Skip to main content

Toronto International Film Festival · 2024

Toronto International Film Festival 2024

Special Presentations

Programme

24 films · 22 reviews

Jump to a film

All We Imagine As Light

Review preview for All We Imagine As Light

It’s fitting for a film set in the “City of Dreams” and that is concerned with life’s illusions and how we navigate them as it is about the here and now.

Amber Wilkinson · 5 out of 5
Triptych explores the lives of three women in Mumbai.

(Country: France, India, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Italy; Year: 2024; Director: Payal Kapadia; Writer: Payal Kapadia; Stars: Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha, Chhaya Kadam, Hridhu Haroon, Azees Nedumangad, Anand Sami, Lovleen Mishra, Madhu Raja, Shweta Prajapati, Tintumol Joseph, Ardra K.S., Sisira Anil CK, Aparna Ram, Kashish Singh, Nikhil Mathew)

Full review See: Interview with Payal Kapadia about All We Imagine As Light

Anora

Review preview for Anora

What isn't untrue is that Anora is brilliant.

Andrew Robertson · 4.5 out of 5
Anora, a young sex worker from Brooklyn, gets her chance at a Cinderella story when she meets and impulsively marries the son of an oligarch.

(Country: US; Year: 2024; Director: Sean Baker; Writer: Sean Baker; Stars: Mikey Madison, Yura Borisov, Ivy Wolk, Lindsey Normington, Karren Karagulian, Ross Brodar, Mark Eydelshteyn, Emily Weider, Alena Gurevich, Paul Weissman, Luna Sofía Miranda, Masha Zhak, Vache Tovmasyan, Charlton Lamar)

Full review

Babygirl

Review preview for Babygirl

Halina Reijn's film is a rewarding piece of work, in no small part because of how it challenges its subjects and its audience.

Andrew Robertson · 4 out of 5
A high-powered CEO puts her career and family on the line when she begins a torrid affair with her much younger intern.

(Country: US, Netherlands; Year: 2024; Director: Halina Reijn; Writer: Halina Reijn; Stars: Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson, Antonio Banderas, Sophie Wilde, Esther McGregor, Vaughan Reilly, Victor Slezak, Leslie Silva, Gaite Jansen, Robert Farrior, Bartley Booz, Anoop Desai, Mary Ann Lamb, Gabrielle Policano, Gabriela Torres)

Full review

Bird

Review preview for Bird

Amid all the deprivation Arnold, as is her style, uncovers elements that lift the action out of the ordinary and into the realms of fantasy and magical realism.

Richard Mowe · 3.5 out of 5
12-year-old Bailey lives with her single dad Bug and brother Hunter in a squat in North Kent. Bug doesn’t have much time for his kids and Bailey who is approaching puberty seeks attention and adventure elsewhere.

(Country: UK, US, France, Germany; Year: 2024; Director: Andrea Arnold; Writer: Andrea Arnold; Stars: Barry Keoghan, Franz Rogowski, Nykiya Adams, James Nelson-Joyce, Jasmine Jobson, Rhys Yates, Joanne Matthews, Frankie Box, Dave)

Full review See: Arnold reveals the naked truth about Bird

The Brutalist

Review preview for The Brutalist

A past shines through another layer of the past into a silver screen present that is both familiar and brand-new.

Anne-Katrin Titze · 5 out of 5
When visionary architect László Tóth flees post-war Europe in 1947 to rebuild his legacy and witness the birth of modern America, his life is changed forever by a wealthy client.

(Country: UK; Year: 2024; Director: Brady Corbet; Writer: Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold; Stars: Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones, Joe Alwyn, Raffey Cassidy, Stacy Martin, Isaach De Bankolé, Alessandro Nivola)

Full review See: Alessandro Nivola in conversation on The Brutalist and Brady Corbet , Alessandro Nivola on Costantino Nivola, Le Corbusier, and The Brutalist; Paul Giamatti and Yale; Emily Mortimer and Coco Chanel connections

Caught By The Tides (Feng Liu Yi Dai)

An elusive, decades-spanning love story impacted by life in modern China.

