Category Archives: Cinema

VIFF 2011: The Award-Winning & Buzz Films at This Year’s Festival

Cinema, VIFF 2011

30TH ANNUAL VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

With 275 feature films and more than 100 ‘shorts’ from 75 countries across the globe from which to choose, how does the avid VIFF festival attendee know which films to choose for an optimal Festival-going experience?
Of course, each individual festival-goer attending this year’s 30th annual Vancouver International Film Festival establish criteria for determining their personal Festival programme, be it Asian film, U.S. independents, European cinema, films from the Middle East, films with a focus on musical artists, or hard-hitting documentaries. Quite simply, there’s a panoply of films from which to choose. How do you programme your own Festival attendance?
To provide assistance in the ‘chore of choosing’ VanRamblings will provide links, and external reviews, to the 35 or so buzz films arriving at VIFF30, from the award-winning films to the films which have enraptured the critics at other Festivals. Here we go with Part One. Hang on to your hats!

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The 30th Annual Vancouver International Film Festival

Cinema, VIFF 2011

VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

In the 30 years since the inaugural Vancouver International Film Festival, a plethora of film festivals have sprouted up across North America and on every continent in the world, some to a lot more fanfare than is the case with our beloved VIFF. But after three decades, the Vancouver International Film Festival keeps evolving, enabling film lovers on the west coast of Canada an opportunity each year to screen provocative independent, Canadian, Asian, foreign and non-fiction films, as well as adaptive musical performances from eclectic performers, all the while providing a sometimes despairing, but generally hopeful, window on our often troubling world.
In 2011, the VIFF cinematic juggernaut runs for 16 days from Thursday, September 29th through Friday, October 14th, and in that time, at five venues — mostly in the downtown peninsula, including the Empire Granville 7, the VISA Screening Room at the Vogue Theatre, the Vancity Theatre at the Vancouver International Film Centre on Seymour at Davie, Pacific Cinémathèque on Howe Street, and outside of downtown, on Cambie at 18th, at Festival Cinemas’ Park Theatre — viewers can see more than 375 films: 235 features from 75 countries across the globe.

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Telluride: An Early Insight Into the Upcoming Oscar Season

Cinema

TELLURIDE FILM FESTIVAL

As we in Vancouver prepare for the kick-off to the 30th annual Vancouver International Film Festival on September 28th, and as we await the commencement of the Toronto International Film Festival later in the week — considered by many to be the most prestigious North American film festival, and the Festival that officially kicks off Hollywood’s Oscar awards season — the 38th annual Telluride Film Festival wraps today, thus providing us with an opportunity to provide you with some insight into films you might look forward to, the Oscar bait you’ll come to read much about.
By far, our favourite Telluride correspondent proved to be Awards Daily’s Sasha Stone. Here’s her daily coverage of the Telluride Film Festival …

  • Telluride, Day One: Sasha Stone traveled to Telluride for the first time, this year, and in the company of noted curmudgeon / Oscar Poker podcast co-host Jeffrey Wells, of Hollywood Elsewhere (VanRamblings’ favourite daily film read). Replete with gorgeous photography, Stone’s coverage this first day tends more to the travelogue than it does to the Telluride festival itself. But still … what gorgeous writing (and photos)!
  • Telluride, Day Two: More great photos, more great writing, and more great idiosyncratic insight into Sasha’s experience of Telluride.
  • Telluride, Day Three: Sasha wraps up Telluride, focusing on Glenn Close, and some of her pals who were also in attendance to cover the Festival. Of course, there are more great photos to simply get lost in.

But what of the many films which made their début at 2011 Telluride?

  • The Descendants: Far and away the biggest hit at this year’s Telluride film festival, The Descendants was not only a critics’ consensus favourite, but deemed a surefire Oscar nominee. Here’s what the critics had to say: Sasha Stone writes “truthful, mature, transcendent, a major Oscar contender;” while veteran critic Todd McCarthy, now of The Hollywood Reporter, calls The Descendants, “A splendid comedy-drama about a father coping with his comatose wife and difficult daughters. Represents high points for both George Clooney and director Alexander Payne.” The LA Times says The Descendants makes waves; Peter Debruge of the industry trade mag, Variety, is near rapturous; The Playlist’s Michael Patterson in his at length review calls the film, “subtle, effective, quirky & wise.” Meanwhile, Hitfix simply concludes: “superb“.

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Drive: The Fall Movie / Oscar Season Commences

Cinema

With both the Venice and Telluride film festivals underway, the Toronto Film Festival set to begin next week, and our own homegrown 30th annual Vancouver International Film Festival only 4 short weeks away, cinéastes know that the ‘silly season’ for movies is over, and for those who love serious, heart-wrenching cinema, film nirvana is just around the corner.
Over the course of the month we hope to write about the upcoming films we at VanRamblings look forward to most, while later in the month we will publish our annual introductory column to the much-looked-forward-to Vancouver International Film Festival, followed by daily coverage of VIFF30.
For now, though, we present a trailer for winner of Cannes’ Best Director award, Nicholas Refn’s, new film, Drive, starring Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Albert Brooks, Bryan Cranston and, as they say, a ‘cast of thousands’. The pulse-pounding Drive is set to open on Friday, Sept. 16th.