Barrie Film Festival

Falls Around Her
2019-01-17 16:00 - 17:40 (America/Toronto) | Annual Barrie Film Festival
Falls Around Her
Screening: Thursday, January 17, 2019 – 4pm, 7pm
Uptown Theatre, 55 Dunlop St. W., Barrie

Written and Directed by: Darlene Naponse
Cast: Tantoo Cardinal, Lewis Hodgson, Rob Stewart, Tina Keeper, and Johnny Issaluk
Drama/Thriller, NR, 100 minutes, Language: English and Ojibwa with English subtitles (Canada)

“Falls Around Her is legendary Cree and Métis actor Tantoo Cardinal’s first lead role in a feature film – and she’s enthralling in it.” – Samantha Edwards, NOW Toronto

Mary (Tantoo Cardinal) is a renowned Anishinaabe musician who comes home to Atikameksheng Anishnawbek First Nation in northern Ontario, exhausted by many years on the road touring internationally with her band. She returns to the land to restore herself but her past success makes her a commodity to some, and it can be tricky to hide from the demands of the outside world.

Her sister Betty (Tina Keeper) senses there may be more to Mary’s need for isolation and urges her to reconnect with family and old friends. As Mary gets out more and even starts dating, it seems as though new possibilities are on the horizon. However, the past has a way of catching up, and when Mary starts to hear disturbing noises around her cabin, she becomes paranoid that someone may be after her.

Mary knows how to survive, but she also deserves to thrive. And that means gathering the ability to be open to the healing that comes from love, self-expression, family, community, and, especially, the land. (TIFF/DANIS GOULET)

The Fireflies Are Gone
2019-01-10 19:00 - 20:36, 2019-01-10 16:00 - 17:36, 2019-01-09 19:00 - 20:36, 2019-01-09 16:00 - 17:36
The Fireflies Are Gone (La disparition des lucioles)

Screening:
Wednesday, January 9 – 4pm, 7pm
Thursday, January 10 – 4pm, 7pm
Location: Uptown Theatre, 55 Dunlop St. W., Barrie

Written and Directed by: Sébastien Pilote
Cast: Karelle Tremblay, Pierre-Luc Brillant, Luc Picard, François Papineau
Drama, Not Rated, 96 minutes, Language: English and French with English subtitles (Canada)

“This is a satisfying, slightly mournful seriocomedy that’s equal parts cynical, hopeful, and ambivalent.” – Dennis Harvey, VARIETY

“It’s not a novel premise, but Pilote delivers the requisite insights and atmosphere in an engaging way, and his two leads are simply terrific.” – Norman Wilner, NOW Toronto

It is near the end of high school, and Léo (Tremblay) dreams of escape. She feels stuck in her small-town, industrial Québécois life. The easiest target for her frustrations is her stepdad, a local talk-radio celebrity on the wrong side of a political divide that forced her union-organizing father out of town. Léo misses her father and yearns to leave, but her rebellion du jour only seems to manifest itself as a feeling of uneasiness. Enter Steve (Pierre-Luc Brillant, C.R.A.Z.Y), a much older metal-head who still lives in his mother’s basement. Léo is fascinated and sees in him much more than the archetypal loser he may appear to be. As their relationship grows over the summer, an ever-present longing lingers beneath the surface of their friendship — and Léo must decide how to express her deep desire for something more. However, the tenacious vigour of Léo’s teenage angst, brought to life by the magnetic Tremblay, sets this film apart from the director’s earlier work. Winner of the Canada Goose Award for Best Canadian Feature Film at TIFF 2018, this film revels in exquisite close-ups and dreamy musical flourishes that harkens back to classic melodramas; Pilote creates an evocative pop fantasy amidst the customary political tensions in a small Quebec town.

AWARDS:

Winner, Best Canadian Feature Film, Toronto International Film Festival, 2018
Nominee, Best Film, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 2018
Nominee, Best Feature Film, Torino Film Festival, 2018
Winner, Best Cinematography, Whistler Film Festival, 2018

Christmas in a Box
2018-12-20 19:00 - 20:30, 2018-12-20 16:00 - 17:30
Christmas in a Box (Noël en boîte)
Written and Directed by: Jocelyn Forgues
Cast: Janick Hébert, Zachary Amzallag, Michèle Vinet, Stéphane Paquette, Vincent Poirier
Comedy, Not rated, 90 minutes, English and French with English subtitles (Canada)

Screening: Thursday, December 20, 2018 – 4pm and 7pm
Uptown Theatre, 55 Dunlop St. W., Barrie

Sophie, a U.S. TV star, finds out shortly before Christmas that she is the subject of compromising photos. Under the pretext of granting the photographer an exclusive interview in exchange for the pictures, the young woman invites him to spend Christmas at her aunt’s in northern Ontario. Will Sophie successfully come to terms with her painful past?
Christmas in a Box is a “feel-good” romantic comedy that takes place during the holiday season and whose main theme is the unconditional love of family. This was filmed in Mattawa, Ontario just east of North Bay.

Program is Sponsored by:

Sink or Swim - 7PM
2018-12-06 19:00 - 21:02, 2018-12-05 19:00 - 21:02
Sink or Swim (Le Grand Bain)

Screening:
Wednesday, December 5 – 4pm, 7pm
Thursday, December 6 – 4pm, 7pm
Location: Uptown Theatre, 55 Dunlop St. W., Barrie

Co-written and Directed by: Gilles Lellouche
Cast: Mathieu Amalric, Guillaume Canet, Benoît Poelvoorde, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Virginie Efira
Drama/Comedy, Not Rated, 122 minutes, Language: French with English subtitles (France)

“A surefooted crowdpleaser with enough warmth and the committed talents of a stellar ensemble cast to fend off any sense of predictability.” – Allan Hunter, Screen International

Directed by Gilles Lellouche and starring some of France’s best male actors (Guillaume Canet, Mathieu Amalric and Jean-Hugues Anglade) wearing Speedos, Sink or Swim is pure feel-good entertainment.
A group of depressed middle-aged men address their collective midlife crisis when they learn of the existence of a team of male synchronised swimmers at their local pool. Amateurs are welcome, which is just as well given that the rum bunch of current members are neither very synchronised nor especially professional.
Braving the skepticism and ridicule of those around them, and trained by fallen champion Delphine (Virginie Efira), the group sets out on an unlikely adventure. They get to know each other in depth, exposing their flaws in the privacy of the changing rooms or in the bar after training in the pool, before setting themselves an overambitious objective: representing France in the world championships in Norway. On the way they rediscover a little self-esteem and a lot about themselves and each other.

AWARDS:

Won – Mel Hoppenheim Audience Award, CINEMANIA Film Festival, 2018
Nominated – Best Film, Prix Louis Delluc, 2018

Sink or Swim - 4PM
2018-12-06 16:00 - 18:02, 2018-12-05 16:00 - 18:02

Anthropocene: The Human Epoch [Film/Q&A]
2018-11-15 19:00 - 20:27
Anthropocene: The Human Epoch
Directed by: Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier, Edward Burtynsky
Written by: Jennifer Baichwal
Narrated by: Alicia Vikander
Documentary, PG, 87 minutes, Language: English/Russian/Italian/German/Mandarin/Cantonese with English subtitles (Canada)

GUEST Q&A | 7 pm screening
Nicholas de Pencier is a Director, Producer, and Director of Photography working in documentary, performing arts, and dramatic film. He is President of Mercury Films Inc., the Toronto-based production company he shares with his partner, Jennifer Baichwal. Selected credits include Let It Come Down: The Life of Paul Bowles (International Emmy), The Holier It Gets, (Best Canadian Doc, Hot Docs), The True Meaning of Pictures (Gemini, Best Arts), Hockey Nomad(Gemini, Best Sports), Manufactured Landscapes, (TIFF Best Canadian Feature; Genie, Best Doc), and Act of God (Gala Opening Night, Hot Docs), Long Time Running (Gala presentation, TIFF 2017). Producer and Director of Photography of Watermark (Special Presentation, TIFF & Berlin, Toronto Film Critics Award, Best Canadian Film, CSA Best Documentary), and Black Code (TIFF 2016), which he also wrote and directed.

“To say that there are no easy answers to planetary woes is to state the obvious. But the film seeks to reveal rather than lecture, in the hope that our eyes will convince our brains to act before it’s too late.” – Peter Howell, Toronto Star

“Stunningly, even hypnotically shot – from the world’s largest landfill in Kenya, to the most polluted city in Russia (Norilsk, Siberia) to tons of tusks representing 10,000 dead elephants. A hard doc to walk away from unaffected.” – Jim Slotek, Original Cin

“As always, the images they capture are stunning and damning in equal measure.” – Andrew Parker, The Gate

