Friends!

If you have ever been to TIFF you know how fun and electric downtown Toronto feels with all the people and events going on. It is so much fun to be a part of! But as an industry insider I was really there to gather as much intel on which movies were good and what movies you would all like to see.

I was able to get in 28 movies in 7 days. Yes, you read that right, 28 movies! And I’ve broken them all down for you, here...

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But first I would like to note some of the standout ones. Molly’s Game featuring Jessica Chastain and Idris Elba was quick paced and very entertaining. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri had me laughing out loud and then completely heartbroken at the turn of a minute, dealing with grief and revenge and small town politics that I think most people will enjoy. Three Billboards also won the People’s Choice Award at TIFF. Hostiles and Mudbound were two period piece films that dealt with racial tension at two very different times in American history. Both films had excellent storytelling and thoughtful narratives. An unexpected joy came with two movies that I was not originally planning on seeing this year; due to full auditoriums I was forced to abandon my original plans and ended up watching Bodied directed by Joseph Kahn and Disaster Artist directed by James Franco. These films were categorized under the Midnight Madness category at TIFF which is described as the wild side: midnight screenings of the best in action, horror, shock and fantasy cinema. Both films were highly entertaining and had me laughing out loud and just thoroughly enjoying the experience.

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Drama
Disobedience
The Children Act
The Wife
BPM (French, Subtitle)
Eye on Juliet
Lady Bird
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
The Shape of Water
The Leisure Seeker
Unicorn Store
The Florida Project
Downsizing
My Days of Mercy
Suburbicon
Mudbound

Biopic
Molly’s Game
Stronger
Battle of the Sexes
Borg vs McEnroe
Victoria and Abdul
Darkest Hour
55 Steps

Comedy
The Disaster Artist
I Love You, Daddy

Horror
Mother!
The Cure

Other
Bodied

  About a year and a half ago, Disney rocked the world when news broke of its 4 billion dollar purchase of Lucasfilm and the subsequent announcement of a new saga of Star Wars films. Understandably, millions of fans of the franchise cried out in agony as flashbacks of the pain caused by the prequel trilogy came rushing back into their minds. George Lucas had already tried to ruin the legend of Star Wars with his space politics and Jar Jar Binks, and the wound was still too fresh for these fans to accept a new trilogy was being added to the original trio of masterpieces. The fans that weren't extremely angered by the announcement, such as myself, mostly reacted with cautious optimism. These new films could be great, but there was still equal chance that they would further damage the legacy of the galaxy far, far away.

  Now since time has passed and we know a lot more details surrounding the new films and the creative team that has been assembled to produce them, people seem to be warming up to the idea of Star Wars' return to the silver screen. The doubts are still there, of course, but when the teaser trailer is as epic as this, it definitely helps with the transition of anger into excitement. The trailer played into our nostalgia by showing us things we love about the original trilogy, such as the Millennium Falcon in action, and of course Han and Chewie at the very end. This was a genius decision by Disney and Episode VII director J.J. Abrams. While this new trilogy will be a continuation of the events following Return of the Jedi, it will also create a new story to be told in the Star Wars universe, but they made sure to focus on what we know and love before introducing too much new stuff. Considering the depth of Star Wars and the limitless stories that could be told based on its universe, it isn't hard to realize the opportunity here. And I'm not just talking about the opportunity for Disney to make more money.

  Instead, I am referring to the amazing opportunity that has been laid out in front of Hollywood's biggest filmmakers of today. Many people within the entertainment industry fell in love with filmmaking because of the magic that George Lucas originally created with the very first Star Wars. J.J. Abrams has said time and time again that he was a huge fan of the franchise when he was a kid, and now he is at the helm of the biggest movie release in recent memory. He grew up loving film because of things like the Star Wars world and he then parlayed that love into a successful career. Now he gets to make his own mark on the intergalactic franchise that was a significant part of his childhood. The most important thing to remember here is that he is only directing The Force Awakens. That means the other 5 movies announced to be released over the next 5 years all present an opportunity for another lover of the franchise to come and, essentially, fulfill a childhood dream of theirs.

Photo by Gage Skidmore / CC BY

   Considering it takes place in an entirely new galaxy, Star Wars obviously has the potential to be one of the deepest story worlds out there. There are already a ridiculous amount of comics, video games, and even shows that are based in the Star Wars universe, so why couldn't there be more films? The threat of George Lucas forcing audiences to watch Jar Jar Binks is no longer there, and instead we get to see the talent of filmmakers such as Godzilla director Gareth Edwards, who actually got the job for Godzilla from his independent film Monsters, which he did all of the visual effects for on his home computer. He obviously has tremendous skill in filmmaking, and once raved about his hilarious obsession for Star Wars in an interview, so the opportunity to now work on Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is quite likely the best moment of his career. After Episode VII and Rogue One, audiences will be treated to Episode VIII and see what one of my favourite writer/directors can do with the most popular film franchise in history. Rian Johnson was the creative mind behind the hugely underrated Looper, so once again Disney has handed the reigns to a young talent instead of an established director. I love this decision and it makes me even more excited for the new saga of Star Wars. These filmmakers have been given the biggest opportunity of their careers, and it will be exciting to see young creative talent being infused into Star Wars films instead of George Lucas' style that we have become all too familiar with.