An eclectic batch of movies opens in Toronto this weekend.
Albert Nobbs (eOne Films) features Glenn Close in her Oscar-nominated role as a 19th century Irish woman disguising herself as a man in order to make a living as a butler. Albert works hard and saves her money so that one day she can open her own shop. When one person discovers the truth of Albert’s identity and encourages her to end the deception, romantic entanglements make it difficult for Albert to recruit the help she needs to fulfill her dream. Principal cast includes Mia Wasikowska, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Aaron Johnson, Brendan Gleeson, Brenda Fricker and Janet McTeer. Albert Nobbs was a TIFF’11 Gala Presentation.
Big Miracle (Universal Pictures) is based on the 1988 news story of a family of endangered gray whales that were trapped by rapidly forming ice off the coast of Alaska during annual migration. Drew Barrymore stars as the passionate Greenpeace volunteer who leads the national campaign to save them. John Krasinski co-stars as the local news reporter covering the story. Principal cast includes Kristen Bell, Dermot Mulroney, Tim Blake Nelson and Ted Danson.
Chronicle (20th Century Fox) is a sci-fi horror about three high school friends who develop super-human powers after being exposed to a strange substance uncovered while hiking in the woods. At first they use their abilities to perform relatively harmless stunts. But soon their powers turn deadly with far-reaching consequences. Screenplay is by Max Landis, son of director John Landis (Animal House, The Blues Brothers). Cast includes Michael B. Jordan, Dane DeHaan, Alex Russell, Ashley Hinshaw and Michael Kelly.
Miss Bala (Mongrel Media) tells the terrifying story of a woman held hostage amidst Mexico’s drug wars when she inadvertently witnesses a mass murder in a nightclub. Laura (Stephanie Sigman) is a beauty pageant contestant who, on the night before her competition, sees an armed invasion by gangsters that leaves dozens of people dead. She turns to the police for help only to find herself dumped into the hands of a gang boss (Noe Hernandez). Obeying his demands is her only salvation. Inspired by a newspaper clipping about a beautiful young woman accused of being involved in a drug cartel, Miss Bala screened during the Cannes Film Festival, the New York Film Festival, and was a Contemporary World Cinema presentation at TIFF’11. It is a Mexican production, filmed in Spanish with English subtitles.
The Woman in Black (Alliance Films) is a haunted house tale starring Daniel Radcliffe as Arthur Kipps, a lawyer who travels to a remote village to settle an estate. While staying in the decrepit mansion of his recently deceased client, he is forced to confront the vengeful ghost of a scorned woman, a.k.a. the woman in black, who has been terrorizing the townspeople. Principal cast includes Ciarán Hinds, Janet McTeer, Liz White and Shaun Dooley.
W./E. (eOne Films) is Madonna’s directorial interpretation of the scandalous true-life love affair between Wallis Simpson (Andrea Riseborough) and Edward VIII (James D’Arcy) told in parallel view of a contemporary romance between a married woman (Abbie Cornish) and a Ukrainian security guard (Oscar Isaac). W./E. was a TIFF’11 Gala Presentation.
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