A cinematic meditation on humanity’s massive reengineering of the planet, Anthropocene is a four years in the making feature documentary film from the multiple-award winning team of Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier, and Edward Burtynsky.
Third in a trilogy that includes Manufactured Landscapes (2006) and Watermark (2013), the film follows the research of an international body of scientists, the Anthropocene Working Group who, after nearly 10 years of research, are arguing that the evidence shows the Holocene Epoch gave way to the Anthropocene Epoch in the mid-twentieth century, as a result of profound and lasting human changes to the Earth.
From concrete seawalls in China that now cover 60% of the mainland coast, to the biggest terrestrial machines ever built in Germany, to psychedelic potash mines in Russia’s Ural Mountains, to metal festivals in the closed city of Norilsk, to the devastated Great Barrier Reef in Australia and massive marble quarries in Carrara, the filmmakers have traversed the globe using high-end production values and state of the art camera techniques to document the evidence and experience of human planetary domination.
At the intersection of art and science, Anthropocene witnesses, in an experiential and non-didactic sense, a critical moment in geological history — bringing a provocative and unforgettable experience of our species’ breadth and impact.

Official Selection – Toronto International Film Festival, 2018

Program is Sponsored by:

Anthropocene: The Human Epoch
2018-11-15 16:00 - 17:27
Anthropocene: The Human Epoch
Screening: Thursday, November 15, 2018 – 4pm, 7pm
Uptown Theatre, 55 Dunlop St. W., Barrie

Directed by: Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier, Edward Burtynsky
Written by: Jennifer Baichwal
Narrated by: Alicia Vikander
Documentary, PG, 87 minutes, Language: English/Russian/Italian/German/Mandarin/Cantonese with English subtitles (Canada)

“To say that there are no easy answers to planetary woes is to state the obvious. But the film seeks to reveal rather than lecture, in the hope that our eyes will convince our brains to act before it’s too late.” – Peter Howell, Toronto Star

“Stunningly, even hypnotically shot – from the world’s largest landfill in Kenya, to the most polluted city in Russia (Norilsk, Siberia) to tons of tusks representing 10,000 dead elephants. A hard doc to walk away from unaffected.” – Jim Slotek, Original Cin

“As always, the images they capture are stunning and damning in equal measure.” – Andrew Parker, The Gate

A cinematic meditation on humanity’s massive reengineering of the planet, Anthropocene is a four years in the making feature documentary film from the multiple-award winning team of Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier, and Edward Burtynsky.
Third in a trilogy that includes Manufactured Landscapes (2006) and Watermark (2013), the film follows the research of an international body of scientists, the Anthropocene Working Group who, after nearly 10 years of research, are arguing that the evidence shows the Holocene Epoch gave way to the Anthropocene Epoch in the mid-twentieth century, as a result of profound and lasting human changes to the Earth.
From concrete seawalls in China that now cover 60% of the mainland coast, to the biggest terrestrial machines ever built in Germany, to psychedelic potash mines in Russia’s Ural Mountains, to metal festivals in the closed city of Norilsk, to the devastated Great Barrier Reef in Australia and massive marble quarries in Carrara, the filmmakers have traversed the globe using high-end production values and state of the art camera techniques to document the evidence and experience of human planetary domination.
At the intersection of art and science, Anthropocene witnesses, in an experiential and non-didactic sense, a critical moment in geological history — bringing a provocative and unforgettable experience of our species’ breadth and impact.

Official Selection – Toronto International Film Festival, 2018

Program is Sponsored by:

The Guilty
2018-11-08 19:00 - 20:25, 2018-11-08 16:00 - 17:25, 2018-11-07 19:00 - 20:25, 2018-11-07 16:00 - 17:25
The Guilty (Den skyldige)

Screening:
Wednesday, November 7, 2018 – 4pm, 7pm
Thursday, November 8, 2018 – 4pm, 7pm
Location: Uptown Theatre, 55 Dunlop St. W., Barrie

Co-written and Directed by: Gustav Möller
Cast: Jakob Cedergren, Jessica Dinnage, Omar Shargawi, Johan Olsen, Jacob Hauberg Lohmann
Crime/Drama/Thriller, PG, 85 minutes, Language: Danish with English subtitles (Denmark)

“If the setting of “The Guilty” couldn’t be simpler, its immaculate execution by first-time director Gustav Möller couldn’t be more gripping and involving.” – Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

“Piecing together what is really going on is almost as satisfying as figuring out the clues of a first-rate detective story.“ – Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor

