The Toronto International Film Festival is back, and with it comes another collection of highly anticipated movies, superstar sightings and controversies.
It has been a big year full of changes at TIFF – its leadership team was restructured after what the TIFF CEO called “one of the toughest year’s I’ve ever seen,” Rogers Communications took the spot as lead sponsor from long-time partner Bell and the industry as a whole is still reeling from last year’s strikes.
So to help you navigate the twists and turns of the film festival, which runs from Sept. 5-15, The Globe has put together a full guide to TIFF 2024, including the must-see films and inside looks from the filmmakers. Keep your eye on this space, as we’ll be updating it throughout the festival.
The films you can’t miss
Director Luca Guadagnino's Queer, starring Daniel Craig, is based on an autobiographical novel by William Burroughs.TIFF
With 278 titles to choose from, it can be tough for aspiring festival goers to figure out where to spend their valuable theatre time. To help sort through the sea of options, The Globe’s Arts team has compiled their picks for the 12 can’t-miss films at this year’s festival.
Nutcrackers: Ben Stiller returns in his first leading role in six years, starring as a workaholic who is suddenly thrust into being a caregiver for his orphaned nephews. Globe film editor Barry Hertz explains why he thinks Nutcrackers is the perfect film to open the festival.
Queer: Based on an autobiographical novel by William Burroughs, Luca Guadagnino’s latest stars Daniel Craig as a gay drug addict on an odyssey in 1940s Mexico City. Guadagnino claims it’s his most personal work yet, and that the sex scenes are “numerous and scandalous.”
Conclave: Thrillers have officially reached the Vatican. In this papal drama, Cardinal Lawrence (played by Ralph Fiennes, who also stars in The Return at this year’s festival) must organize a conclave to select a new Pope after the death of the previous one. Stanley Tucci squares off against Sergio Castellitto for the top job.
The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal: Surviving members of The Tragically Hip are telling the story of the band in their own words in this four-part documentary series directed by Mike Downie, the brother of The Hip’s late singer Gord Downie. There will be a public singalong hosted by Choir! Choir! Choir! to celebrate the film on King St. on Sept. 5, starting at 4:30.
Ick: This horror satire is director Joseph Kahn’s follow up to his hip-hop comedy Bodied – which also premiered at TIFF back in 2017 – and promises just as much chaos as a high-school science teacher (Brandon Routh) battles a parasitic alien entity.
Measures for a Funeral: Also starring at this year’s festival in Matt & Mara, Canadian actor Deragh Campbell stars as an academic piecing together the history of a long-forgotten violinist.
The Seed of the Sacred Fig: Coming to Toronto with prizes from the Cannes and Sydney film festivals, the film from Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof – who was forced to flee Iran to avoid a prison sentence over his movies – pits a government investigator prosecuting activists against the women in his own family.
The Seed of the Sacred Fig was directed by Mohammad Rasoulof – who was forced to flee Iran to avoid a prison sentence over his movies.TIFF
Universal Language: In the off-beat comedy set in Montreal and Winnipeg, director Matthew Rankin – following up after his surreal Mackenzie King biopic The Twentieth Century – reimagines Canada as a nation bilingual in French and Farsi.
Saturday Night: Director Jason Reitman brings a “thriller-comedy” which takes viewers through the tense 90 minutes leading up to the broadcast of the very first episode of Saturday Night Live. Reitman, like his late father Ivan Reitman, worked with SNL veteran Dan Akroyd on Ghostbusters, and surely heard the war stories from the show’s earliest days.
Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band: A frequent TIFF attendee over the years, expect to catch a glimpse of Bruce Springsteen as the festival premieres the Boss’ latest collaboration with director Thom Zimny.
Blue Road – The Edna O’Brien Story: Irish writer Edna O’Brien, who died in July at 93, had her first novel banned in Ireland for its frankness on female sexuality and church-sanctioned patriarchal violence, had many affairs, partied with the likes of Paul McCartney and raised two children. How could a documentary about her not be fascinating?
40 Acres: R.T. Thorne’s feature directorial debut is a postapocalyptic thriller which follows former soldier Hailey (Danielle Deadwyler), a descendant of African American farmers who, 200 years after the Civil War, are under siege once again by marauders.
Read the full thoughts of our Arts staff in the buzziest movies you can’t miss at this year’s Toronto film festival.
The films you may not have heard of with big name stars
Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd star in "Friendship" which is among the titles in TIFF's Midnight Madness lineup.HO/The Canadian Press
While TIFF is a great place to catch some of the year’s most-talked about movies before they hit big-box theatres, it’s also a unique chance to watch top actors stretch their acting chops in films you may not have heard of. Here are some of the biggest stars starring in films at this year’s festival you shouldn’t miss.
Riff Raff — Jennifer Coolidge, Bill Murray
Hot off an iconic two-season run on The White Lotus, the ever-funny Jennifer Coolidge stars in this black comedy alongside Ed Harris and Gabrielle Union. Coolidge appears as Harris’s ex-wife who shows up unannounced to a family reunion, while Bill Murray (who is also featuring in The Friend at the festival) plays an old mobster with a score to settle.
Friendship — Paul Rudd
Now firmly placed in Marvel superhero-stardom, Paul Rudd finds the time to star in this twisted take on a buddy comedy. Co-starring alongside I Think You Should Leave’s Tim Robinson, Rudd plays a charming weatherman who must contend with the increasingly obsessive advances of his neighbour.
Oh, Canada — Richard Gere, Uma Thurman, Jacob Elordi
This one has a little something for everyone. Chicago star Richard Gere stars as a draft dodger who moved to Canada from the U.S. to avoid the Vietnam War draft, and Kill Bill’s Uma Thurman as his wife fighting to protect his legacy. For the younger crowd, Saltburn star Jacob Elordi appears as Gere’s younger self. Did we mention The Sopranos and White Lotus star Michael Imperioli is in this one as well?
How to get last-minute rush tickets for screenings
The head of the rush line for same day tickets for films screening at TIFF Bell Lightbox on Sept. 12, 2019.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
If you couldn’t get your hands on tickets for a movie you were especially looking forward to watching, you might still be able to get your hands on last-minute rush tickets.
“If a screening is off-sale, customers without tickets may wait in the rush line as a last chance to see the film,” according to the festival site.
“15 minutes prior to a screening’s start time, front of house staff will count the empty seats in the cinema and sell a select amount of rush tickets to those in the Rush line on a first-come, first-served basis.”
TIFF recommends arriving for a rush line no earlier than 60 minutes prior to the screening, and warn that being in a rush line does not guarantee a ticket to the screening.
Catch a free film under the stars at David Pecaut Square
Preparations under way for TIFF on Sept. 4 at David Pecaut Square, a day before the festival returns for its 49th edition.Carlos Osorio/Reuters
Every night, festival goers can catch a curated selection of movies outdoors at David Pecaut Square, right next to the Roy Thomson Hall theatre. Starting at 10 p.m. (to guarantee maximum darkness), you’ll be able to grab a chair or bring your own and enjoy films related to this year’s biggest stars, such as Amy Adam’s Arrival, Ben Stiller’s Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, Ivan Reitman’s Ghostbusters, and Francis Ford Coppola’s The Outsiders.
The TIFF 2024 interviews
The Globe spoke to several filmmakers who are showcasing their movies at TIFF this year. You can read more about why they are excited to present their work to TIFF audiences here:
Johnny Ma
Johnny Ma's The Mother and the Bear follows a South Korean widow as she navigates a Winnipeg winter while taking care of her twentysomething daughter, who has slipped into a coma.Elevation Pictures
The film: The Mother and the Bear
His role: Director
The quote: “Even though I thought people would think I was crazy – why would anyone give me money to make a film in a language that I don’t even speak? But nobody ever asked me to change it to a Chinese character. It’s the same way that I made a film in Winnipeg despite not being from Winnipeg. It felt universal.”
Durga Chew-Bose
Montreal-based writer and director Durga Chew-Bose in her home on Aug. 19.Evan Buhler/The Globe and Mail
The film: Bonjour Tristesse
Her role: Director, writer
The quote: “I’m the last person to ask what a movie is ‘about.’ I tend to zero in on a scene that will detonate. I have great admiration for filmmakers who are stubborn in their pursuit of small moments. It takes a lot of vision to keep them in a film. And stretching time, staying with stillness – I’ve always found that really seductive.”
Rachel Morrison
Actor Brian Tyree Henry, left, director Rachel Morrison, centre, and actor Ryan Destiny on the set of The Fire Inside.Sabrina Lantos/Amazon MGM Studios
The film: The Fire Inside
Her role: Director
The quote: “I’m a storyteller first, but what’s happened lately is that I didn’t have any idea how much a director has to fight for something to come to be. Now that I have a platform, I can use it to bring a film into the universe. I’ll fight for any story that I believe in and that is additive in the world somehow.”
Sook-Yin Lee
Filmmaker, musician and broadcaster Sook-Yin Lee in her kitchen in Toronto, on Aug. 8.Galit Rodan/The Globe and Mail
The film: Paying for It
Her role: Director
The quote: “All the women I cast are visual artists, filmmakers, musicians, activists and all politically aware of sex work. It was incredibly important for me to have that perspective and the nuanced specificity.”
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