Elsewhere

Observations on a Tuesday Morning
Halfway home…doesn’t the time fly when you’re having fun?

The other morning I mentioned that even though LUST, CAUTION wasn’t as amazing as I had hoped it might be, I still wanted to give it another shake. Well, now I’m pretty sure I have to with news that it has won The Golden Lion at The Venice International Film Festival. Apparently the decision is a controversial one- some say it didn’t deserve to win -but it still leaves me thinking that my displeasure with it stems more from my early morning drowsiness than anything else.

Other news from Venice includes Brad Pitt being named best actor for THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD (another controversial decision), and best actress going to Cate Blanchett for I’M NOT THERE. I’ll be seeing I’M NOT THERE on Wednesday night, so this makes me look forward to it a tad more!

It’s quite possible that this may be the last time I get to fully attend The Toronto Film Festival for a few years. By “fully attend” I mean getting in 20+ movies and taking the week off work to do it. If that’s the case I just wanted to make mention of how lucky I’ve been this year. I haven’t been shut out of a single screening I’ve wanted to get, some friends on the inside have been kicking me a lot of free passes, I’ve had some great fun with my friends and family, and I’ve met some great people along the way. 2007 has been a great festival so far for The Hatter.

Looking Forward…
ACROSS THE UNIVERSE this morning – which if it sucks, will disappoint me to no end. BODY OF WAR follows this evening, and I couldn’t be more excited about getting to see Eddie Vedder perform at the screening.

Hey, Isn’t That… Ryan Gosling & Patricia Clarkson were in last night’s debut of LARS AND THE REAL GIRL. Mena Suvari was signing a lot of autographs before her Midnight Madness showing of STUCK.

You Gotta Try This… I’ve kept this secret long enough. The best place to get a quick bite near The Scotiabank and Roy Thompson Hall is Burrito Boyz, who easily make the city’s best burritos. Cheap and filling, they are the nectar of the gods and are all made fresh to order. There’s one close to Scotiabank at 120 Peter Street (west side of the road – a few steps below street level, there’s a roti place above it). That location is a hole in the wall, but don’t be deterred. For better results, hit the sit-down location at 218 Adelaide Street ( just up Simcoe Street from Roy Thompson Hall).

Do I Need a Coat?… Pretty good chance the showers will continue through most of the day, with a high of only 20 deg. C / 68F. Tonight the rain could continue, and the temperature should stay near 13C / 55F.