Reviews - How to Festival TIFF 2009

Ghost Writer: Michele A.

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There are actually people who pride themselves in seeing more than three films in one day while attending TIFF - I am not one of them! I am from New York City, and while in Toronto, I like to see the city, sample its restaurants, do some shopping and mix with the friendly Torontonians.

This year was our fourth trip to the Festival. It is something I look forward to all year, even though we always plan our trip at the last minute. Our arrangements depend upon the cost and the film schedule. I am a big Colin Firth fan, so if he has a film or films screening, I want to be there for them.

In fact, my biggest gripe with TIFF is that they release the schedule so late in the game, generally around 3 weeks before the festival begins. The earlier you can make travel and lodging arrangements, the more you can get for the money. The moment the schedule is released, I am on the travel sites looking for the best package. Our first trip to TIFF was in 2005, and I knew nothing about the layout of the city. I made a big mistake in selecting a hotel that was a bargain, but too far from all the action. We rented a car, and after the rental and parking costs, it would have been more economical to stay closer to downtown and walk or take the subway or taxis to the TIFF venues.

Last year we stayed at the Westin Harbour Castle, situated on beautiful Lake Ontario, and just a 15 minute walk to the Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres, two of the primary TIFF theatres. We loved the hotel and the location was ideal, so we booked the same hotel this year. I was able to get a great price for a five-night stay including airfare for my husband and myself. We try to get a very early flight into Toronto and a very late flight out (this year 8:30 a.m. and 8:45 p.m. respectively) so that we can schedule films on all days of our stay.

Once travel arrangements are made, it is time to pore over the film lists. The object is to first pencil in the "must-sees," in this case, two screenings each of Colin Firth's films, Dorian Gray and A Single Man, and then work in other selections around them. You have to look at the festival map to be sure you will have enough time to travel from venue to venue. (Eating and visiting a rest room would be nice, too!)

The cost of the tickets, particularly for gala presentations at Roy Thompson Hall, is quite high. Gala tickets are around $40 each, and regular screenings are around $20. Of course, there are also online or telephone order fees. It is more economical to order all your tickets at once to save on these fees, but it is not always possible to do so as tickets that are not available on the first day may become available later on. I was very lucky this year in getting tickets for both of Colin Firth's films on the first day of sales. I was on the phone the moment the box office opened - as usual, the online site was jammed and impossible to navigate.

The other way to order to tickets is to pre-order a package some weeks before individual tickets go on sale. You pay the cost of 10 tickets (there are larger packages as well) and a lottery system determines the order in which package buyers select their tickets. As I live in NY, I would have to do this through the mail, and there is still no guarantee to get your first ticket choices.

We have made friends over these past 5 years with other film fans, some of whom live in Toronto, and we meet up each year for the festival. It's great to have friends who can guide us through the city, recommend restaurants, transportation, etc. We walk whenever it is possible; if we are in a hurry, we take taxis. Yes, that can get expensive, but as we are usually 3 or 4 to a taxi, it sometimes works out to cost less than or equal to taking subways.

A big part of the festival experience is the fun of seeing celebrities in person, and not just at festival screenings. Try as you might to act blase, there is something about seeing George Clooney waving to fans or Colin Firth shopping in the bookstore that makes your day just a bit more exciting. (We did actually meet Colin Firth in front of the bookstore and he was gracious in signing autographs and posing with us for photos.) And this year George Clooney had two films at the festival, and we seemed to see him everywhere. (Our joke was that he was stalking US!)

Most days, we saw two films. There was one day I wanted to see three, but couldn't get tickets to see one of the films (An Education). This one was the only film I really wanted to see, but was unsuccessful in getting tickets. We even got on a rush line at 8 a.m. but only the first 10 got in. The screening was at 9, and a few hardy souls were there shortly after 6 a.m. When a film is totally sold out, there is a rush line in case some ticket holders don't show up.

I try to select films that are not likely to open in local theaters, even in New York City, soon after the festival. Unless I absolutely want to see a film immediately, there is no reason to pay more than $20 when I know I can pay $7 (using tickets I purchase at a discount from my employer) in a few weeks time

Here are the films we saw this year in Toronto. I will review them in detail later, but for now here are my quick ratings with 5 [shovels] being the highest possible score.

Friday Sept 11

Creation - 3.5

Dorian Gray (gala) - 2.5

Saturday Sept 12

Fish Tank - 4.5

The Vintner's Luck - 3

Sunday Sept 13

Dorian Gray - 2.5

Monday Sept 14

Google Baby - 4.0

A Single Man - 5

Tuesday Sept 15

Chloe - 3.5

Baaria - 4

Wednesday Sept 16

A Single Man - 5

Get Low - 4