"MONSIEUR LAZHAR", VIGGO MORTENSEN AND MORE WIN BIG AT 32ND ANNUAL GENIE AWARDS

Philippe Falardeau & Viggo Mortensen win at 32nd Annual Genie Awards

Monsieur Lazhar, Canada's representative Film in the Foreign Film category at the Oscars this year, won big tonight at the 32nd Annual Genie Awards, held at  the Harbour Westin Castle Conference Centre tonight.  The Awards honour the best in Canadian Film and were hosted by CBC's George Stroumboulopoulos alone after Funnywoman Andrea Martin who originally was scheduled to Co-host, had to bow-out due to a scheduling conflict.

Directed by Quebec Director Philippe Falardeau, Monsieur Lazhar is a Drama about a School Teacher who helps a class of students overcome the loss of their former Teacher, winning top honour of Best Motion Picture this evening. In addition, the Film was victorious in the categories of Achievement in Direction, Adapted Screenplay, Editing, Best Supporting Actress (Sophie Nelisse) and Best Actor (Mohamed Said Fellag), tallying at a total six Genies.

Making a surprise appearance tonight was Academy Award Nominee Viggo Mortensen, whose visit to Toronto confirmed rumours that he would win Best Supporting Actor for his work in David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method.  The Film, which like Monsieur Lazhar is distributed in Canada by eOne Films, went on to win a total five Genies tonight including Original Score, Art Direction, Sound Editing and Overall Sound.

Another prominent Winner tonight was Alliance Films' Café de Flore, which saw Actress Vanessa Paradis go on to win for Best Actress and also get recognized for Achievement in Makeup and Visual Effects. One Security Guard tells me they were on heightened alert with rumours of Johnny Depp allegedly accompanying Paradis on a flight to Toronto, but this alas amounted to nothing more than rumour.

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.)

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:

THE TALKING CURE - AN EARLY LOOK

Viggo Mortensen, whom I feel was ignored unjustly in the Oscars Best Actor race for The Road, has just been confirmed to replace recent Best Supporting Actor winner Christoph Waltz in great Canadian director David Cronenberg's newest film, The Talking Cure.  It will be based on the book by Christopher Hampton (author of Dangerous Liasons) and is said to be about psychoanalyst/neurologist Sigmund Freud, who will be played by Mortensen and his feud with pupil Carl Jung.  The latter will be played by Michael Fassbender, known best for his tour-de-force performance in 2008's Hunger where he emaciated himself beyond recognition for the role.

The film will also star one of my favourite younger actresses Keira Knightley who will play Sabina Spielrein, the object of the master and pupil's feud.  It won't be in theatres until 2011 and as is the case with many of Cronenberg's films, they receive the gala treatment at TIFF. Sounds smoking hot.  Please let there be lots of love scenes.  Thanks!  (Photo credit: Mr. Will-W.)