(Country: China; Year: 2024; Director: Jia Zhang-Ke)

Conclave

Review preview for Conclave

Director Edward Berger and his director of photography Stephane Fontaine have made every frame art.

Andrew Robertson · 4 out of 5
Drama surrounding the election of a new Pope.

(Country: UK, US; Year: 2024; Director: Edward Berger; Writer: Robert Harris, Peter Straughan; Stars: Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, Isabella Rossellini, Lucian Msamati, Brían F. O'Byrne, Merab Ninidze, Sergio Castellitto, Jacek Koman, Carlos Diehz, Joseph Mydell, Rony Kramer, Loris Loddi, Thomas Loibl, Jeremy Withrow)

Full review

Dahomey

Review preview for Dahomey

Vigorously covering all bases, Diop cuts elegantly to give each position ample space.

Sunil Chauhan · 3.5 out of 5
Documentary about the return of artworks to Benin that were looted by French colonisers.

(Country: France, Senegal, Benin; Year: 2024; Director: Mati Diop)

Full review

Emilia Perez

Review preview for Emilia Perez

Audiard has assembled a remarkable team of actors

Richard Mowe · 4 out of 5
A lawyer gets an offer to help a cartel boss start a new life.

(Country: US, Mexico; Year: 2024; Director: Jacques Audiard; Writer: Jacques Audiard; Stars: Zoe Saldana, Selena Gomez, Edgar Ramírez, Karla Sofía Gascón, Adriana Paz, James Gerard, Shiraz Tzarfati, Agathe Bokja, Marie-Elisabeth Robert, Stéphane Ly-Cuong, Eric Geynes, Anabel Lopez, Eduardo Aladro, Line Phé, Cyrus Khodaveisi)

Full review See: Jacques Audiard and Karla Sofia Gascón on changing identity, democracy and drug cartels in Emilia Perez

The End

Review preview for The End

It’s ironic that a film about a family who have built a perfect facsimile of a life for themselves should feel so overly constructed itself

Amber Wilkinson · 2 out of 5
After the sudden arrival of a stranger, Girl, threatens Mother and Father's family’s luxurious compound deep underground, Son begins to question their seemingly perfect existence.

(Country: Denmark, Ireland, Germany, Italy, UK, US; Year: 2024; Director: Joshua Oppenheimer; Writer: Rasmus Heisterberg, Joshua Oppenheimer; Stars: Tilda Swinton, Michael Shannon, Moses Ingram, George MacKay, Tim McInnerny, Lennie James, Bronagh Gallagher, Danielle Ryan)

Full review See: Joshua Oppenheimer and George Mackay on dystopian musical The End

The Girl With The Needle (Pigen med nålen)

Review preview for The Girl With The Needle

Illusions are everywhere in this film.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
In Copenhagen in the aftermath of World War one, a young woman in desperate circumstances takes on a job which will lead her to still greater depths of despair.

(Country: Denmark; Year: 2024; Director: Magnus von Horn; Writer: Line Langebek Knudsen, Magnus von Horn; Stars: Vic Carmen Sonne, Trine Dyrholm, Besir Zeciri, Ava Knox Martin, Joachim Fjelstrup, Tessa Hoder, Søren Sætter-Lassen, Thomas Kirk, Dan Jakobsen, Anna Tulestedt, Ari Alexander, Benedikte Hansen, Per Thiim Thim, Peter Secher Schmidt, Agnieszka Przyborowska-Mitrosz)

Full review

Hard Truths

Review preview for Hard Truths

It’s funny to begin with, watching Pansy rant with no filter, sharing her negative thoughts on everything from baby clothes with pockets to sofa salespeople, but gradually we realise just how close to the edge she is.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
Life's a constant struggle for Pansy. Racked with physical and mental pain, her dealings with the world are channeled through anger and confrontation - only her sister understands and is able to help her.

