Lately, David Cronenberg seems to be the toast of the town: Viggo Mortensen loves him, the British Film Institute honoured him and TIFF is giving him a high-tech (and expensive) retrospective. Still, we’d hazard that at least one editor at Penguin Canada probably isn’t thrilled with the Toronto-based director. In an interview with Indiewire last week, Cronenberg admitted he signed on to write a novel for Penguin several years ago, but he still hasn’t finished a first draft—despite the fact that the publisher has already inked deals on the foreign rights. The novel, which would reportedly be partially set in Toronto, kept getting pushed aside—first for A Dangerous Method, then for Cosmopolis. As for Penguin, Cronenberg said they’re still waiting. “I hear novelists are often very late, so I’m banking on that.” For a rookie novelist, he’s got the “genius can’t be rushed” thing down pat.
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David Cronenberg TIFF retrospective will be high tech, interactive and likely terrifying
Mr. David Cronenberg (Image: FICG.mx)
Toronto-based director David Cronenberg (also known as the man who turns Viggo Mortensen into a fan boy) is about to get a high-tech retrospective of his work, courtesy of the Toronto International Film Festival. TIFF has received a cool $50,000 from the provincial government to make a Cronenberg-inspired augmented-reality game that will be unveiled in phases through 2013, with the first section to launch in September, according to Cinemablend. TIFF’s grant proposal says the interactive game will use social media, geomapping and 3D photo-modelling technology to create sensory experiences for the player. We can’t quite imagine what the final product will look like (and, judging from the fact that TIFF is still looking for a project manager, neither can they), but take a director known for his surreal, sexual and violent narratives, toss in some technology that will heighten that mood, and the end product will probably scare the pants off the average exhibition goer. No word on whether post-scare showers or shoulders to cry on will be available onsite.
Spotlight: Sarah Gadon is a model of restraint in David Cronenberg’s A Dangerous Method
Cinderella stories are among Hollywood’s most clichéd and hollow myths. Yet they keep happening, both onscreen and off. Sarah Gadon should know: in less than a year, the 24-year-old Toronto actor has gone from guest stints on such shows as Being Erica and Murdoch Mysteries to starring in major movies alongside the likes of Michael Fassbender and Robert Pattinson.
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Five things we learned about Viggo Mortensen (including how much he loves David Cronenberg)
Viggo Mortensen (Image: Ben Pruchnie/FilmMagic/Getty Images Entertainment)
Forget how little clothing you’ve seen Viggo Mortensen wearing (for a second), because he’s a person too. He “rang up” Vulture recently to discuss A Dangerous Method (he plays Freud—he jumped in when Christophe Waltz had to pull out), among other things, and here are five tidbits we took away (take note of how much he love, love, loves David Cronenberg):
1. He loves David Cronenberg
Mortensen believes that Cronenberg should have a movie out every year (he has, after all, been in three of them), but because his films are typically consumed on DVD, there’s usually a considerable gap between each picture. And for those wondering to how high a standard Morty holds Cronenberg: “Woody Allen is a great director, but I wouldn’t say that his track record over the last several years is as solid as David’s, in my opinion, and yet he gets to make a movie every year somehow.”
2. He isn’t naked in A Dangerous Method (sorry) Read the rest of this entry »
Morty says he smoked and ate until he developed Freud’s paunch (something he wryly points out took some hard work). We’d just like to point out to the Oscar people that Charlize Theron received an Oscar for eating Krispy Kreme donuts for her role in Monster (just saying).
