(Images: Christopher Drost)

Well, it’s a wrap. Some might suggest that there are no winners and losers at TIFF, and that the festival is a harmonious celebration of filmmaking and the artistic spirit. For our part, we say these people are wrong. Life is a competition, and we’ve got the goods on the stars, the parties, the neighbourhoods, the red carpet galas and the films that came out on top—and on the bottom—this year, after the jump.

1. Celebrity stars
WINNER: Ryan Gosling
Good looks, red carpet charm, quality performances in Drive and The Ides of March and more good looks have made the Gos the new man about town. We’d like to say the torch has been passed from George Clooney to Gosling, but we’re scared Clooney might beat us to death with it.

LOSER: Madonna
After spitting venom at some poor hydrangeas at the Venice Film Festival, Madge failed to redeem herself here, allegedly having eight TIFF volunteers turn and face a wall to avoid gazing upon her countenance. Plus, we hear her movie sucks.

2. Splashy A-list party
WINNER: David Cronenberg’s A Dangerous Method after-party
Let’s not kid ourselves—what makes or breaks a TIFF party are the stars, and the party for A Dangerous Method had them by the Cadillac-load: George Clooney, Kiera Knightley, Jon Hamm, Jonah Hill, Jimmy Kimmel, Ewan McGregor, and the list goes on.

LOSER: The CAA Burroughes party
What else makes or breaks a party? Being able to get inside. Sadly, the elevator in the Burroughes building moves slower than Francis Ford Coppola, and the six flights of stairs were packed solid for the Creative Artists Agency’s shindig—stars first, plebeians in the rear.

3. Red carpet gala
WINNER: The Ides of March
Really, Ryan Gosling is the only star we need—but at this red carpet gala presentation we certainly weren’t starved for choice: George Clooney, Marisa Tomei, Evan Rachel Wood and, of course, the ever-present Dave Matthews were there, among others.

LOSER: Twixt
The Twixt red carpet presentation had possibly the least glitz, glam and gushing of them all, with only Francis Ford Coppola (a legendary director but not much of a looker) and Val Kilmer (long past his Top Gun glory days) gracing the gala with their presence.

4. Neighbourhood
WINNER: Theatre District
The TIFF Bell Lightbox has officially become a black hole, crushing anything of relevance at TIFF into an extremely fashionable singularity. Oh, and the Ritz-Carlton didn’t hurt matters on that account either (apparently, stars like to stay there).

LOSER: Yorkville
Yorkville has long been the go-to destination for celebrity sightings, but this year saw it tumble into irrelevance (excluding a very dashing Jon Hamm going for a stroll). At least it’ll always have that big rock thing.

5. Film Title
WINNER: This is not a Film
The title succinctly evokes the story of a filmmaker banned from his craft, working in captivity on a project that may never be. No, it’s not a film—it’s a work of art. Honorable mentions: Machine Gun Preacher, Whore’s Glory, We Ate the Children Last and Sorry, Rabbi.

LOSER: Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
This title somehow makes the biggest buy of the festival ($5 million) sound like a dry VHS documentary forgotten in some dusty bin in the back of a dilapidated library in Timmins. But maybe that’s what they were going for. Dishonorable mentions: Slow Action, Azhagarsamy’s Horse, Doubles With Slight Pepper and A Film Portrait on Reconstructing 12 Possibilities that Preceded the Disappearance of Zoe Dean Drum.

We learned something last night at the gala presentation for Ten Year at the Ryerson Theatre: ensemble cast movies about high school reunions deliver very crowded red carpets. Shining young face after shining young face glided by, stopping only briefly to do some intense posing. Seriously, these guys were posers. Cast member Beth Whitson came first. She’s modelled for Vogue, and in an elegant floor-length gown she looked like, well, a Vogue model. She was followed by Kelly Noonan (note: saucy neckline) and director Jamie Linden. Scott Porter dressed like he was coming straight from class, and Aaron Yoo spiced things up with a plaid shirt and vest combo. And oh, look at Oscar Isaac: that hair, those eyes, that…velour blazer? Ari Graynor went a tad overboard with the whole pouting for the camera thing. Then, finally, the (sort of) big guns: Jenna Dewan-Tatum, wife to Channing, strolled by in fuchsia, followed by Max Minghella in his second carpet appearance of the festival (he’s also in The Ides of March). We barely noticed Kate Mara, but only because Channing Tatum was hot on her heels, eliciting shrill shrieks from the audience. Last but not least came Justin Long, whom you may recognize as a Mac (not a PC). See our photo gallery, after the jump.