When police officer Asger Holm (Jakob Cedergren) is demoted to deskwork, he expects a sleepy beat as an emergency dispatcher. That all changes when he answers a panicked phone call from a kidnapped woman who then disconnects abruptly. Asger, confined to the police station, is forced to use others as his eyes and ears as the severity of the crime slowly becomes clearer. The search to find the missing woman and her assailant will take every bit of his intuition and skill, as a ticking clock and his own personal demons conspire against him. This innovative and unrelenting Danish thriller uses a single location to great effect, ratcheting up the tension as twists pile up and secrets are revealed. Director Gustav Möller expertly frames the increasingly messy proceedings against the clean Scandinavian sterility of the police department, while Cedergren’s strong performance anchors the film and places the audience squarely in Holm’s tragically flawed yet well-intentioned mind space.

10 AWARD WINS, 13 NOMINATIONS
Winner – World Cinema – Dramatic/Audience Award, Sundance Film Festival, 2018
Nominated – Best Film – Austin Fantastic Fest, 2018
Winner – Best Film/International Competition – Baltic Debuts Film Festival, 2018
Nominee – People’s Choice Award for Best Narrative Feature, Melbourne International Film Festival, 2018
Winner – Audience Award/World Cinema, Montclair Film Festival (MFF), 2018
Nominee – Best Film, Montréal Festival of New Cinema, 2018
Winner – Audience Award, Rotterdam International Film Festival, 2018
Winner – Best Director, Seattle International Film Festival, 2018
Winner – Best Feature Film, Cinefest Sudbury, 2018

Nothing Like a Dame
2018-10-21 20:00 - 21:24
Nothing Like a Dame (Tea with the Dames)
Directed by: Roger Michell
With: Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Joan Plowright, Eileen Atkins
Documentary | PG | 94 min. | United Kingdom

SCREENING:
Sunday, October 21 – 8:00 pm
Get your tickets here!

“You don’t have to be familiar with all of their work to appreciate their experience and the words of wisdom they impart on the audience.” – Matthew Toomey, ABC RADIO, Brisbane
“It’s not just what she says but the way she says it, that makes Judi Dench’s advice to her younger self so moving. Be less susceptible to falling in love, she says. This is one of the wonderful moments in this fly-on-the-wall documentary…” – Louise Keller, Urban Cinefile

What happens when four legends of British stage and screen get together? Dame Maggie Smith, Dame Judi Dench, Dame Eileen Atkins, and Dame Joan Plowright are among the most celebrated actresses of our time, with scores of iconic performances, decades of wisdom, and innumerable Oscars, Tonys, Emmys, and BAFTAs between them. They are also longtime friends who hereby invite you to join them for a weekend in the country as they catch up with one another, reminisce, and share their candid, delightfully irreverent thoughts on everything from art to aging to love to a life lived in the spotlight. Bursting with devilish wit and whip-smart insights, Nothing Like a Dame is a remarkable opportunity to spend time in the company of four all-time greats – up close and unfiltered.

The Happy Prince
2018-10-21 18:00 - 19:44, 2018-10-20 19:30 - 21:14
The Happy Prince
Written and Directed by: Rupert Everett
Cast: Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, Colin Morgan, Edwin Thomas, Emily Watson
Drama/History, 14A for sexual content, nudity, coarse language, violence, drug use | 104 min. | English/Italian/French with English subtitles | United Kingdom/Italy/Belgium/Germany

SCREENING:
Saturday, October 20 – 7:30 pm
Sunday, October 21 – 6:00 pm
Get your tickets here!

“The Happy Prince proves that a film can be both bleak and warm-spirited, as befits its mighty subject.” – David Edelstein, NEW YORK MAGAZINE/VULTURE
“As a director, Everett is sometimes heavy-handed, but the performances, and the undeniable injustice of Wilde’s ordeal, make for a tragedy worthy of its drama-loving subject.” – Helen O’Hara, TIME OUT

The last days of Oscar Wilde – and the ghosts that haunted them – are vividly evoked in Rupert Everett’s directorial debut. Everett gives a career defining performance as Wilde, physically and emotionally embodying the literary genius as he lives out his last days in exile in Europe. His body ailing and heavy, his mind spinning, he survives by falling back on the flamboyant irony and brilliant wit that defined him. As the film travels through Wilde’s final act and journeys through England, France and Italy, desire and loyalty face off, the transience of lust is laid bare, and the true riches of love are revealed.

