TIFF 2018: Top 20 Films at the Toronto International Film Festival you Must Watch

TIFF’ the season! Fans and celebrities alike will swarm the streets of Toronto for the 42nd Toronto International Film Festival, lining up for what is to be one of the most anticipated movie slates yet. From retelling the experience of a 14-year-old drug dealing FBI informant to an impasse between a group of homeless people fortified in a library and the police.

Whichever film you fancy, prepare to witness the spectacle that grinds this city to a standstill.

1. A Star is Born:

Featuring the directorial debut of Bradley Cooper, this film stars him alongside Lady Gaga in the retelling of the 1937 romantic-drama. The story is about an alcoholic country singer whose career is faltering when by chance, he meets a woman who changes his life forever.

2. The Predator:

This latest instalment of the action thriller series is able to tie-in all the films since the original 1987 version. The film brings in smarter and stronger Predators to Earth as they hunt a band of soldiers and a science teacher (played by Olivia Munn).

3. The Old Man and The Gun:

This based-on-a-true-story bank heist is apparently Robert Redford’s last hurrah and if so, he’s going out with a bang (pun intended). An elderly man robbing a bank, what could go wrong?

4. Halloween:

Guess who’s back? Michael Meyers returns in this direct sequel to the David Gordon Green original of 1978, thus ignoring all 7 Halloween sequels. Want to know what else is crazy? The story is co-written by laugh machine Danny McBride.

5. Beautiful Boy:

TIFF starlet Timothy Chalamet stars as a meth addict alongside Steve Carrell (playing his father) in this intense movie based on real life stories of addiction by David and Nic Sheff.

6. Monsters and Men:

A drama exploring the consequential backlash of a black man being shot by police in Brooklyn is set to be opened by none other than Drake himself.

7. Green Book:

Mahershala Ali and Viggo Mortensen star in this riveting road adventure between a black classical pianist hosting concerts throughout the South and his white chauffeur.

8. Everybody Knows:

Oscar-winning director Asghar Farhadi’s film stars real-life couple Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem in this psychological thriller about a kidnapping in Spain that revolves around a wedding.

9. Driven:

Charting the tumultuous career of John DeLorean (played by Lee Pace) and his DeLorean Motor Company, this biopic focuses on the car that every fanatic dreamed of in its prime.

10. The Hate U Give:

This story highlighting police brutality features a young woman fighting for justice after her friend is shot by police. Starring Amandla Stenberg, Common, Regina Hall, and Anthony Mackie.

11. Widows:

The wives of four thieves who are killed have to settle their deceased husband’s debts with a heist. Directed by Oscar-winner Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave) and starring Viola Davis, Liam Neeson, Michelle Rodriguez, Colin Farrell, Daniel Kaluuya, and Elizabeth Debeicki.

12. Can You Ever Forgive Me?:

This raw real-life story tells us of a celebrity biographer relying on forging famous letters when she’s down on her luck. Starring funny lady Melissa McCarthy.

13. Sharkwater Extinction:

Rob Stewart, the Toronto documentarian that sadly passed while filming this story, opens the lid on the black market shark fin industry that continues to threaten the existence of sharks globally.

14. Homecoming:

Julia Roberts crafts a TV series that looks at a caseworker in a military establishment that helps veterans re-enter society from war.

15. White Boy Rick:

Based on the real story of a 14-year-old drug dealer’s experience as the FBI’s youngest informant ever. Set during the peak of Detroit’s crack epidemic, the film stars Matthew McConaughey, newcomer Richie Merritt and Jennifer Jason Leigh.

16. First Man:

Heartthrob Ryan Gosling stars as the one and only Neil Armstrong as director Damien Chazelle (La La Land) spearheads the dramatic retelling of the 1969 moon landing.

17. 22 July:

This gripping documentary-drama is the retelling of the 2011 Norway terrorist attack, reliving the day that shook a country to its core. Director Paul Greengrass of the Bourne series and United 93 uses the latter film’s style as influence for this piece.

18. Vox Lux:

TIFF favourite Natalie Portman and Jude Law star in this story of a woman who experiences a major tragedy that features on national news to become a glam pop star with worldwide recognition.

19. The Public:

This tale, influenced by the Occupy Movement, pits the homeless people that have holed themselves up within a public library on a freezing night, and the police that are trying to evict them.

20. Outlaw King:

Chris Pine plays Robert Bruce, a dishonoured and defeated nobleman to outlaw saviour during England’s siege of of medieval Scotland, and is directed by David MacKenzie, thus reuniting him and Pine from Hell or High Water.

TIFF Film Trailers Commentary by IMDb: