CANADA'S TOP TEN FILMS ANNOUNCED

Still from A Dangerous Method

Last night Canada's Top Ten Films were announced by the Toronto International Film Festival to honour the v. best in Canadian Film. Titles honoured, many which were screened at TIFF 2011, include the following:

Edwin Boyd

A Dangerous Method

Monsieur Lazhar

Keyhole

Take this Waltz

Café de flore

Starbuck

Hobo with a Shotgun

Marécages

Le Vendeur

I'm ashamed to admit I haven't seen any of them yet, although I will be seeing David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method v. soon!  Staying true to its commitment to Canadian Film, each of these will be showcased over the next month at the TIFF Bell Lightbox here in Toronto.  

Click here to view the Schedule for Screenings.

(Photo credit: eOne Films)

SARAH GADON AT TIFF 2011 WITH "A DANGEROUS METHOD" & "THE MOTH DIARIES"

Sarah Gadon & Mr. Will-W.

Finally, a Photo together with Sarah Gadon!  The gorgeous Toronto Actress was spotted coming out for a break during her Press Day for Thriller The Moth Diaries.  Gadon is on the verge of something huge after performances in one of the leading candidates for Best Picture at the Oscars, A Dangerous Method and also having finished her work this Summer on Cosmopolis, starring Robert Pattinson - both Films by David Cronenberg.  Stunning.

MICHAEL FASSBENDER AT TIFF 2011 FOR "SHAME" & "A DANGEROUS METHOD"

Michael Fassbender in Toronto - September 2011

To whomever started the rumour that Michael Fassbender was canceling his TIFF 2011 visit, you need a serious spanking! The strapping German-born Irish Actor arrived finally today in Toronto after missing a round of Press for another high-profile Film in which he stars, A Dangerous Method.

Just having won the Award for Best Actor at Venice Film Festival this weekend, Fassbender I saw is genuinely is amazing to his Fans, taking the time after his James Franco-attended Premiere for Steve McQueen's Shame at Princess of Wales Theatre.  One-by-one, he signed Autographs for and took Photos with seemingly not in a rush at all, as his rumoured Girlfriend Zoe Kravitz sat in their SUV waiting patiently.  And yes, those good looks are swoon-worthy.  Seen and confirmed.

Fassbender absolutely shines as Brandon in the dark and moody Shame, delving deep into the mind and heart of an emotionally empty, yet successful New York Businessman who is surprised by the resurfacing of his younger Sister Sissy (Carey Mulligan).   Despite resenting her arrival - a disruption in his Playboy lifestyle - the two are connected in spirit by their traumatic Childhood.  Sissy unravels some deeply embedded fears and insecurities in Brandon which he for long has been afraid to face about his own life and his addiction to Sex.   

Shame is sexy, riveting and heartbreaking at once and admittedly I still am thinking about the complex blend of emotions I felt watching this Film.  Visually, McQueen gives us quiet elegance, paired with a superb Score by Harvey Escott perfectly heightening the emotions we experience in this difficult Journey. Mulligan's performance also is a true revelation as she fearlessly goes further than ever before into that emotional reservoir of hers.  Most of all, Fassbender's performance has him fully extended and committed to Brandon; I am mesmerized. I definitely will be seeing it again when it gets a proper release this Fall via Alliance Films.

KEIRA KNIGHTLEY AT TIFF FOR "A DANGEROUS METHOD"

Keira Knightley in Toronto - September 2011

The Premiere for David Cronenberg's latest work A Dangerous Method was held last night at Roy Thomson Hall, but earlier in the day the Press Conference for the Psychological Drama was held. Unfortunately though, one of its biggest stars Michael Fassbender was missing-in-action although hopefully that will change soon.  Regardless, the Film continues to garner an alarming amount of praise and I'd say at this point it's a front-runner in the race for Best Picture at the Oscars.

Keira Knightley plays Sabina, who is caught in a torrid affair with her Psychologist Carl Jung (Fassbender), and she is getting a lot of buzz for the her intense performance in the Film. When I saw Knightley leaving her Press Conference yesterday unfortunately she had been in a rush and had to tell her Fans she wouldn't be able to stop, as was the case with a normally Fan-loving Viggo Mortensen who plays Sigmund Freud in A Dangerous Method. 

Director David Cronenberg - the Pride of Toronto  - however, was more than accommodating being a bit more generous with Fans, as was fellow Torontonian Sarah Gadon, who also will be appearing in his next Film Cosmopolis alongside Robert Pattinson.  Jokingly, Gadon told Fans "I wish you'd find another Photo of me", commenting on having to sign this same Photo she often gets asked to sign.

(Photo credit: Mr. Will-W.)

MICHAEL FASSBENDER: THE TALK OF TELLURIDE AND VENICE FILM FESTIVALS

Michael Fassbender

Much of the buzz coming out of both the Telluride and Venice Film Festivals is centering around Michael Fassbender, who along with Ryan Gosling seem to have finally caught the heat that differentiates Actors from Megastars. Even though Fassbender still is little-known in these parts, that soon is expected to change.

Although some are reporting walk-outs at Telluride (Colorado) due to the graphic nature of Steve McQueen's Shame, much acclaim seems to be coming out of it all still. L.A. Times' Julie Makinen describes the opening minutes of the Drama about a Sex-Obsessed Man named Brandon, "A courageous performance by a full-frontal Fassbender — has slept with a hooker and masturbated in the shower. And then things get really kinky.".

Oliver Lyttelton of Indiewire praises Fassbender's performance in David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method, which also explores themes of Sexuality with him playing Psychiatrist Carl Jung. Lyttleton says that the German-born Irish Actor is "deeply sad and deeply human, never shutting the audience out.".

And to think, this time next week he'll be here in the City for TIFF 2011 with both these Films!  

(Photo credit: See-Saw Films/Film4)

CONFIRMED TIFF 2011 TITLES

Still from Moneyball

So the first TIFF 2011 Press Conference was held at 10:00 AM today with various Galas and marquee titles announced.  Although weekly announcements still are to come over the next month, here are some of the more buzzed Movies we will be seeing in Toronto come September:

Trishna – directed by Michael Winterbottom – The tragic love story of a Property Developer’s Son and an Auto Rickshaw Owner’s Daughter; stars Freida Pinto.

The Lady – Luc Besson’s Biopic about pro-Democracy Activist Aung San Suu Kyi played by Michelle Yeoh, who was blacklisted in Burma after filming this one

W.E. – Madonna’s directorial debut. A film which criss-crosses a modern day love story with the romance between King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson.

NEW TRAILER FOR "A DANGEROUS METHOD" FROM DAVID CRONENBERG

Still from A Dangerous Method

"Sometimes you have to do something unforgivable to go on living".

Just released is this new Trailer for David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method and everything about it screams Oscars.  Keira Knightley looks like she is delivering some career-best work here as submissive Seductress Sabina and Michael Fassbender as Carl Jung is outright intense.  Cronenberg, who is in Toronto right now working with Sarah Gadon and Robert Pattinson on Cosmopolis, first teamed with that Actress on this Film.

No release date has been set yet, but we're looking at Fall 2011 and this one likely will do the Festival rounds at TIFF this September.

See the Trailer in full below: