Bubbles

Yesterday was the official start to TIFF season for 2018, with the release of the catalogue and Program Book. In the old days, this would have involved a very early start to the day and a long line wherever the Festival decided to set up its box office. With the rise of online ordering, assigned windows for film selection and the like, it's a much less onerous activity.

I went down to the Lightbox and arrived there around 9:45, with about 15 minutes to go before the box office opened. There were perhaps a dozen people ahead of me in line and, as we approached the magic hour, another three or four dozen people appeared behind me.

The line at this time of day consists mostly of what I imagine are retirees and about 90% of these are female. As in TIFFs past, spontaneous conversations erupt in the line and there was a certain prickly quality in the exchanges. Lots of discussion about what films weren't in the list and why didn't the director hold his/her film to show at TIFF, rather than release it in the summer?

The woman directly in front of me turned to the man behind her and offered one of the better comments I've heard in a while. She remarked that on being offered champagne, too many people complain that there aren't enough bubbles, rather than simply reflecting on and enjoying the wonderful flavours on offer. Words to live by.

I completed pass #1 of the catalogue last night and the whittling of a host of films down to a manageable number has begun. Some first impressions:

• There are quite a few science fiction films this year compared to last year. Always interested in what people can do in this genre, especially when you can get clear of the Star Wars/Trek/MCEU/DCU sets of orthodoxies 
• Midnight Madness seems to have taken a turn to the respectable, moving the two big studio films (the Hallowe'en and Predator sequels) away from the Ryerson Theatre to the Elgin/Winter Garden. As someone who remembers seeing "Meet the Feebles" at the Bloor long before it was cleaned up, this is a big change. 
• Normally, films may have one, two or three screenings during TIFF. Two films have more than half a dozen -- "First Man", a Neil Armstrong biopic with Ryan Gosling and "Roma", by Alfonso Cuaron. Both are studio films which are getting some heavy promotion as we head into the fall, but the sheer number of screenings is exceptional. At this point, I doubt that either will end up on my short list. I'd rather use my available time to see something that might not come this way again. 

More to come.