1 WIN, 2 NOMINATIONS:
Won – Best Production, Bavarian Film Awards, 2018
Nominated – Best Feature Film, Berlin International Film Festival, 2018
Nominated – Best Costume Design, German Film Awards, 2018

My Generation
2018-10-21 17:30 - 18:55
My Generation
Directed by: David Batty
Presented by: Michael Caine
With: Joan Collins, Roger Daltrey, Lulu, Twiggy, Marianne Faithfull and Paul McCartney
Documentary | PG for coarse language, substance abuse, tobacco use | 85 min. | United Kingdom

SCREENING:
Thursday, October 18 – 7:30 pm
Sunday, October 21 – 5:30 pm
Get your tickets here!

“A brilliantly thrilling look back at the flowering of creativity and freethinking spirit of 1960s London, through the thoroughly charming perspective of Michael Caine.” – Mary Ann Johanson, Flick Filosopher
“Many of the anecdotes and insights here will already be familiar to anyone with even a passing knowledge of the period but that doesn’t reduce in the slightest the nostalgic pleasure that the film provides throughout.” – Geoffrey Macnab, Independent UK

British film icon Michael Caine narrates and stars in My Generation, the vivid and inspiring story of his personal journey through 1960s London. Based on personal accounts and stunning archive footage, this feature-length documentary film sees Caine travel back in time to talk to The Beatles, Twiggy, David Bailey, Mary Quant, The Rolling Stones, David Hockney and other star names. The film has been painstakingly assembled over the last six years to tell the story of the birth of pop culture in London, through the eyes of the young Michael Caine: For the first time in history the young working class stood up for ourselves and said: “We’re here, this is our society and were not going away!”

Won – Fondazione Mimmo Rotella Award (Michael Caine), Venice Film Festival, 2017
Nominated – Best Foreign Music Trailer, Golden Trailer Awards, 2018

This Mountain Life
2018-10-21 15:30 - 16:50
Directed by: Grant Baldwin
Written by: Grant Baldwin and Jenny Rustemeyer
Adventure/Documentary | PG | 80 min. | Canada/USA

SCREENING:
Friday, October 12 – 7:00 pm [Festival Opener]
Sunday, October 21 – 3:30 pm

“Breathtaking cinematography and brilliant aerial imagery.” – Alexander Rogalski, Hot Docs 2018

The awe evoked by mountainous landscapes is universal, yet few people ever venture into genuine wilderness. Living amongst us is a special breed of people, undefined by age, gender, profession or background: for them, the draw of the mountains is all-consuming. After months of preparation, Martina and her 60 year-old mother Tania embark on a 6 month, 2300 km journey which takes them from Squamish, BC to Alaska, through a relentless alpine wilderness. There are others who share a passion for the mountain life: a group of nuns inhabiting a cloistered retreat to be closer to God; a risk-taking photographer; an impassioned climber; a focused snow artist; a couple who has been living off grid for nearly 50 years: what is it that leads these adventurous people to sacrifice everything – comfort, family, personal safety – for such an existence? Shot in cinematic detail, This Mountain Life attempts to answer the question and offers a riveting portrait of idealistic passion set high in the stunningly beautiful peaks of British Columbia.

The Wife
2018-10-21 15:15 - 16:55
The Wife
Director: Björn Runge
Cast: Glenn Close, Jonathan Pryce, Christian Slater, Max Irons and Elizabeth McGovern
Drama | 14A for coarse language and mature theme | 100 min. | USA/United Kingdom/Sweden

SCREENING:
Monday, October 15 – 4:30 pm
Sunday, October 21 – 3:15 pm
Get your tickets here!

“The Wife offers viewers a chance to observe one of the finest – and most criminally under praised – actresses of her generation working at the very top of her shrewd, subtle, superbly self-controlled game.” – Ann Hornaday, Washington Post
“Glenn Close has one of cinema’s greatest faces. With one look she can tell you everything while revealing nothing.” – Erik Anderson, AwardsWatch

After nearly forty years of marriage, Joan and Joe Castleman (Glenn Close and Jonathan Pryce) are complements. Where Joe is casual, Joan is elegant. Where Joe is vain, Joan is self-effacing. And where Joe enjoys his very public role as Great American Novelist, Joan pours her considerable intellect, grace, charm, and diplomacy into the private role of Great Man’s Wife. Joe is about to be awarded the Nobel Prize for his acclaimed and prolific body of work. Joe’s literary star has blazed since he and Joan first met in the late 1950s. The Wife (based on the novel of the same name by Meg Wolitzer) interweaves the story of the couple’s youthful passion and ambition with a portrait of a marriage, thirty-plus years later – a lifetime’s shared compromises, secrets, betrayals, and mutual love.

