Toronto 2009: IndieWIRE’s Critics’ Poll
Michael Stuhlbarg in A Serious Man (top); Joel and Ethan Coen (bottom)
Peter Knegt reports that an indieWIRE poll of "more than 25" film critics and bloggers (blogging film critics?) shows that the overwhelmingly favorite film screened at the 2009 Toronto Film Festival was Joel and Ethan Coen’s A Serious Man (not to be confused with Tom Ford’s A Single Man or the Michael Douglas vehicle Solitary Man), a black comedy about a suburbanite (Michael Stuhlbarg) whose life suddenly unravels after his wife asks for a divorce. A Serious Man hits US theaters on Oct. 2.
Colin Firth, Julianne Moore in A Single Man
The best performance was delivered by Colin Firth in A Single Man (not to be confused with either Solitary Man or the Coen brothers’ A Serious Man), in which the British actor plays a serious professor — so serious, in fact, he’s ready to commit suicide following the death of his lover (Matthew Goode) in a car accident.
Mo’Nique in Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire (top); Anna Kendrick, George Clooney in Up in the Air (bottom)
The best supporting performances were those of Sundance winner Mo’Nique for Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire and Anna Kendrick for Up in the Air.
Erik Gandini’s Videocracy, about Italy in the age of video and Silvio Berlusconi, was voted the best documentary. As Thom Powers explains in his commentary on the Toronto festival’s website, "as the owner of the country’s television empire, [Berlusconi] wields a powerful tool for shaping public opinion to his benefit. His force of will is reflected by the TV commercial in which throngs of Italians sing, ‘Thank God Silvio exists.’"
Sounds scary? It gets scarier if you actually sit to watch the shows instead of just reading about them. I know what I’m talking about, as I subscribe to RAI International. It’s a great way to practice my Italian, but if that station’s programming is a reflection of Italy’s cultural state in the early 21st century then it’s a good thing Michelangelo, Dante, et al. have been long dead. Heck, where’s Pasolini when you most need him?
Johnny Simmons, Megan Fox in Jennifer’s Body. Photo: Doane Gregory
Directed by Karyn Kusama and written by Academy Award winner Diablo Cody, Jennifer’s Body, about a young woman (Megan Fox) who enjoys feasting on the bodies of young men, was chosen the festival’s worst film. Jennifer’s Body opened to dismal box-office this past weekend in the US — though perhaps it has a bright future on one of Berlusconi’s TV channels.
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Tags: A Serious Man, Anna Kendrick, Colin Firth, Critics Choices, Film Festivals, indieWIRE, Jennifer's Body, Joel and Ethan Coen, Megan Fox, Mo'Nique, Silvio Berlusconi, Toronto 2009, Toronto Film Festival, Videocracy
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