TORONTO - day 1

So after arriving to Toronto on the red eye from Los Angeles, I thought that the best way for me to begin the festival was to see something light and short. The movie that kicked off the 2005 Toronto Film Festival for me was “Sara Silverman: Jesus is Magic”. I don’t think that this will ever be released in the movie theaters, but would something that would find it’s way to HBO at some point in the near future. Is it good? Well, that can be answered with another question… Are you a fan of Sarah Silverman? If the answer is yes, then you will enjoy the movie, but if not, then it probably not be your cup of tea. If you have never heard of Sarah Silverman, check this out and you will get a good idea of what she is all about.

“Jesus is Magic” lasts a brief 75 minutes and is almost completely comprised of a stand up routine. An example of comedy ala Silverman… “So I was licking Jell-O off my boyfriend’s penis last night and it hit me… I am starting to turn into my mother?” She is irreverent and controversial, but she consistently brings the funny. I am a fan and it was a great way to start the festival.

My plan was to check out the new Terry Gilliam film, “Tideland” in the afternoon, but the exhaustion from not getting much sleep got the best of me and was forced to take a nap. Before anyone judges me, it was a very difficult film to pass on. There is only one other film that I am more excited about checking out... "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance". BUT… I am not going to do Gilliam or his film the discredit of walking in exhausted and only thinking about sleep.


The other film that I was able to check out was the 930 pm screening of “Shopgirl”. Steve Martin wrote the novella that the film was based on, also wrote the script, produced, and starred in the movie. The film also stars Claire Danes and Jason Schwartzman. Having only seen the trailer, I was not prepared for what the movie was going to be. It is NOT a quirky comedy like I thought it would be. This is a very interesting look at love, relationships and what we think is good for us rather than what actually is. If you are able to step aside and just go with the movie, it deals with all of these questions with perspective, intelligence and patience. What does it mean to love someone that will never love you back the way that you need them to? Claire Danes plays a 'shop girl' that has to choose between two men in her live.

The first is quite frankly a screw up (Schwartzman) who has no money, career, class, or clue about how to treat a woman. He does, however, have a good heart. “Are you one of those guys that once you get to know them… they are really great?” That is him to a tee. Martin is the opposite. He is older, rich, has a career and is the epitome of class and knows exactly what to say and do in order to make any woman feel like the most important person on the planet. The problem is that he doesn’t seem to possess the innocence and emotional availability that Schwartzman does. What should she do? Whom should she choose? Why is this such an important choice for her? I wont get into the details of what happens to whom, but I will say that the film goes in some interesting directions and realistic and painful places. I think that the trailer will end up hurting this film for the reason why I ended up really liking it. It is not what I expected it to be. This is a smart look at relationships from the prospective of a young woman.

tomorrow...
look for reviews of "The President's Last Bang"... "Capote"... and "Elizabethtown"