(Country: UK, Spain; Year: 2024; Director: Mike Leigh; Writer: Mike Leigh; Stars: Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Bryony Miller, Michele Austin, Llewella Gideon, David Webber, Tuwaine Barrett, Elliot Edusah, Tiwa Lade, Ani Nelson, Felicita Ramundo)

Full review See: Mike Leigh and Marianne Jean-Baptiste on the art of organic character creation in Hard Truths

Harvest

Review preview for Harvest

At times the discomfort that Harvest causes is not from dirt or despair but the room it leaves for interpretation.

Andrew Robertson · 4 out of 5
Over seven hallucinatory days, a village with no name, in an undefined time and place, disappears.

(Country: UK, Germany, US, France, Greece; Year: 2024; Director: Athina Rachel Tsangari; Writer: Joslyn Barnes, Jim Crace, Athina Rachel Tsangari; Stars: Harry Melling, Caleb Landry Jones, Frank Dillane, Arinzé Kene, Rosy McEwen, Grace Jabbari, Thalissa Teixeira, Stephen McMillan, Gordon Brown, Emma Hindle, Mitchell Robertson, Neil Leiper, Noor Dillan-Night, Gary Maitland, Logan Buchanan)

Full review

I'm Still Here (Ainda estou aqui)

Review preview for I'm Still Here

This is a tactile retelling, inviting us to imagine the sticky feel of Coca-Cola on hot skin in the sun or the heat of a sheepskin coat and the love that goes with it being passed from mum to daughter ahead of a trip abroad.

Amber Wilkinson · 4.5 out of 5
Brazil, 1971: a country in the tightening grip of a military dictatorship. A mother is forced to reinvent herself when her family’s life is shattered by an act of arbitrary violence.

(Country: Brazil, France, Spain; Year: 2024; Director: Walter Salles; Writer: Murilo Hauser, Heitor Lorega, Marcelo Rubens Paiva; Stars: Brazil, 1971: a country in the tightening grip of a military dictatorship. A mother is forced to reinvent herself when her family's life is shattered by an act of arbitrary violence.)

Full review

I, the Executioner

Crime action sequel sees a detection department facing a crisis.

(Year: 2024; Director: Seung Wan Ryoo)

The Last Showgirl

Review preview for The Last Showgirl

Coppola has style, but sometimes employs too much of it.

Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
A seasoned showgirl must plan for her future when her show closes abruptly after a 30-year run.

(Country: US; Year: 2024; Director: Gia Coppola; Writer: Kate Gersten; Stars: Pamela Anderson, Jamie Lee Curtis, Dave Bautista, Brenda Song, Kiernan Shipka, Billie Lourd, Jason Schwartzman, Patrick Hilgart, John Clofine, Jesse Phillips, David Avne, Sean Patrick Bryan)

Full review See: Pamela Anderson and Gia Coppola on working together to craft The Last Showgirl

Misericordia

Review preview for Misericordia

Once again, Guiraudie proves himself the master of setting up a mystery by the means of perfect script economy that functions strictly on “need to know” basis.

Marko Stojiljkovic · 4 out of 5
A stranger’s appearance exposes the weird behaviour and the secret desires of a village's residents.

(Country: France; Year: 2024; Director: Alain Guiraudie; Writer: Alain Guiraudie; Stars: Félix Kysyl, Catherine Frot, Jean-Baptiste Durand, David Ayala, Jacques Develay, Sébastien Faglain, Salomé Lopes)

Full review

On Becoming A Guinea Fowl

Review preview for On Becoming A Guinea Fowl

Nyoni expertly controls her narrative so that it glides effortlessly between the reality of the funeral preparations to the more surreal psychological trauma Shula is working through.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
Absurdist drama sees family secrets gradually revealed during the preparations for a funeral.

(Country: UK, Zambia, Ireland; Year: 2024; Director: Rungano Nyoni; Writer: Rungano Nyoni; Stars: Susan Chardy, Roy Chisha, Blessings Bhamjee, Chungu Bwalya, Maggie Mulubwa, Benson Mumba, Henry B.J. Phiri, Elizabeth Chisela, Doris Naulapwa, Mary Mulabo, Norah Mwansa, Hildah Mwanza, Febby Lungu, Gillian Sakala, Carol Natasha Mwale)

Full review

The Order

Review preview for The Order

The Order might not be too original, both in the plot and the character department, but it is very effective, functional movie fun.

