TORONTO - DAY THREE

I was sitting in the row in front of the person who took this picture. So close.

FYI – Celeb Sightings so far:
Maya: Cillian Murphy, Michael Moore, Guy Maddin, Sacha Baron Cohen (dressed as Borat), Heath Ledger.
Steven: Robert Duvall

So, on Saturday Steve offered me $20 to wake up at 5:30 and get in the daily line for movie tickets. By the way, 5:30 in Toronto is 4:30 in Chicago. Yes, I did it, and it was fun. I got there at 6:20, and was 14th in line. The box office opened at 7:00 and by 7:03 I had gotten the tickets I wanted (for Volver). One of the films I had a ticket for, Diggers, was completely sold out. That made me happy.

Film one – Volver. One of Almodovar’s great lighter films. Even though it’s a comedy it has some dark elements. The acting is great all around (including Penelope Cruz, who I usually can’t stand). For a supposed lower-class person, her makeup and clothing were way too glamorous. I really stand by my belief that Almodovar is one of the great humanist directors of our time, and I love the way that he is somehow privy to the connections that women can make with one another. I was still pissed that nobody from the film showed up for a Q&A, even though they were on the red carpet the previous night.

Film two – The Fall. The second feature by Tarsem (aka Tarsem Singh – director of The Cell). A visually stunning and really creative film. I wasn’t convinced for the first ½ hour, but then I sank into the movie and really, really enjoyed it. He takes the typical Hollywood epic genre and turns it on its head. The happy ending at the end is totally deserved, but still isn’t completely happy. It’s both uplifting and painful at the same time. The lead actress is a chubby six-year-old who was delightfully childish. None of the Dakota Fanning school of acting here! Her dialog was so close to what children actually say, I almost think she wrote her lines herself. The plot and visual effects were a perfect mix of children’s fairy tales and adult drug hallucinations. The end of the film is a joyous celebration of film and stunt actors, and I got teary-eyed. Anyway, the whole cast was there (it was the world premiere) – the lead actor is unknown and was great. In real life – GOOD GOD. The dude was a 6’3” hunk of blonde gorgeous studliness. Holy shit. Usually actors look better in person than onscreen (Cillian Murphy) or the same as onscreen (Christian Bale) – but this dude looks SO much better than his photos or than in his films, it’s not even describable. Watch this movie!

Film three – Diggers. Paul Rudd wasn’t there – dammit! It was the world premiere of the this movie, by the way. This is another movie that everyone should see. It’s a dark comedy, but still one of the funniest movies I’ve seen in ages. It’s about a community of clamdiggers in the 70s. Paul Rudd takes off his pants and also shows his ass. Oh, and he also shows an awesome acting range. Lauren Ambrose is in it, and I’m afraid to say that she seems so much like Claire (from 6 Feet Under) that I really think she IS that person – in other words, the stuck-up, pretentious, artsy, sarcastic girl.

Film four – Rescue Dawn. I SAW CHRISTIAN BALE. Not only did I see him, but this was the world premiere of the film, and he was sitting directly 5 rows behind me the whole time, along with Werner Herzog (the director) and Jeremy Davies (the co-star). I heard he was sitting close by me, and the girl behind me was saying, “See Herzog? A little to your left, move over, do you see him?” I finally caught a glimpse, and he was signing something for someone, and I lost my breath. Oh my god, he’s beautiful in real life. In the movie he’s an emaciated wreck (AGAIN) – but in real life he gained the weight back, his cheeks are full, even though his hair is oddly long and feathered, he’s beautiful, gorgeous, he’s FUCKING CHRISTIAN BALE.
The movie was really good. It was oddly mainstream, and superbly paced. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time, and Steve kept grabbing my arm. I was gasping, and had my hand over my mouth for a good 1/3 of the film. It was intensely suspenseful and amazing. It’s still not mainstream enough to be really popular in the American marketplace, however. It was also creepily patriotic (weird for a director who isn’t even American). But Herzog isn’t really a political director – in this case, it’s one man’s struggle, and this movie nails it.
Christian Bale lost a ton of weight for this film (again). He is tied by the ankles and dragged through the mud by a water buffalo (it’s not a stunt man), and he hacks his way through leafy bushy traps, and he spends entire days submerged in dirty river water up to his neck, and he pulls giant leeches off his body, and he chews handfuls of live maggots. It’s all real, and none of it was done by body doubles. Werner loves to torture his actors, and they eat it up and beg for more. Jeremy Davies, who is a skinny mofo, lost 33 pounds for this film.
By the way, the same day that this film was screened, Werner Herzog’s mother died. In spite of that, he was sitting 5 rows behind us with Jeremy Davies and Christian Bale, watching the world premiere with us. That was such a monumental occasion - seriously! Most actors show up and go to the green room to wait for the Q&A. Alternatively, they don’t show up at all. But these guys were there, and watching the premiere with an audience. That meant so much to me, I almost want to puke. After the film, Christian was leaning against the railing, just waiting around. I put my shoes back on and we made our way over there. He wasn’t very mobbed, and he signed things for about 4 people. As we approached, I decided I would just shake his hand and say thanks (I never ask for autographs – what’s the point?) When I was 3 feet away, I started shaking uncontrollably. I started whispering to Steve, “I can’t do this, I can’t do this!” Luckily, Christian said he really had to go, and took off right before I got there. I was seriously in passing-out mode.