Day 1: September 8

Anita Wong, the faithful assistant to MM's Colin Geddes, summed up the experience of the first day back in the most succinct way - "It's like the first day back at camp." Friends that you spend many sleepless nights with once a year, the chaos and excitement of the first day, the bleary-eyed exhilaration of the middle spell, and the nostalgia and exhaustion of the final stretch. You run into familiar faces, people with whom you've shared those darkened rooms. Friends, sure, but occasional friends, some-time friends, friends for just a few days a year. For most it just wouldn't be the same if you saw them all the time, there's something made special by the fact that the friendship is fleeting.

The morning began way too early, stumbling into the press office by 8am to scramble for screening tix. Unfortunately, even the reps hadn't got their tix yet, so it was partially in vain. The early wake up made me forget my lanyard, necessitating a quick trip back home to pick it up. Day one, hour one, and I'm already a mess.

The tendency for the fest to be top heavy has continued over to this year - since Sept 11th, more and more of the fest is geared to press and industry that come up for the first weekend (post-Venice) alone. You'll see a higher percentage of "name" films in the first few days, with the later screenings devoted to the (ample) Canadian content that litters every festival docket.

That being said, the organization seems to be running on all cylinders, and they've added a number of additional screenings for films that they're assuming will be popular.

A trivial note: for the first time, I'm actually posting mid day at a fest via wireless internet. Thanks to my trusty laptop, I've finally reached the late '90s, and am able to post the first few reviews from the comfort of a (poor) Indian restaurant on Yonge Stree. Go, 802.11b!

The Devil And Daniel Johnston
Directed by: Jeff Feurzeig

Grade: A-

This is a stylish and compelling biopic of the celebrated underground musician. Johnston's music is part nursery rhyme, part primal scream, his haunting falsetto accompanied by any number of poorly tuned instruments, captured on a simple cassette tape. References are often made to Dylan's poetic folk sensibilities, or Brian Wilson's proclivity for madness.

The film does a nice job of tracing his life, never shying away from the more painful moments, but not becoming stuck in them either. The doc is extremely well shot, with a fine visual flair. The interview with the lead singer of Porno for Pyros while getting his gnarly teeth drilled was a particular stroke of brilliance.

Of further note was a scene where a collection of self-appointed NYC underground music experts watch as Daniel literally has a breakdown on stage, the audience staring, uncomfortable, unsure whether they are part of some joke or actually witnessing the disintegration of their entertainer's sanity. You feel almost that he's being teased onstage by this audience, their laughter and soft applause masking the discomfort of the avant garde.

While a bit draggy in places, the film nonetheless holds up quite well as an enjoyable biopic of a underground musical madman. The "genius" moniker does get dangled a bit too often, there's certainly enough beauty and power in Daniel Jonston's music to sustain this fine biopic.

Workingman's Death
Directed by: Michael Glawogger

Grade: A-

The film has a relatively simple premise - follow a number of groups of people around the world who, in the words of one of them, have "shitty jobs". Turn the camera on, let them do their thing, and revel in just how much worse they are then poor little film critics sitting in a darkened room with too little sleep. From coal miners eeking out ore on their stomachs to a Chinese steel worker, each segment is told in chapter-like segments. The bleakness of the surroundings is often blackly comedic. Moments of lightness include a wedding with a taxi limo taking the bride and groom to a Soviet-era worker's statue, or the sight of tourists ambling next to sulfur miners schlepping 120+ kg loads in Indonesia.

On one level the film works as the bastard child of Discovery Chanel's "How It's Made". It's as if there was some weird science fiction film where instead of robots taking over the world, all robots had instead migrated to the rich countries while the poor ones still did things the old fashioned (read: hellish) way. It has some breathtaking imagery, from the golden sulfur mounds to the scarlet blood of the Nigerian butchery. It's like Koyaanisqatsi with cattle slaughtering.

All in all, it's a rewarding film with some elemenents I may never forget.

Shopgirl
Directed by: Anand Tucker

Grade: B-

Shopgirl is a new L.A. story, a modern love triangle tale from a screenplay by Steve Martin, based on one of his novellas. Unlike the more campy or slaptick films of his past, Martin's later work seems to be far more contemplative and introspective. This film is no exception, basically providing an analysis about how sometimes the love we need isn't the same as the love we want.

There were no explicit moments during this film where I felt it was losing control or my interest. The story unfolds in a fine manner, without to much cliché hampering the plot. On a technical level, it's shot quite well, and Claire Danes has rarely been lit in such a lovely fashion.

Steve Martin is quite comfortable in his role, Claire Danes brings more of her winsome, wild-eyed innocence to her performance, and Jason Schwartzman also brings his schlumffy bag of tricks. The film ends with words that sound like they should be trite, yet they seem to ring true. I wanted to either love or hate this movie, and in the end I felt neither emotion, nor did I feel empty. It's a warm film, if there's such a thing, neither burning with brilliance nor coldly abysmal. I'm not entirely sure how it will play to a large audience, but it might have enough charm and wit, with a dash of complicated romance, to keep a paying audience entertained.

The President's Last Bang
Directed by: Im Sang-soo

Grade: B

A quirky look at the '79 assasination of the South Korean president/dictator. It's clear that the film will work far better with a local audience, as it clearly depends on at least a passing knowledge of the events of the time. My ignorance of the "real" history of the period notwithstanding, the movie does portray the insanity of the situation in an amusing fashion. While filims like JFK show assasination as a shadowy affair conducted by experts using a patsy in lieu of the real culprit, Bang shows that dramatic historical events are sometimes shaped by drunken idiots making split-second decisions that change the rest of their lives.

The film certainly doesn't spend too much superfluous time introducting the players, so it's at times confusing keeping track of just who is doing what to whom. Nonetheless, I found that it unfolded with enough style and humour to keep it interesting.

Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang
Directed by: Shane Black

Grade: A-

A film geek's action movie, Bang throws a bunch of noir and buddy-film clichés into a pot, stirs in some Brechtian theatricality, and pours out what in the end is just good, clean fun. Refreshingly, every performace is top notch, with each character reallying seeming to "get" their roles, with Val Kilmer's gay P.I., Robert Downey Jr.'s hapless narrator. and even Michelle Monaghan's damsel in distress that can still throw a punch.

The film's more than a little bit tounge-in-cheek, and the constant winking at the audience could tire for some. For me, I just kicked back and enjoyed the ride, one far more literate than most shoot 'em ups your'e like to to come across any time soon.

Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic
Directed by: Liam Lynch

Grade: B+

Let me first say it in plain language - Sarah Silverman is HOT. Sure, she's in a bunch of critically acclaimed things like School of Rock and Mr. Show, and her deadpan delivery in Aristocrats is getting much buzz, but with this, her foray into star-making material, she turns up as the finest Jewish sex symbol since Babs was a Funny Girl.

The wit, the smile, the rape and hollocaust jokes, they all tie together in a lovely, compelling little package called Sarah.

Let me also say that the film is funny. Perhaps not as tear-eyed funny as I was sorta hoping for, but funny. Sadly the trailer really did steal a number of good punchilines away from the flick, but there's enough sillyness to keep any audience captivated for the ride.