NOMINATED – Film and Literature Award, Film by the Sea International Film Festival, 2018

Eighth Grade
2018-10-21 15:00 - 16:34
Eighth Grade
Written and Directed by: Bo Burnham
Cast: Elsie Fisher, Josh Hamilton, Emily Robinson and Missy Yager
Comedy/Drama | 14A for coarse language and sexual content | 94 min. | USA
SCREENING:
Sunday, October 14 – 5:30 pm, Uptown Theatre
Sunday, October 21 – 3:00 pm, Uptown Theatre
Get your tickets here!

“Eighth Grade is personal, uncomfortable, and lovely, a slice-of-life look into current adolescence, our reliance on social media, and growing into oneself.” – Roxana Hadadi, CHESAPEAKE FAMILY MAGAZINE
“An achingly honest film about some of the ghastliest years of adolescence. Funny, tender and endearing.” – Rafer Guzman, NEWSDAY

In his feature film directorial debut, comedian Bo Burnham deftly encapsulates the awkwardness, angst, self-loathing and reinvention that a teenage girl goes through on the cusp of high school. Given that the 27-year-old stand-up comic achieved fame as a teenager himself through YouTube by riffing on his insecurities, he is uniquely capable as the film’s writer and director to tell the story of Kayla, an anxious girl navigating the final days of her eighth grade year. Like Burnham did more than a decade ago, 13-year-old Kayla turns to YouTube to express herself, where she makes advice blogs in which she pretends to have it all together. In reality, Kayla is sullen and silent around her single father and her peers at school, carrying out most of her interactions with her classmates on Instagram and Twitter. Her videos are a clever narrative tool that provide insight into her inner hopes and dreams, much like an inspirational online diary. One of Eighth Grade’s biggest triumphs is in its realism.

6 WINS, 3 NOMINATIONS:
Won – Audience Award, Chicago Critics Film Festival, 2018
Won – Truly Moving Picture Award, Heartland Film, 2018
Won – Audience Award – Best Narrative Feature, San Francisco International Film Festival, 2018
Won – Best Film & Best Actress (Elsie Fisher), Seattle International Film Festival, 2018
Won – Audience Favourite, Sundance Film Festival: London, 2018
Nominated – Grand Jury Prize – Narrative Feature Competition, Dallas International Film Festival, 2018
Nominated – Grand Jury Prize – Dramatic, Sundance Film Festival, 2018

The Grizzlies
2018-10-21 13:15 - 14:59
The Grizzlies
Directed by: Miranda de Pencier
Cast: Emerald MacDonald, Ben Schnetzer, Paul Nutarariaq, Ricky Marty-Pahtaykan, Booboo Stewart and Tantoo Cardinal
Drama/Biography | 14A for coarse language, substance abuse and disturbing content | 104 min. | English and Inuktitut with English subtitles | Canada

SCREENING:
Saturday, October 20 – 2:00 pm [Q&A with Miranda de Pencier]
Sunday, October 21 – 1:15 pm
Get your tickets here!

“It’s a fascinating puzzle: a film that is simultaneously an indictment of the toxic legacy of cultural imperialism and a weepie that employs the familiar tropes of Hollywood, one of the biggest machines of cultural imperialism on the planet.” – Simon Houpt, GLOBE AND MAIL
“The Grizzlies is more than the typical inspiring sports drama because this film offers us hope.” – Danielle Solsman, SOLZY AT THE MOVIES

Producer Miranda de Pencier (Beginners) takes on directorial duties with The Grizzlies, a Canadian feature based on a true story about the transformative power that sport and camaraderie can have on a community. Set in 1998, the film features Russ Sheppard (Ben Schnetzer) as a young teacher who has just moved to Kugluktuk, Nunavut — a community which had one of the highest suicide rates in North America at that time. When it comes to his attention that one of his students, Kyle (Booboo Stewart) is using the school storage bins to seek refuge from his abusive father, Russ decides to start an after-school lacrosse program in an attempt to offer students a safe space. Although the school principal, Janace (Tantoo Cardinal), agrees to provide funding for the team, Miranda (Emerald MacDonald), another of Russ’ students, cautions him that no one will join the team unless he can convince a select group of boys to sign up.

Juliet, Naked
2018-10-21 13:00 - 14:38
Juliet, Naked
Directed by: Jesse Peretz
Cast: Rose Byrne, Chris O’Dowd and Ethan Hawke
Comedy/Drama | 14A for coarse language | 105 min. | USA

SCREENING:
Friday, October 19 – 7:00 pm [GALA]
Sunday, October 21 – 1:00 pm
Get your tickets here!

