Author: James McNally

I almost forgot. Before Chopper last night, they screened a short film called In God We Trust, directed by a young director named Jason Reitman (son of Ivan Reitman, as it turns out). It stars that guy from the IBM commercial, the one where the guy is walking around a supermarket, apparently shoplifting stuff, and then the security guard stops him on his way out to give him his receipt. It’s a brilliant piece of comedy, compressed into a perfect length (16 minutes). 9/10. Keep your ears open, this guy’s going places…

I saw two films last night. 101 Reykjavik was a comedy, mostly. 30 year old slacker still lives at home with his mother in a tiny house (their bathtub has a lid that turns it into bench seating for their kitchen table!). His mother brings home her Spanish friend and over New Year’s, he has a fling with her. Then his mother confesses to him that she is a lesbian and that her friend and she are lovers. Much confusion ensues, but this ends up a story about a guy who finally gets a life. Music by Damon Albarn of Blur. Not sure if this will get US distribution, the director said that’s why they’re in Toronto. I’d give it 7/10.

Chopper was another first feature, and features one of Australia’s best known standup comedians in the role of Mark “Chopper” Read, one of Australia’s most notorious criminals. This guy got his nickname from having someone slice his ears off in prison. Sound gruesome? The movie has lots more nastiness in store. Excellent acting from Eric Bana and innovative cinematography from director Andrew Dominik. Although violent, the film does leave us wondering about the relationship between criminal behaviour and fame. The real Chopper Read is out of prison now and has written 9 best-selling books based on his life and crimes. I’d give this one 8/10.

I also bought a new cellphone today (Sanyo SCP-4000) and some music:

• Elastica-The Menace
• Aimee Mann-I’m With Stupid (CDN$9.99)
• The Police-Regatta de Blanc (CDN$9.99)
• Beastie Boys-Paul’s Boutique (CDN$9.99)
• Chemical Brothers-Dig Your Own Hole (CDN$9.99)

I love getting deals like that. I’m off to another Australian film tonight, I’ll try to report on that tomorrow.

Here is my film festival schedule. I’ll try to comment on each film, but I doubt I’ll have time for proper reviews:

• Friday September 8 — 6:30 PM — 101 Reykjavik (Iceland)
• Friday September 8 — 10:00 PM — Chopper (Australia)/In God We Trust (USA)
• Saturday September 9 — 9:30 PM — City Loop (Australia)
• Sunday September 10 — 1:00 PM — Angels of the Universe (Iceland/Norway/Germany/Sweden/Denmark)
• Sunday September 10 — 6:30 PM — Chasing Sleep (USA)
• Tuesday September 12 — 9:45 PM — Possible Worlds (Canada)
• Thursday September 14 — 9:15 PM — Loners (Czech Republic)
• Friday September 15 — 7:00 PM — The King is Alive (Denmark)
• Saturday September 16 — 12:30 PM — Before Night Falls (USA)
• Saturday September 16 — 7:00 PM — Comédie de l’innocence (France)