This year's film fest was once again an amazing time, albeit physically exhausting, emotionally draining, and mentally taxing. There were 11 days instead of 10, and 11 was always my lucky number. So this year's recap will be told in 11 anecdotes and reviews.
What Are My Chances?
I've discovered that my favourite position at Ryerson is the Rush line. Everyone in the line is friendly, patient, hopeful, and always has the same question: "What are the chances that I'll get in to see this film?" This is great for me because my answer is always the same: "You have the same chance as every other person in this line." Most of the time, they know this. But somehow I think it gives them something to hold on to while they wait for the outcome. The look on their faces when they find out that they're getting in is great too. It's like winning the lottery.
Eating Alone Has It's Advantages
I've never had a problem eating my myself. I admit, it can be a little boring sometimes, and I try my best not to weird other customers out by staring at them while they're trying to enjoy their meal. But the one thing I noticed this time is that the food seems to arrive a lot faster when you're alone. Maybe it has to do with the fact that I order my meal the moment the servers comes to the table for the first time. No slow deliberation, no piecemeal ordering process (drinks first, then dinner, etc.). Here's an example:
As usual, my nutrition was rather neglected over the course of the past two weeks, but other than the instances of street meat and other fast food endeavours, there were a few indulgences on my part. One evening I decided to eat at the Canteen, one of the restaurants at the beautiful new Lightbox (more about that in a minute). It was a busy evening so I agreed to sit out on the patio, where they had heat lamps. I looked at the menu and waited for the server, which seemed like a long wait but was really only ten minutes. After some brief questions about the daily specials, I placed my order. Meanwhile, my table neighbours (a middle-aged couple), who were there before I arrived, were chatting. After quite a while, the lady's french onion soup arrived, and soon afterwards, I got my meal. I finished my lamb and gnocchi and was contemplating dessert while the couple, who still hadn't gotten their main courses, were getting frustrated by the slow service. The man even pointed me out to the server ("She came in after us, and she's done"). On two occasions, they were told that their meals were coming shortly. I was making up my mind on dessert when they threw down their napkins and left. Their meals never came out, but I'm guessing they had some choice words with the manager before leaving.
The Solitude of Prime Numbers
Seriously, one of the better film titles I've heard in a while. All right, so I chose the film based on the geeky title. But the premise sounded interesting too: two friends, both suffering a personal tragedy in their youth (the boy neglected his mentally challenged twin sister, while the girl was hurt in a skiing accident) become friends but are "doomed to live parallel lives, always linked but never joined". And it's in Italian. AND Isabella Rossellini was in the film, but not there in person (she's aged quite a bit). But the film was pretty late in the evening, and a bit too abstract even for me. I just couldn't get into it.
Loving the Lightbox
I saw The Solitude of Prime Numbers as well as Aftershock at the Lightbox. I love this venue. Very contemporary, with lots of straight lines and open concepts. The main theatres have plush seats, while the smaller theatres are less opulent but still nice. The Essential 100 exhibit and a few other installations were free admission, and it was like walking through Nuit Blanche. Extremely modern art - interesting, but I'm not sure I get it. That probably means it's working. I'm really looking forward to coming here all year for films.
Aftershock
It was billed as the most successful Chinese film of all time. That was enough to get my attention. Aftershock is based on a novel by a Chinese Canadian author and focuses a (most likely) fictional story around factual events. In 1976, there's a huge earthquake in the city of Tangshan. A husband and wife were outside when it hit, and their 6-year-old twins, a boy and a girl, are inside their crumbling apartment building. The husband dies trying to save them, and in the aftermath, the wife is left to try and save her children. There's a concrete slab on top of them, and the rescue workers tell her to choose which one to save, because they can't lift the slab without crushing one of them. At first she can't choose, but the longer they wait, both of them could die. She eventually chooses her son, and is devastated as she leaves her daughter's body next to her dead husband. But the girl didn't die, and wakes up later amongst the bodies. She's adopted by a pair of married PLA soldiers who were part of the rescue team. The story then follows the twins' lives as they grow up apart and deal with what has happened to them. It all comes around again when another major earthquake hits Sichuan in 2008. The special effects in this film are really impressive, and at the end I was a sobbing mess. I recommend this film to everyone.
It's Never Too Late (The First Grader)
The First Grader was runner-up for People's Choice, and deservedly so. The Kenyan government offers free education for the first time, and hundreds of parents flood the schools to enroll their children. Among them is an 84-year-old man who wants to learn how to read. The administration tries to turn him away, but he insists that the papers said that the education was free for everyone. At first, he can't come in because he doesn't have a notebook or pencils. The next day he shows up with them. Then it's pointed out that he doesn't have the official school uniform. Sure enough, he finds the appropriate clothes. The head teacher decides to let him in. Based on true events (as a large number of films were at the fest this year), the film shows his struggle, including flashing back to his time as a rebel, fighting against British colonial rule. Some of the torture scenes are graphic, but it explains his determination to learn. I didn't know a lot about Kenyan history, or even about the tribalism and corruption that still exists now. REALLY good film.