Marko Stojiljkovic · 4 out of 5
An FBI agent comes to believe a series of violent crimes are the work of domestic terrorists.

(Country: US, Canada; Year: 2024; Director: Justin Kurzel; Writer: Zach Baylin, based on the book by Kevin Flynn and Gary Gerhardt; Stars: Marc Maron, George Tchortov, Daniel Yip, Daniel Doheny, Sebastian Pigott, Jude Law, John Warkentin, Nicholas Hoult, Phillip Forest Lewitski, Vanessa Holmes, Bryan J McHale, Rae Farrer, Carter Morrison, Odessa Young, Tye Sheridan)

Full review

Queer

Review preview for Queer

There’s also an emperor’s new clothes feeling to the general style, look closely and there's very little there.

Amber Wilkinson · 2 out of 5
A louche older man pursues a younger boy toy in Mexico City before the pair go on the hunt for psychedelics in Ecuador.

(Country: Italy, US; Year: 2024; Director: Luca Guadagnino; Writer: Justin Kuritzkes, based on the short story by William S Burroughs; Stars: Daniel Craig, Drew Starkey, Jason Schwartzman, Lesley Manville, Michael Borremans, Andra Ursuta, David Lowery)

Full review

The Room Next Door

Review preview for The Room Next Door

Almodóvar goes all out with the delights fashion has to offer, bright colours, the joy of transformation - because it is never too late for sartorial metamorphosis.

Anne-Katrin Titze · 5 out of 5
When Ingrid finds out that her old friend Martha is seriously ill, they reunite and embark on a journey of discoveries.

(Country: Spain; Year: 2024; Director: Pedro Almodóvar; Writer: Pedro Almodóvar, Sigrid Nunez; Stars: Tilda Swinton, Julianne Moore, John Turturro, Alessandro Nivola, Juan Diego Botto, Raúl Arévalo, Victoria Luengo, Alex Hogh Andersen, Esther McGregor, Alvise Rigo, Melina Matthews)

Full review See: Tilda Swinton on dressing for Pedro Almodóvar, art, friendship and nature in The Room Next Door , Alessandro Nivola in conversation on Pedro Almodóvar’s The Room Next Door

Rumours

Review preview for Rumours

The writing is sharp and succinct.

Richard Mowe · 4 out of 5
World leaders become stranded in the woods during a G7 summit.

(Country: Canada, Germany; Year: 2024; Director: Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson, Guy Maddin; Writer: Evan Johnson; Stars: Alicia Vikander, Cate Blanchett, Charles Dance, Takehiro Hira, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Denis Ménochet, Roy Dupuis, Zlatko Buric, Ralph Berkin, Rolando Ravello, Alexa Kennedy, Tomi Kosynus)

Full review See: Guy Maddin on Rumours in Cannes

Vermiglio

Review preview for Vermiglio

Maura Delpero’s multi-layered drama sees its heroine growing up and coming to understand the world in new ways at the same time as the village itself shifts, not altogether willingly, into the modern era.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
1944, Vermiglio, a remote mountain village. The arrival of Pietro, a deserter, into the family of the local teacher, and his love for the teacher's eldest daughter, will change the course of everyone's life.

(Country: Italy, France, Belgium; Year: 2024; Director: Maura Delpero; Writer: Maura Delpero; Stars: Tommaso Ragno, Giuseppe De Domenico, Roberta Rovelli, Martina Scrinzi, Orietta Notari, Carlotta Gamba, Santiago Fondevila Sancet, Rachele Potrich, Anna Thaler, Patrick Gardner, Enrico Panizza, Luis Thaler, Simone Bendetti, Sara Serraiocco)

Full review

We Live In Time

Review preview for We Live In Time

A perfect example of just how much the stars of a film can elevate mediocre material by the strength of their performances.

Amber Wilkinson · 3 out of 5
Almut and Tobias are brought together in a surprise encounter that changes their lives.

(Country: UK; Year: 2024; Director: John Crowley; Writer: Nick Payne; Stars: Florence Pugh, Andrew Garfield)

Full review