Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) 2020 Recap: Films and Reception

The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) took place this year from September 10—September 20, albeit with a difference feel as much of the festival was confined to virtual screenings, drive-ins, and some physical screenings.

Covid-19 was not able to damper the festival, or course, which showcased 50 new feature films, five short films, and hosts of press conferences, filmmaker talks, and more.

Below, our correspondent Daniel Prinn shares summary capsules of a selection of the festival’s showings, with links to the full reviews below.

‘Good Joe Bell’ (NR) 

“Good Joe Bell” is a moving story of a father, Joe Bell (Mark Wahlberg), taking a walk from Le Grande, Oregon to New York City, raising awareness about bullying in honor of his son Jadin (Reid Miller). 

From “Brokeback Mountain” scribes Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana, this film has some great moments and a great cast—both Mark Wahlberg and Reid Miller are big highlights—but the film lacks a power consistently throughout. The vibe of the film changes 40 minutes in; and that is where the emotions really start to hit. 

The screenplay itself is missing something that will make it memorable. It surely lacks the same power as the writing duo’s earlier film “Brokeback Mountain.” It is impossible to capture that magic, but McMurtry and Osana, in their second project together, don’t even come close. With a story this moving and a cast this strong, that’s disappointing. 

Grade: C+

‘Concrete Cowboy’ (NR)

Caleb McLaughlin stars as Cole, a teen who is getting in constant fights while living in Detroit. Fed up, his mom sends him to live with his father Harp (a great Idris Elba) in Northern Philadelphia, where Cole becomes immersed in the world of urban horseback riding.

“Concrete Cowboy” has a great authenticity throughout as we learn about this sub-culture in Philadelphia. Also fascinating is the aspect of the film is where Cole has to choose between the horseback riding—which can make his life better—or choose the street life, tempted by his childhood friend Smush (Jharrel Jerome). Caleb McLaughlin shines as Cole. It’s nice to see him do so well with a character outside of “Stranger Things,” truly making this well-written character his own. 

I love the way the writing shows how important these horses are to the teens growing up on Fletcher Street, and how important they still are to them as adults is incredibly moving. “The only home I’ve ever known is on the back of a horse,” says Harp, which really encapsulates the sense of belonging depicted here. 

While the drug dealing aspect of the film feels trope-y because so many films have done it before “Concrete Cowboy,” the cultural scenes feel so fresh. The premise intrigued me, but it’s the heart and emotion of the film, especially a story about John Coltrane, that really won me over here.

Grade: A

‘One Night in Miami’ (NR) 

Regina King’s “One Night in Miami” is set on a night in February 1964 when Cassius Clay (Eli Goree), soon to-be known as Muhammad Ali, has just become heavyweight champion of the world. He celebrates with real-life friends; minister Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), legendary fullback Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge), and pop singer Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.).

With strong casting and banter, this film shines once it starts getting into its’ conversations about what it means to be Black, and how these characters can use their voice in this movement. 

Malcolm X believes everyone should use their fame and position to help the Civil Rights Movement and the Black movement, and he thinks Sam Cooke can do so much more with his voice than simply pander to white people. “Cassius pushes us forward with his fists and words,” challenges Malcolm. “Jim pushes us forward with his fearlessness.” He is not sure what Sam does for them, but knows what he’s capable of, later saying, “You could move mountains without moving a finger.”

It’s an ensemble cast where the four core performers all carry the film with relative ease, and Regina King gets the most from her actors and then some. She makes the great storytelling and acting feel effortless, and that’s hard to do. Her first feature film doesn’t disappoint, and I am so excited to see what story she will take on next.

Grade: A

‘Shadow in the Cloud’ (NR)

Chloë Grace Moretz plays WAAF officer Maude Garrett, who climbs aboard a B-17 Fortress called “The Fool’s Errand.” She’s also clutching a radio bag that she dubs top-secret. Once in the air, Maude sees a shadow in the cloud as she tries to warn the crew members that there’s a stowaway on board, and they don’t believe her… at first.

While I adore plane thrillers, I also love horror in war, so this horror-thriller set 20,000 feet in the air was my most anticipated film of TIFF. I wouldn’t spoil what’s on board with them, but all I’ll say is that the design of it is awesome—and if you’re expecting a creature feature in this situation, those expectations will be met. 

What I wasn’t expecting in this film was how well it brings the backdrop of the film of WWII into the story, especially when they’re attacked by enemy forces in the sky. That conflict adds an extra layer that keeps the story focused and brings some thrilling action into play, as well as the more horror-heavy moments. All that plane thriller, horror during war, and creature feature combined, makes for a very fun film.

Grade: B+

‘Get the Hell Out’ (NR) 

Hsiung Ying-Ying (Megan Lai) has to resign from her seat in parliament. After having her love-struck bodyguard Wang You-Weig (Bruce Hang) run for parliament, a parliament meeting about a chemical plant kicks off the madness where the MPs turn into zombies and our heroes must fight to get the hell out. 

Director I-Fan Wang shows his great style in one memorable scene where the characters learn a zombie weakness and everyone starts to work together. This scene is a blast. There’s so much of this film that would play well in front of a Midnight Madness crowd at TIFF that it felt strange watching it on my own in my basement, especially during fourth-wall-breaking moments where the audience is told to applaud, as well as a very brief sing-a-long prompt. These moments are funny, but they’d be way better with a crowd. So many scenes here feel designed to be crowd pleasing moments that the film tries too hard to make an impression. That’s the case in a sequence near the end where a scene is too ridiculous. The whole film’s wild, but this scene feels like a stretch.

Even in this scene, I-Fan Wang brings a clever aspect that made me smile even if the scene didn’t work as a whole. The film made me laugh in a lot of places and I liked the gore and action. His style works at times, from the animations introducing characters to the music he uses to his advantage throughout. He has a talented cast, as well, with two fun performances from Megan Lai and Bruce Hang. I didn’t love every minute of “Get the Hell Out,” but it’s a strangely entertaining film, at least when the carnage starts.

Grade: C+

‘Penguin Bloom’ (NR)

The Bloom family is tested after its matriarch, Sam Bloom (Naomi Watts), falls off a roof during a vacation in Thailand. She breaks her back and the family needs to heal from the trauma; coinciding with this recovery is her oldest son Noah (Griffin Murray-Johnston), bringing home an injured magpie, the titular penguin bloom.

Naomi Watts is great as the real-life Sam Bloom. She plays the emotional vulnerability so well as she tries to find her worth again. There’s one great, small moment in this film where she doesn’t feel needed by her children as they call for their dad, Cam (Andrew Lincoln), in the middle of the night instead of her. Just the idea of her not being able to get out of bed quickly to check on them is crushing. “What if I can’t be a mom?” she asks Cam.

Director Glendyn Ivin makes you feel all this in a strong feature directorial debut, too, and while this is a by-the-books story about overcoming trauma, it’s adapted well for the screen by Harry Cripps and Shaun Grant, based on the book by Cameron Bloom and Bradley Trevor Greive. It’s a simple and effective story of a bird needing the family and the family needing the bird—and needing something to take care of and put their energy in.

Grade: B+