Close Encounters
This year was pretty dry in terms of celebrity sightings. I was holding back the masses whilst standing two feet from Megan Fox. I have a jealous co-worker as a result. I saved the seats for Dev Patel and Freida Pinto, the two cute lovers from Slumdog Millionaire. And it took me awhile, but I finally recognized Abigail Breslin as I was having lunch (alone) at Sassafraz. I tried hard not to stare, but for some reason she spoke rather clearly, letting me know that she likes Diet Coke, the heirloom tomato salad and the chicken. She also drinks coffee. How old is she, fourteen??
Two things I'll remember from this year's fest:
- Director Julian Schnabel grabbing my hand as he was sitting down and asking me for water. In a force of habit, I had to tell him there wasn't any water for sale at the Ryerson. Afterwards, I realized we had tons of water in the green room and even in the volunteer room, so after talking to the staff, I was able to sneak back into the theatre to give him a bottle of water, which he actually passed to the author of book on which the film Miral was based.
- As we were waiting for the start of Miral, they did a sound check for John Carpenter's The Ward. We watched in disbelief as they ran a pre-taped message from John Carpenter himself, thanking people for coming to his screening and apologizing for not being able to attend because of jury duty. Seriously, if they'd seen his films, who in their right mind would want John Carpenter on their jury??
Janie Jones
Speaking of Abigail Breslin, I happened to have a ticket to a screening of her film the next day. A washed-up rock star (Alessandro Nivola) finds out that he has a 13-year-old daughter from a strung-out groupie (Elisabeth Shue! Where have you been?!), who promptly abandons the girl with him while she goes off to get clean. What follows is sort of a Paper Moon scenario except without the con artistry. It was a slightly predictable story but the music was really good and overall it was well done. And the most impressive part was Abigail's singing voice. She's never sung in movies or otherwise, and she sang all of the songs in the film. There's an additional backstory in that the director/screenwriter first met his daughter when she was 11. Although the film is not autobiographical, it was definitely inspired by his experience. The film was dedicated to his daughter, and she was his assistant during filming. She's now studying theatre in university.
What Was I Thinking?
Every year, I resolve to do a better job of scheduling my volunteer shifts with my day job and my films. And every year, it all goes out the window. I was going to take a few more days off, but I couldn't due to the amount of work I had. The addition of my cousin's wedding and a friend's birthday created a new kink in the plan. By the end of it, I was exhausted beyond belief. Not to mention the running between films...
The Conspirator
Although I missed out the on the opportunity to see my favourite (James McAvoy) in person, I still wanted to see his new film, one way or another. So on the final day of the festival, I dragged myself downtown again to sit in the rush line at the Varsity. Luckily, it was a nice day. While in line, I learned that the People's Choice winner was The King's Speech, which I had wanted to see but couldn't fit into my schedule. I got into the screening, and while I did enjoy the film (despite the frustrating nature of it), I kept one eye on the clock...
The film, directed by Robert Redford, was about the events following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Everyone knows that John Wilkes Booth was killed, but they also arrested a number of people as his co-conspirators, including Mary Surratt (Robin Wright), the woman who ran the boarding house where they allegedly met to plan the assassination. The feeling in the northern states was that they were all guilty, including the lawyer assigned to defend her. But the way the US government completely stacked the odds against her having a fair trial was shameful. From appointing nine Union generals to try the accused instead of a jury of her peers, to the coercing of defence witnesses, the whole proceeding was almost a farce. The lawyer eventually put his own bias aside in the name of justice, but in the end she was the first woman to be executed by the US federal government.
The Race for People's Choice
The minute The Conspirator ended, I raced out of the theatre and down to my car. I drove straight down (well, almost) to the Ryerson and ran to the end of the line. It turns out they still had hundreds of tickets. I took a minute to catch my breath, then asked my line neighbour to hold my place as I ran up to the Volunteer Office to pick up my invitation for the Staff and Volunteer Party later that evening. I ran back to the line, huffing and puffing, and was able to sit for about 5 minutes before they started letting the line into the theatre. I dropped into an available seat and just stopped moving until the film started. The King's Speech is about Prince Albert/King George VI (Colin Firth) and the events leading up to his coronation after the abdication of his brother. His terrible stutter drives him to seek the help of an unorthodox speech therapist (Geoffrey Rush). It's a fantastic film, and funny as hell. If you squint a little, Colin Firth really looks and sounds like "Bertie", from what I remember in documentaries and recordings, and Guy Pearce does look like Edward VIII at times, but I couldn't help thinking of his role in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert the whole time. I also love Helena Bonham Carter, she's always amazing.
After the film, I was too tired to go to the party, so I just went home and crashed hard on the couch. Another film fest is over. I already can't wait for the next. See you at the Lightbox. (Can barely talk in full sentences...)
"Oh mother tell your children not to do what I have done, spend your lives in sin and misery in the house of the rising sun"