• 11:30 a.m. Swarovski Lounge at the Four Seasons Hotel

• 3 p.m. Murale and Sally Hershberger TIFF Suite at the Richmond

• 3 p.m. Teenage Paparazzo red carpet and screening with Adrian Grenier at the Hoxton

• 5:30–7:30 p.m. Astral’s 50th Anniversary at Roy Thomson Hall

• 6 p.m. Moët and Chandon Ice Imperial Launch at La Société

• 6:30 p.m.–8:01 p.m. From the Sky Down gala of the U2 documentary at the Elgin Theatre

• 8 p.m.–9:30 p.m. From the Sky Down gala of the U2 documentary at Roy Thomson Hall

Paul Giamatti at the TIFF premiere for Barney's Version (Image: Stefania Yarhi)

While all of Hollywood fires up its engines for the self-love fest that is awards season, the Toronto International Film Festival took a moment to honour some of our own talent. Yesterday, TIFF released their list of the 10 best Canadian feature films and 10 best short films of 2010.

One notable inclusion that has yet to see its general release is Barney’s Version, the film adaptation of Canadian author Mordecai Richler’s classic Montreal-set novel. The film yesterday won actor Paul Giamatti a Golden Globe nomination and was a gala film at TIFF this year. Barney’s Version will hit Canadian theatres on Christmas Eve.

The sci-fi flick Splice (starring Sarah Polley and Adrien Brody) also made the list, as did four francophone films, including Incendies, Canada’s entry for the Academy Awards’ best foreign film category. In the short film category, Guy Maddin’s The Little White Cloud That Cried was included, as was Ann Marie Fleming’s I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors.

It can sometimes be a challenge to find a theatre playing the fine Canadian films like those on this year’s list. Luckily, all the films being honoured by TIFF this year will be screened at the TIFF Bell Lightbox from January 20 to February 1, and will be accompanied by discussions with the filmmakers. Oh, the simple joys of living in a big, dirty, bustling metropolis.

• TIFF: best Canadian films of 2010 [Globe and Mail]
• Barney’s Version, Splice among TIFF Top 10 [CBC]

This was the 11th edition of the awards gala, which honours excellence in Canadian comedic performance in a range of genres including film, television, stand-up, theatre and improv. Long recognized as a Canadian improv mecca, Toronto proved it’s still at the top of the pile by totally cleaning up in the improvised comedy categories. Naomi Snieckus of Carnegie Hall Show and Impromptu Splendor took home a well-deserved award for best female improviser, while Sean Tabares of Impatient Theatre Company was awarded best male improviser. The Second City’s 0% Down, 100% Screwed won best comedic play or revue, and The Imponderables, also of Toronto, were awarded best sketch troupe.

• Comedy Awards honour late stars [Toronto Star]

Fans get close to Eva Mendes and Sam Worthington at Sunday's premiere of Last Night. (Image: Karon Liu)

Behind the barricades of the TIFF red carpets are hundreds of fans, autograph collectors and amateur photographers waiting—sometimes for hours—to see celebrities. A star’s arrival sets off a cacophony of screams and flashes. We’ve always wondered who these people are, so we chatted up a few of them to find out what gets them so riled up at the film festival. Meet eight TIFF celebrity hunters in our slide show below.

Jennifer Connelly at the Toronto premiere of What's Wrong With Virginia (Image: Karon Liu)

Photographers, reporters and publicists all agree that TIFF madness peaked with Monday’s Kidman-Portman double-header. Despite the well-known cast and director (Dustin Lance Black, who won an Oscar for 2008’s Milk), the crowds were depleted at Thursday’s premiere of What’s Wrong With Virginia, a drama about a mentally ill woman (Jennifer Connelly) and her codependent relationship with her 16-year-old son (Harrison Gilbertson). Ed Harris plays the deeply religious local sheriff with whom Connelly’s character has an affair, which becomes a problem when he decides to run for political office. Yeardley Smith, best known as the voice of Lisa Simpson, serves as an executive producer. See our red carpet photos from the premiere below.

