12-year-old for High Society on Broadway. She is the anchor of Pitch Perfect, a movie that owes its existence to the success on TV of Glee. This college take on an a-capella group competition is a mild satire that provides a few good laughs and terrific performances by Kendrick, as a DJ who reluctantly joins an all-female singing group, and Rebel Wilson, as a confident, oversized member of that group, the Barden Belles. Look for Kendrick to be declared a major star in the next few years.
Argo **½ (out of four stars)
Directed by Ben Affleck; rated R
Pitch Perfect **½
Directed by Jason Moore; rated PG-13
One of the great pleasures of going to the Toronto International Film Festival, beyond getting a sneak peak at the next big movies of the fall, is hearing filmmakers and actors talk about their process.
If you want to see real ghost hunters in action, join the Ghost-One Paranormal Research Group on the night of Saturday, Oct. 13, from 7-10pm, to investigate the most supernaturally active buildings at Historic Cold Spring Village.
Here is a list of my 10 favorite films from the Toronto Film Fest...
After five days and 18 movies viewed at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival, I’ve got a few favorites and a little Oscar buzz. David O. Russell, writer-director of Three Kings and more recently, The Fighter, introduced his latest, Silver Linings Playbook.
As the summer movie season winds down, the focus switches to the fall and the beginning of the cinematic frenzy known as the Oscar race. The traditional start of the search for Oscar worthy filmmaking begins at the Toronto International Film Festival, which I will be attending for the 25th time.
Back in 1987 Oliver Stone took us to Wall Street for a humdinger of a tale about greed and moral corruption that earned Michael Douglas an Academy Award for his performance as Gordon Gekko. Gekko was the corporate raider who delivered the “Greed is good” mantra.
No matter how much film critics bitch and moan about the state of the movies — and we’ve been doing a lot of bitching and moaning this past summer — we always remain hopeful that the next great movie is right around the corner. With that philosophy in mind, here are a baker’s dozen flicks that I’m looking forward to seeing soon.
This is exactly why I spend my working vacation every year at the Toronto International Film Festival. The 35th TIFF takes place this year from Sept. 9-19. This will be my 23rd trip to cover the global cinematic feast. The festival has grown from an understated, unpretentious celebration of emerging filmmakers, to a film festival that officially launches the Oscar buzz season
Cloud Atlas, a nearly three hour sci-fi epic based on the book of the same title, has an an amazing, trippy science-fiction epic vibe, and stars Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Hugo Weaving, Jim Broadbent, Jim Sturgess, Susan Sarandon and Hugh Grant. The actors play multiple characters in elaborate makeup in six different story lines that travel back and forth in time.
Article:
A Review: Star Trek: Into Darkness
Article:
A Lavish ‘Gatsby’
Article:
Iron Man 3: Awesome Times Two
Article:
‘Pain’ful Indeed
Article:
Cruise Into ‘Oblivion’
Article:
Go, Jackie Go!
Article:
Dinosaurs in 3D
Article:
Dreadful ‘G.I. Joe’
Share this Story: