Film Fan Fridays for Friday March 20, 2009

Hello Film Fans and Fanatics!

Welcome to Film Fan Fridays for Friday March 20, 2009! This weeks releases are full of numbers, art & commentary as well as big names and laughs. Let's get right to it!

In limited release this week we have a plethora of films to discover. First up is the Canadian Polytechnique, a dramatization of the 1989 Montreal Massacre. I was surprized to hear of this story being brought to film, but after realizing it is in the adept hands of director Denis Villeneuve (Maelstrom, Next Floor) intrigue crept in and makes it a must see. Keeping with the real we have The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins, a documentary on controversial artist Vanessa Beecroft's and her adoption obsession which was a huge hit at Hot Docs in 2008. Blurring the lines between documentary and drama we have 24 City / Er Shi Si Cheng Ji from director Jia Zhang-Ke explores what factory life in China with a unique storytelling style. Numbers persist with 12 a re-telling of the 1957 classic 12 Angry Men which picked up an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Film in 2007. Last up for limited releases is Kenneth Branagh's The Magic Flute.

In wide release we have three films that have been pumping out trailers and ads like mad. First up is Knowing from director Alex Proyas (Dark City, The Crow) which is our first disaster-style mystery/thriller of the year and has a slight SciFi feel. I've got my fingers crossed that it will deliver. We also have Duplicity with Julia Roberts and Clive Owen starring as ex-federal intelligence agents looking for a score. Last but not least according to the poll results is the 'bromance' I Love You, Man.

Have a great weekend!

Shannon

Festival Watch

The Female Eye Film Festival
7th annual festival showcasing women directors
March 25 – 29, 2009 at various locations in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Queer 2 Fly Film Festival
March 21 - 22, 2009 at Innis Town Hall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Special Screening

Unspoiled Gore
A blind double bill of gore films!
Saturday March 21, 2009 at 7:30pm at Onofono, 193A Augusta Ave, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Friday Month 20, 2009 Releases

12
Dir: Nikita Mikhalkov (The Barber of Siberia / Sibirskiy tsiryulnik, Territory of Love / Urga)
Cast: Sergei Makovetsky, Nikita Mikhalkov, Sergei Garemashs, Valentin Gaft, Aleksei Petrenko, Yuri Stoyanov
Russia
Limited Release
Official Film Site (Russian), IMDb Page, Trailer

24 City / Er Shi Si Cheng Ji
Dir: Jia Zhang-Ke (Useless / Wuyong, Dong, Still Life / Sanxia haore)
Documentary starring Joan Chen, Tao Zhao, Jianbin Chen
China/Hong Kong/Japan
Limited Release
No Official Film Site found, more info: IMDb Page, Trailer

The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins
Writer/Dir: Pietra Brettkelly (Beauty Will Save the World)
Documentary on artist Vanessa Beecroft's controversial adoption obsession
New Zealand
Limited Release
Official Film Site & Trailer, IMDb Page

Duplicity
Dir: Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton)
Cast: Julia Roberts, Clive Owen, Paul Giamatti, Tom Wilkinson, Oleg Shtefanko
USA/Germany
Official Film Site & Trailer, IMDb Page

I Love You, Man
Dir: John Hamburg (Along Came Polly, Safe Men)
Cast: Paul Rudd, Rashida Jones, Jason Segal, Sarah Burns, J.K. Simmons, Andy Samberg
USA
Official Film Site & Trailer, IMDb Page

Knowing
Dir: Alex Proyas (Dark City, The Crow)
Cast: Nicholas Cage, Rose Byrne, Chandler Canterbury, Nadia Townsend, D.G. Maloney
Australia/USA
Official Film Site & Trailer, IMDb Page

The Magic Flute
Dir: Kenneth Branagh (Sleuth (2007), As You Like It, Love's Labour's Lost, Dead Again)
Cast: Joseph Kaiser, René Pape, Silvia Moi, Teuta Koço, Lyubov Petrova, Benjamin Jay Davis, Tom Randle
UK/France
Limited Release
Official Film Site & Trailer, IMDb Page

Polytechnique
Dir: Denis Villeneuve (Maelstrom)
Cast: Maxim Gaudette, Sébastien Huberdeau, Karine Vanasse
Canada
Limited Release
Official Film Site & Trailer, IMDb Page

**please note this list of releases reflects first run film released in Toronto, Ontario, Canada as of March 20, 2009**