[L-R] clockwise: 'Conclave', 'The Last Showgirl', 'Relay', 'The End'

Source: TIFF

[L-R] clockwise: ‘Conclave’, ‘The Last Showgirl’, ‘Relay’, ‘The End’

Screen International’s critics have picked out some of the key titles to watch from this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, which ran September 6-15.

Compiled by Nikki Baughan.

The Assessment
Dir. Fleur Fortune
Our critic said: “Elizabeth Olsen and Himesh Patel are appealing as the married pair, with Alicia Vikander delivering a gutsy performance.”
Read our review

Better Man *
Dir. Michael Gracey
Our critic said: “This unusual tribute to Robbie Williams is a very entertaining, surprisingly moving film.”
Read our review

Blue Road
Dir. Sinead O’Shea
Our critic said: “A far more fitting tribute to author Edna O’Brien, her life and work, than the gushing epitaphs delivered on the Irish author’s death last year.”
Read our review

Conclave *
Dir. Edward Berger
Our critic said: “Most effective when it’s as shamelessly entertaining as its ambitious characters.”
Read our review  

The End *
Dir. Joshua Oppenheimer
Our critic said: “An audacious and frequently enrapturing experience, with superb performances at its emotional heart.”
Read our review

The Fire Inside
Dir. Rachel Morrison
Our critic said: “As with Moonlight, Jenkins and Morrison are not here to reprint cliches – and the craft of the film follows suit.”
Read our review

Harbin
Dir. Woo Min-ho
Our critic said: “The refined pleasure of this gripping historical spy drama lies in its painstaking craft.”
Read our review

The Last Showgirl
Dir. Gia Coppola
Our critic said: “[Pamela Anderson] is mercurial, committed and oftentimes unrecognisable, giving the performance of her life.”
Read our review

Nutcrackers
Dir. David Gordon Green
Our critic said: “[A] wholesome throwback to rambunctious family films like The Bad News Bears.”
Read our review

The Piano Lesson *
Dir. Malcolm Washington
Our critic said: “Danielle Deadwyler is the heart and soul of a film whose every inch is deeply felt.”
Read our review

Relay
Dir. David Mackenzie
Our critic said: “The pacing is so unhurried, and the script has such deliberate mechanics that the film remains enthralling, despite an overbearing score.”
Read our review

Unstoppable
Dir. William Goldenberg
Our critic said: “An affecting, by-the-numbers inspirational sports film, whose ripped from the headlines drama remains grounded.”
Read our review  

The Wild Robot
Dir. Chris Sanders
Our critic said: “Lupita Nyong’o and Pedro Pascal lend their voices to this gorgeous animation about a robot finding her place in the world.”
Read our review

*first screened at Telluride

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