“Like Ethan Hawke, Rose Byrne is an actor who can do just about anything when given the opportunity.” – Richard Roeper, CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
“A sweet-tart confection that, like lemon sorbet, cleanses a palate gone sour from too many cinematic servings of the heavy stuff.” – Michael O’Sullivan, WASHINGTON POST

Annie (Rose Byrne), the curator of a small museum in a drab English seaside town where she was born, is beginning to realize that her life has been stuck in low gear. Her partner of 15 years, Duncan (Chris O’Dowd), aspires to be the world’s foremost expert on reclusive American singer-songwriter Tucker Crowe (Ethan Hawke) and spends all his free time maintaining a website dedicated to the mostly forgotten rocker. Crowe quit the business at the height of his fame and now, pushing 50, is living in his ex-girlfriend’s garage in New York and trying to make up for past parental failures by dedicating his life to raising his young son. But when Duncan receives the long-lost demo version of Crowe’s revered album, it sets off a chain reaction that will change all of their lives. Duncan hails the album as a masterpiece on his Crowe-themed website, while Annie, frustrated by his obsession with the washed-up musician, posts her own scathing review. She is startled when Crowe unexpectedly reaches out to her. As their friendship blossoms, Crowe comes to London for a visit and the stage is set for an epically messy love triangle that inspires Annie to take the chance of a lifetime. Juliet, Naked is based on the novel by Nick Hornby.

NOMINATED – Best Narrative Feature, Nantucket Film Festival, 2018

Blindspotting
2018-10-20 19:15 - 20:50
Blindspotting
Directed by: Carlos López Estrada
Cast: Daveed Diggs, Rafael Casal, Janina Gavankar, Jasmine Cephas Jones, and Ethan Embry
Comedy/Drama | 14A for coarse language, disturbing content, graphic violence | 95 min. | USA

SCREENING:
Sunday, October 14 – 7:00 pm, Uptown Theatre
Saturday, October 20 – 7:15 pm, Uptown Theatre
Get your tickets here!

“Racism, gentrification, police brutality, start-up culture, corporate branding, social media, the justice system… Blindspotting is eager to take them all on with style and wit, and it succeeds more often than not.” – Barry Hertz, GLOBE AND MAIL
“The result is a powerful film that the viewer will carry with them long after the credits roll, and a staunch reminder of how much conscious work we must all do to overcome the implicit bias of our surroundings.” – Brian Thompson, FILM THREAT

Collin (Daveed Diggs) must make it through his final three days of probation for a chance at a new beginning. He and his troublemaking childhood best friend, Miles (Rafael Casal), work as movers, and when Collin witnesses a police shooting, the two men’s friendship is tested as they grapple with identity and their changed realities in the rapidly-gentrifying neighborhood they grew up in. Longtime friends and collaborators, Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal co-wrote and star in this timely and wildly entertaining story about friendship and the intersection of race and class set against the backdrop of Oakland. Bursting with energy, style, and humour, and infused with the spirit of rap, hip hop, and spoken word, Blindspotting, boldly directed by Carlos Lopez Estrada in his feature film debut, is a provocative hometown love letter that glistens with humanity.

4 WINS, 2 NOMINATIONS:
Won – Festival Director’s Award, U.S. Narrative, Cinetopia Film Festival, 2018
Won – Critics Award, Deauville Film Festival, 2018
Won – Best Original Song – “Talk to Me”, Nashville Film Festival, 2018
Won – Director’s to Watch, Carlos López Estrada, Palm Springs International Film Festival, 2018
Nominated – Grand Jury Prize, Dramatic, Sundance Film Festival, 2018

First Reformed
2018-10-20 18:30 - 20:23
First Reformed
Written and Directed by: Paul Schrader
Cast: Ethan Hawke, Amanda Seyfried, Michael Gaston and Cedric the Entertainer
Drama/Thriller | 14A for gory scenes and disturbing content | Not suggested for sensitive or young viewers | 113 min. | USA

SCREENING:
Sunday, October 14 – 7:30 pm, Uptown Theatre
Saturday, October 20 – 6:30 pm, Uptown Theatre
Get your tickets here!

