Second day review TIFF 2008
September 6th, 2008
Friday 5 september was my first, real TIFF day, started at 8:15 AM in a line around two blocks near Ryerson University. Half of Canada walked out to see Passchendaele, the debut movie of actor Paul Gross, for me unknown. So this were the results of my second TIFF day:
- Passchendaele is about the Canadian participation in WWI – in Canada still the Great War – the big losses and how it hurts in Canadian society. In spite of this big theme and many beautiful shots it was for me a very disappointing experience: Gross is in his debut the director of the overexaggerated gesture, as he must explain every single point. In someway the theme is like in Plus Tard, je comprendas – how political tensions has influences in the personal life of families – , but the movies couldn’t been more different. The latter is the movie from what is not been said, the former the movie of everything said twice or even thrice. My rating: ** (of possible *****)
- RocknRolla. Wow, what a beat, speed, black humour, what a different look at Ken Livingstone’s London. Though I could not understand half what was said in different kinds of cockney English, I enjoyed the movie from start to finish, as the whole sold out Ryerson Theatre – many fans – did. My rating: ****
- Linha de Passe, Nominated in Cannes for teh Palme d’or, a typical ‘Rotterdam’ movie, about the struggle against poverty in the slumps of Sao Paulo, typecasting a single parent family – off course the mother is the only parent – with 4 different young boys, from 18 years old Ronaldinho look-alike Dario to the rebellious and very black Reginaldo, who melted my heart. My rating: *****
- Knitting, a modern version of an old Chinese tale, the immortal Weaving Maiden and the poor Cowherd. Did not convince me, but maybe because it was the fourth movie of the day and waiting again in a line. My rating: ***
