We’ll update Quoted regularly before and during the festival. Check back often.
“Taking the Toronto Transit Commission’s whisper-quiet subways from one film festival screening to another earlier this week, a Chicagoan couldn’t help but notice that the sound levels are a major shock to the El-conditioned system. The civility is relentless in Toronto. The taxi drivers, whatever their ethnicity or whatever sort of day they’ve had, display a startling lack of aggression behind the wheel.”—critic Michael Phillips [Chicago Tribune]
“King and Queen Streets in Toronto are all by themselves reasons for the city to exist.”—Roger Ebert [Twitter]
“Do I look like Jake Gyllenhaal? If you want, I could tell you his workout regime. I had to hear about it for half an hour—half an hour I’ll never get back.”—Jay Baruchel [CBC]
“Toronto is America’s most important film festival, even though it takes place in Canada.”—Adam Dawtrey [Guardian]
“This city just gets more beautiful all the time.”—Uma Thurman [CTV]
“The reason I’m wearing this jacket is because I’m sweaty and I can’t take it off.”—Nicole Kidman at the Rabbit Hole press conference [Toronto Sun]
“Why would any kid want to come and see thousands cheer their parents? They’d rather see thousands boo their parents!”—Bruce Springsteen on the absence of his kids at his shows [Toronto Star]
“Everybody loves Jon [Hamm]. I was so attracted to him. I had to work with him because he’s so handsome.”—Ben Affleck [Toronto Star]
“TIFF’s wonderful new Bell Lightbox is one swell place to see a movie.”—Roger Ebert [Twitter]
“Each time we told Natalie [Portman] we had to push another three weeks, she’d say, ‘Another three weeks of eating carrot sticks and almonds? I am going to kill you.’”—Darren Aronofsky on filming Black Swan [Globe and Mail]
“The Toronto audience is the festival’s charm. It is smart, open-minded and eager to find the best in films that are seldom perfect but almost always have something to say.”—Michael Cieply [New York Times]
“It’s fucking great.”—Darren Aronofsky on Black Swan [Twitter]
“[Passion Play] is a movie that says, ‘You know what? I have the money to hire Mickey Rourke to play a washed-up saxophonist and Bill Murray to be a New Mexico gangster. I have the cash to have them fight over Megan Fox, who I’ll make an angel—not one of those Victoria’s Secret angels, but, like, one at a carnival freak show. What I don’t have the budget for are effects that make the wings seem real. I know they look like cartoons, but who cares?’”—critic Wesley Morris [Boston Globe]
“I’m a director. You have to do what I say.”—Paul Haggis at the Artists for Peace and Justice Party [The Hype]
“You just made me cry. You are like the Barbara Walters of ET Canada!”—Megan Fox to Rick Campanelli [National Post]
“Barney’s Version film very touching, great performances, shed tears…”—Margaret Atwood [Twitter]
“He looks so good. How old is he?”—a guest at the George Christy luncheon about Anthony Hopkins [The Hype]
“SUPER premiere was a fucking BLAST! I love you, Toronto.”—Rainn Wilson [Twitter]
“This party is so boring.”—guest at the Vanity Fair bash at The Thompson
“Canadians love piercings.”—Rainn Wilson [Twitter]
“We should go to a hip-hop club.”—Steve Nash at the CBC Hazelton Takeover party [The Hype]
“Sure, the glitz of Venice and the reclusive allure of Telluride set the stage, but Toronto is where the art-house armada gathers its fleet to prepare for the invasion of Yankee shores.”—John Lopez [Vanity Fair]
“I have celebrated my birthday here in Toronto for the last 10 years.”—Colin Firth [Hollywood Reporter]
“What do you do when Ben Affleck is in the urinal behind you? Wait and pee I guess? At least he didn’t have security in there.”—critic Mohit Rajhans [Twitter]
“We shouldn’t be making 250 feature films in this country. I don’t think it can sustain. Where are those films going? I mean, are they just home movie productions done on credit cards?”—TIFF co-director Piers Handling [Toronto Star]
“I still send out scripts and get back the response ‘too Canadian,’ though I’m not exactly sure what that means.”—Canadian producer Christine Haebler [Globe and Mail]
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