“First Reformed deserves all praise.” – Peter Howell, TORONTO STAR
“First Reformed is a miracle in its own regard, the rare type of film that leaves us with questions left to answer and for many, a desire to dig into it deeper through a second viewing.” – Colin Covert, MINNEAPOLIS STAR TRIBUNE

Reverend Ernst Toller (Ethan Hawke) is a solitary, middle-aged parish pastor at a small Dutch Reform church in upstate New York on the cusp of celebrating its 250th anniversary. Once a stop on the Underground Railroad, the church is now a tourist attraction catering to a dwindling congregation, eclipsed by its nearby parent church, Abundant Life, with its state-of-the-art facilities and 5,000-strong flock. When a pregnant parishioner (Amanda Seyfried) asks Reverend Toller to counsel her husband, a radical environmentalist, the clergyman finds himself plunged into his own tormented past, and equally despairing future, until he finds redemption in an act of grandiose violence. From writer-director Paul Schrader (Taxi Driver, American Gigolo, Affliction) comes a gripping thriller about a crisis of faith that is at once personal, political, and planetary.

4 WINS, 7 NOMINATIONS:
Won – Jury Prize Best Director, FEST International Film Festival, 2018
Won – Best Original Screenplay, International Online Cinema Awards (INOCA), 2018
Won – Narrative Feature Competition, Montclair Film Festival (MFF), 2018
Nominated – Best 2018 Movie Already Seen, Indiewire Critics’ Poll, 2017
Nominated – Best International Film, Munich Film Festival, 2018
Nominated – Best Actor (Ethan Hawke) Seattle International Film Festival, 2018

The Children Act
2018-10-20 17:00 - 18:45
The Children Act
Directed by: Richard Eyre
Cast: Emma Thompson, Stanley Tucci, Fionn Whitehead and Ben Chaplin
Drama | 14A for mature thematics and sexual references | 105 min. | United Kingdom

SCREENING:
Thursday, October 18 – 7:00 pm, Uptown Theatre
Saturday, October 20 – 5:00 pm, Uptown Theatre
Get your tickets here!

“… The Children Act is that rarest of things: an adult drama, written and interpreted with a sensitivity to mature human concerns…” – Peter Debruge, VARIETY
“The two central performances could hardly be better. Thompson works here with remarkable subtlety.” – Stephen Farber, HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Smart, elegant and deeply moving The Children Act stars two-time Academy Award-winner Emma Thompson in a riveting performance as Fiona Maye, an eminent High Court judge in London.
Presiding with wisdom and compassion over ethically complex cases of family law, she has paid a heavy personal price for her workload. Her marriage to American professor Jack (Stanley Tucci) is at a breaking point and it is in this moment of personal crisis, Fiona is asked to rule on the case of Adam (Whitehead), a brilliant boy who is refusing the blood transfusion that will save his life.
Adam is three months from his 18th birthday and still legally a child. Should Fiona force him to live? Fiona visits Adam in the hospital and their meeting has a profound emotional impact on them both, stirring strong new emotions in the boy and long-buried feelings in her.

WON – Andreas Award, Norwegian International Film Festival, 2018
NOMINATED – Film and Literature Award, Film by the Sea International Film Festival, 2018

Shoplifters
2018-10-20 16:30 - 18:31
Shoplifters
Directed by: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Cast: Lily Franky, Kilin Kiki, Sakura Ando and Mayu Matsuoka
Drama | Not Rated – sexual content, disturbing content | 121 min. | Japanese with English subtitles | Japan

SCREENING:
Saturday, October 20 – 4:30 pm
Get your tickets here!

“Kore-eda’s quiet, angry masterpiece reaffirms once again that no other filmmaker working today has a better understanding of – or compassion for – families.”– James Marsh, SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
“Another charming, funny and very affecting example of Kore-eda’s special brand of tough-but-tender humanism.” – Geoff Andrew, TIME OUT

After one of their shoplifting sessions, Osamu and his son come across a little girl in the freezing cold. At first reluctant to shelter the girl, Osamu’s wife agrees to take care of her after learning of the hardships she faces. Although the family is poor, barely making enough money to survive through petty crime, they seem to live happily together until an unforeseen incident reveals hidden secrets, testing the bonds that unite them…

3 WINS, 2 NOMINATIONS:
Won – Palme d’Or, Cannes Film Festival, 2018
Won – Prix du Jury – ICS Cannes Award, International Cinephile Society Awards, 2018
Won – Best International Film, Munich Film Festival, 2018
Nominated – People’s Choice Award – Best Narrative Feature, Melbourne International Film Festival, 2018
Nominated – People’s Choice Award – Special Presentations, Toronto International Film Festival, 2018