• 6:30 p.m. Casino Jack world premiere gala at Roy Thomson Hall
• 10 p.m. Music mixed by Louis and Anane Vega at Ame
• 10:30 p.m. Uncle Bonmee Who Can Recall His Lives Past North American premiere at Isabel Bader Theatre
• Master Kev with Nitin, Dirty Dale and Morgan Shim at Cobra

• 4 p.m. What’s Wrong With Virginia Party at Swarovski Gallery Store
• 6 p.m. What’s Wrong With Virginia international premiere at Visa Screening Room (Elgin)
• 6:30 p.m. Peep World international premiere gala at Roy Thomson Hall
• 7 p.m. Jaloux North American premiere at Jackman Hall (AGO)
• 9 p.m. Route Irish North American premiere at Visa Screening Room (Elgin)
• 9:15 p.m. Kaboom North American premiere at Ryerson Theatre
• 9:30 p.m. The Bang Bang Club international premiere gala at Roy Thomson Hall
• 10 p.m. DJ set by AL P. (MSTRKRFT) at Ultra
• 10 p.m. LMFAO at Tattoo Rock Parlour
• 11 p.m. The Bang Bang Club After-Party at 78 The Bridle Path
• Peep World After-Party at Brant House

• 11 a.m. Bell Lightbox Block Party at King and John Streets
• 1:00 p.m. Jack Goes Boating at Isabel Bader Theatre
• 1:30 p.m. West is West world premiere gala at Roy Thomson Hall
• 3:30 p.m. Into the Wind world premiere at Isabel Bader Theatre
• 5:30 p.m. Trigger world premiere at Bell Lightbox 1
• 5:30 p.m. Best Buddies Charity Ball at Regency Ballroom (Four Seasons Hotel)
• 6 p.m. You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger North American premiere at Visa Screening Room (Elgin)
• 6 p.m. 127 Hours at Ryerson Theatre
• 6:30 p.m. Tabloid at Bell Lightbox 2
• 6:30 p.m. Barney’s Version North American premiere gala at Roy Thomson Hall
• 6:45 p.m. Cool It world premiere at AMC 9
• 8 p.m. Ubisoft Studio Launch Party at Ubisoft Toronto
• 9 p.m. Hereafter world premiere at Visa Screening Room (Elgin)
• Cinema Against AIDS Toronto 2010 at The Carlu
• Barney’s Version cast party at Festival Central (148 Cumberland St.)
• Casino Jack cast party at Brant House
• 11:59 p.m. Vanishing on 7th Street world premiere at Ryerson Theatre

“Score is as deep as a Don Cherry rant, but it’s also a crowd-pleaser, one that doesn’t require season tickets to the Maple Leafs to appreciate.”—Peter Howell [Toronto Star]

“[Director Mike] McGowan wanted to make a hockey musical, damn it, and that’s exactly what he did. What’s the problem?”—S.T. Vanairsdale [Movie Line]

“With all the assembled musical talent and choreographer Amy Wright’s fancy footwork, you keep expecting this amiable underachiever to eventually rise to a loftier occasion, just like you’re hoping Newton-John might at some point turf her duet partner and deliver a Grease-type (or at least Xanadu-type) showstopper. Better to leave any expectations on the sidelines.”—Michael Rechtshaffen [The Hollywood Repoter]

“The notion of a hockey musical is both ingenious and outrageous, and much of the film’s charm lies in the sheer showbiz bravado of the concept.”—Brian D. Johnson [Maclean's]

“How fitting that the setting is Toronto—this thing plays like the Leafs.”—Rick Groen [Globe and Mail]

“[Score is] a lite-rock opera with lyrics composed of clunky dialogue and a plot stitched from sports underdog tropes.”—[USA Today]

“Don’t expect this musical with Olivia Newton-John in U.S. theaters.”—Lou Lumenick [New York Post]

“As for the film itself, an American audience—and let’s face it, it’s unlikely there will be much of one—will probably not be nearly as tickled by cameos from Walter Gretzky and George Stroumboulopoulos.”—Steven Zeitchik [LA Times]

Olivia Newton-John and her husband, John Easterling, depart from Brassaii's pre-screening cocktail party for Score: A Hockey Musical on September 8, 2010 (Image: Proya Productions)

Words cannot express how relieved we were to see nary a hint of hockey hair at Brassaii’s party for Score: A Hockey Musical last night. Olivia Newton-John, accompanied by her business mogul husband, John Easterling, mingled with her co-stars Noah Reid and Allie MacDonald for a few hours at the King West restaurant. TIFF co-director Cameron Bailey—already becoming the most ubiquitous presence at TIFF—attended in a show of support for the unlikely opening night gala, which screens tonight.  