TIFF Weekend Roundup: the five buzziest red carpets
Angelina Jolie wears a gold purse handcuffed to her wrist as she poses with Brad Pitt (Image: Lia Grainger)
The first weekend of TIFF is basically one big long party, with a non-stop crush of big premieres, boldface names and tremendous amounts of running around (sleep is usually not involved). In case you missed it, here are last weekend’s five most talked about red carpets:
- A wall of screams surrounded Roy Thomson Hall on Friday for the gala presentation of Moneyball. The culprits? Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie (whose purse was handcuffed to her wrist), Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jonah Hill. Check out our red carpet gallery »
- The Ides of March was a kind of passing of the torch from the charming, ageless George Clooney to the charming, youthful Ryan Gosling (who brought his mother along as his date). Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood also shone. Check out our red carpet gallery »
- Michael Fassbender didn’t show, but Keira Knightley and Viggo Mortensen brought star power to the Canadian premiere of David Cronenberg’s A Dangerous Method. Check out our red carpet gallery »
- Kirsten Dunst, elegant as ever in a polka-dot top, stole the show at the gala for Lars von Trier’s Melancholia (although Alexander Skarsgård and Kiefer Sutherland were also there). Check out our red carpet gallery »
- Take This Waltz saw a gushing Sarah Polley (it’s only her second feature, after all) and a very pregnant Jennifer Podemski (along with co-stars Seth Rogen and Sarah Silverman). Check out our red carpet gallery »
TIFF PHOTO GALLERY: Keira Knightley and Viggo Mortensen lit up the (sadly Fassbender-less) red carpet for A Dangerous Method
(Image: Christopher Drost)
Said one screaming fan behind a metal stanchion at Roy Thomson Hall yesterday afternoon: “Viiiiggo! Viiiigo! No one ever comes this way!” With fan favourite Michael Fassbender missing in action (he cancelled at the last minute), all eyes were on Viggo Mortensen and a resplendent Keira Knightley at the gala for David Cronenberg’s A Dangerous Method. The film follows the strained relationship between Sigmund Freud (Mortensen) and his mentor Carl Jung (Fassbender) who falls in love with a mysterious Russian patient of his (Knightley). Also present were the director himself (who alternated between his quizzical grin and full-out beaming) alongside his daughter Caitlin Cronenberg, and hometown up-and-comer Sarah Gadon, who plays Jung’s uptight wife (she apparently doesn’t approve of her husband’s habit of spanking his Russian patients). Photos of everyone, after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »
50 buzziest films of TIFF 2011: we slice through the hype so you don’t have to
We’ve already told you about the celebs filing into town for TIFF and the extended-licence nightspots they’ll be frequenting. But with more than 300 movies being screened, the actual “film” part of the festival can be hard to navigate. Enter our handy guide, in which we scope out the buzz on the most hotly anticipated flicks of the fest.
See all our picks and rejects »
The swag series: George Stroumboulopoulos’s celeb guests take ketchup chips and Clamato back to the U.S.
Exotic Canadian Clamato
What it is: Guests of Strombo’s new show, George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight, get their pick of some sweet swag in the Made in Canada Lounge at CBC headquarters. Housed behind the set in an area normally cordoned off for props, the space has been transformed into a CanCon cloud nine complete with furniture from The Bay and Queen West shop Design Republic.
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The swag series: celebs get Joe Fresh make-overs at the Tastemakers Lounge
The Joe Fresh beauty station at Tastemakers (Image: Central Image Agency)
Celebrities—they’re just like us, except they make more money and get more free stuff. An unfair irony, we know. As of today, the TIFF swag season has begun. Loaded with jewellery, clothing, makeup, accessories and games, gifting suites are the places where companies can reap mega-exposure if a celebrity picks up their goodies. This year, there are more lounges than ever, and we’ve been snooping around to report back on what they’re offering and what celebs have been stocking up on. At the end of the fest, we’ll name the best of the bunch. First up, Tastemakers.
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Viggo Mortensen parties with Danes at The Spoke Club
Viggo Mortenson
We hear Viggo Mortensen celebrated with the Danish cast and crew of the movie Applause until the wee hours of the morning last Sunday at The Spoke Club. When we called last week to ask about hours, we were told the Spoke was closed on Sundays. Too bad. We’d have loved to party with Mortensen and some great Danes. (Photo by James Helmer)
PHOTO GALLERY: The Road premiere with Viggo Mortensen and Robert Duvall
Viggo Mortensen sported a longish bob for the premiere of The Road. Check out photos of him along with co-stars Robert Duvall and Kodi Smit-McPhee below.
Celeb spotting warm-up 5: The full list of celeb guests is out, and Oprah and Clooney are on it
He's a-coming (Photo by Attit Patel)
The much-anticipated official list of celebrities scheduled to attend TIFF arrived in our in-boxes this morning. We’re happy to report that two of the biggest names rumoured to be heading our way, George Clooney and Oprah, are definitely coming.
A lot of our other favourites have also confirmed: Big Love’s Amanda Seyfried, a reformed David Duchovny, Demi Moore, Drew Barrymore (perhaps we’ll spot her making eyes at locals at Sweaty Betty’s again), two of our three favourite Jennifers (Garner and Connelly; Aniston is a no-show), many Michaels (Caine, Cera, Douglas, Moore), the always lovely Natalie Portman, Nicolas Cage, Penélope Cruz, Ricky Gervais, Sarah Polley, Tilda Swinton, Tom Ford, Viggo Mortensen and so many more.
See the full list of guests after the jump.
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Celeb spotting warm-up 4: Ewan, Demi, Weisz, Viggo and, yes, even more Clooney
Where Demi goes, can Ashton be far behind? (Photo by TechCrunch50-2008)
In today’s lineup of galas and special presentations we have Ewan McGregor and Clooney chasing government conspiracies, Natalie Portman playing a stepmom (in non-Julia Roberts fashion) and Demi Moore and David Duchovny at war with their neighbours. Learn about all of these, plus the directorial debut of designer Tom Ford and many other screenings, after the jump.
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