Newton-John, dressed down in jeans and knee-high leather boots and carrying a leopard-print bag, munched on fries, while other guests enjoyed executive chef Bruce Wood’s mini-burgers, mini–grilled cheese sandwiches and the Canadian homage to deep-frying: beaver tails.

While the party for 100 cleared out minutes after the bar went cash—surprise, surprise—behind the scenes, staff were bracing for things to come. General manager Vince Antonacci and publicist Gabrielle Totesau exchanged knowing glances as they anticipated the looming TIFF events. “We had to sign some pretty heavy-duty NDAs [non-disclosure agreements],” Totesau confides. The Score crowd may have hit the bench early, but it’s looking like this week, Brassaii’s team will be playing plenty of overtime.

(Image: Karon Liu)

We heard the rumours, but the prospect of having Edward Norton interview Bruce Springsteen as part of the gala presentation of The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town, while exciting, seemed rather far-fetched, considering Norton was nine when Darkness was released. But TIFF has confirmed that the Fight Club star will join the Boss onstage on September 14 to discuss the documentary and Springsteen’s long-standing musical relationship with movies as part of the Mavericks series, in which filmmakers and artists discuss their work. Norton will also be in town for the prison drama Stone, in which he stars with Milla Jovovich and Robert De Niro (both are scheduled to appear).

• Mavericks: Bruce Springsteen [TIFF]

Sam Worthington and Keira Knightley in Last Night (Image: TIFF.net)

TIFF announced today that it has chosen Massy Tadjedin’s Last Night for its closing night gala, possibly for its convenient title. The love triangle drama is Tadjedin’s directorial debut and stars Keira Knightley, Eva Mendes and Avatar’s Sam Worthington, who probably appreciated the simple task of wooing Knightley’s and Mendes’s characters, as opposed to having sensors attached to his entire body while pretending to be in a forest with floating jellyfish. Knightley plays Worthington’s wife, who grows suspicious after a fleeting but steamy incident at an office party.

In honour of TIFF’s 35th anniversary, the fest will also be hosting free screenings of audience faves from past years at the new Bell Lightbox (that place makes us happier every day). The Big Chill, which opened the festival in 1983, will be on offer, along with 2000′s best picture winner, American Beauty, and William Goldman’s fairy tale classic The Princess Bride. We’re hoping for a turnout of cineastes dressed like Buttercup and Wesley.

• Last Night [TIFF]
• American Beauty [TIFF]
• The Big Chill [TIFF]
• The Princess Bride [TIFF]

Colin Firth and A Single Man director Tom Ford (Image: Karon Liu)

We have a preliminary leak of some stars expected to attend TIFF this September. Martin Knelman of the Star dishes that The King’s Speech (starring Mr. Darcy himself, Colin Firth, and Geoffrey Rush) and Miral (Julian Schnabel’s new film starring Slumdog Millionaire beauty Freida Pinto, Vanessa Redgrave and Willem Dafoe) will have their world premieres at the festival.

Both films are already garnering awards hype and have been picked up for North American distribution. The King’s Speech, which also stars Guy Pearce and Helena Bonham Carter, is the true story of Bertie’s (played by Firth) struggle to overcome his nervous stammer before being crowned King George VI. In Miral, another period political drama, Pinto plays a Palestinian girl growing up in a Jerusalem orphanage in 1948 just after the creation of Israel.

We can expect Firth to show (he came last year for A Single Man), and Geoffrey Rush has become a festival party regular. Dafoe is a good bet—he came last year to promote The Antichrist. And now that Pinto is an instantly recognizable face because of the immense success of the TIFF-premiered Slumdog Millionaire, we expect she’ll be back to see what the red carpet is like when screaming fans know your name.

• Knelman: For King and country, two new TIFF galas [Toronto Star]