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Bush Shooting Film Gets Critics' Nod
Toronto Festival: 'Bella,' 'Death Of A President' Take Top Prizes
TORONTO, Sept. 17, 2006
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This scene from "Death of a President" is digitally manipulated to portray an assassination attempt on George W. Bush. (AP Photo)
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(AP) The unheralded "Bella," Mexican-born director Alejandro Gomez Monteverde's feature film debut, took the top audience prize at the 31st Toronto International Film Festival, while international critics gave an award to the controversial British TV movie "Death of a President," which centers on a fictionalized assassination of George W. Bush.
"Bella," a romantic film which tells the story of a former Mexican soccer star turned chef (Mexican actor Eduardo Verastegui) and a troubled waitress (American stage actress Tammy Blanchard) whose lives converge and turn upside down during a single day in New York, was the surprise winner of the People's Choice Award voted on by festival audiences.
"This festival has been so, so amazing," Monteverde said as he accepted the award at the festival's closing reception Saturday night at the Hilton Hotel. "They treat the little ones and the big ones the same. ... Thank you, Toronto film festival, for allowing film-makers like myself who come from nothing to come here."
Monteverde, who was born in Mexico but moved to the United States as a teenager, earlier this year married actress and former Miss USA Ali Landry, who has a supporting role in the U.S.-produced "Bella."
Last year's People's Choice Award winner, the South African film "Tsotsi," won the Oscar for best foreign- language film.
French director Patrice Leconte's buddy film "Mon meilleur ami" was the first runner-up for the People's Choice Award, followed by Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck's documentary "Dixie Chicks: Shut up and Sing," which chronicles the trio's transition from country music darlings to bold symbols for freedom of expression after their criticism of President Bush sparked a strong backlash.
British director Gabriel Range's "Death of a President" stirred up a strong reaction even before it premiered at the festival, but it won the Prize of the International Critics (FIPRESCI Prize). The jury of film critics cited the film "for the audacity with which it distorts reality to reveal a larger truth."
"Death of a President," which was bought by Newmarket Films and is slated to air Oct. 9 on an offshoot of Britain's Channel 4 network, chronicles the sniper shooting of Bush on Oct. 19, 2007, during a trip to Chicago and the ensuing investigation.
The film blends archival footage of Bush interspersed with fierce anti-war protests and other fictional scenes crafted by the filmmakers. Actors posing as administration officials and Secret Service agents were digitally grafted into some images of the president and his entourage. The filmmakers said they chose to use Bush rather than substitute a fictitious president to heighten the authenticity.
"I'm thrilled that the film is going to be shown in theaters both here and in the U.S. in the near future," Range said Saturday. "That's proof that people can see beyond the premise and see that it's a film about this post-9/11 world that we live in."
Other prizes announced Saturday night included the Swarovski Cultural Innovation Award which went to "Takva — A Man's Fear of God," a Turkish-German co-production about a man whose belief in God is put to the test, and the Diesel Discovery Award, voted on by the festival press corps, which went to Norwegian director Joachim Trier's feature debut "Reprise," a comedy about two young men with a shared dream of becoming writers.
The festival, which screened 352 films over 10 days, closed on Saturday with the world premiere of British director Michael Apted's "Amazing Grace," which tells the story of William Wilberforce, a British parliament member who led abolitionists in their crusade to end the slave trade in the late 18th century. The film stars Ioan Gruffudd as Wilberforce, international music star Youssou N'Dour, Rufus Sewell, Michael Gambon and Albert Finney, among others.
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Toronto Festival: 'Bella,' 'Death Of A President' Take Top Prizes
TORONTO, Sept. 17, 2006
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This scene from "Death of a President" is digitally manipulated to portray an assassination attempt on George W. Bush. (AP Photo)
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Go To Comments
(AP) The unheralded "Bella," Mexican-born director Alejandro Gomez Monteverde's feature film debut, took the top audience prize at the 31st Toronto International Film Festival, while international critics gave an award to the controversial British TV movie "Death of a President," which centers on a fictionalized assassination of George W. Bush.
"Bella," a romantic film which tells the story of a former Mexican soccer star turned chef (Mexican actor Eduardo Verastegui) and a troubled waitress (American stage actress Tammy Blanchard) whose lives converge and turn upside down during a single day in New York, was the surprise winner of the People's Choice Award voted on by festival audiences.
"This festival has been so, so amazing," Monteverde said as he accepted the award at the festival's closing reception Saturday night at the Hilton Hotel. "They treat the little ones and the big ones the same. ... Thank you, Toronto film festival, for allowing film-makers like myself who come from nothing to come here."
Monteverde, who was born in Mexico but moved to the United States as a teenager, earlier this year married actress and former Miss USA Ali Landry, who has a supporting role in the U.S.-produced "Bella."
Last year's People's Choice Award winner, the South African film "Tsotsi," won the Oscar for best foreign- language film.
French director Patrice Leconte's buddy film "Mon meilleur ami" was the first runner-up for the People's Choice Award, followed by Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck's documentary "Dixie Chicks: Shut up and Sing," which chronicles the trio's transition from country music darlings to bold symbols for freedom of expression after their criticism of President Bush sparked a strong backlash.
British director Gabriel Range's "Death of a President" stirred up a strong reaction even before it premiered at the festival, but it won the Prize of the International Critics (FIPRESCI Prize). The jury of film critics cited the film "for the audacity with which it distorts reality to reveal a larger truth."
"Death of a President," which was bought by Newmarket Films and is slated to air Oct. 9 on an offshoot of Britain's Channel 4 network, chronicles the sniper shooting of Bush on Oct. 19, 2007, during a trip to Chicago and the ensuing investigation.
The film blends archival footage of Bush interspersed with fierce anti-war protests and other fictional scenes crafted by the filmmakers. Actors posing as administration officials and Secret Service agents were digitally grafted into some images of the president and his entourage. The filmmakers said they chose to use Bush rather than substitute a fictitious president to heighten the authenticity.
"I'm thrilled that the film is going to be shown in theaters both here and in the U.S. in the near future," Range said Saturday. "That's proof that people can see beyond the premise and see that it's a film about this post-9/11 world that we live in."
Other prizes announced Saturday night included the Swarovski Cultural Innovation Award which went to "Takva — A Man's Fear of God," a Turkish-German co-production about a man whose belief in God is put to the test, and the Diesel Discovery Award, voted on by the festival press corps, which went to Norwegian director Joachim Trier's feature debut "Reprise," a comedy about two young men with a shared dream of becoming writers.
The festival, which screened 352 films over 10 days, closed on Saturday with the world premiere of British director Michael Apted's "Amazing Grace," which tells the story of William Wilberforce, a British parliament member who led abolitionists in their crusade to end the slave trade in the late 18th century. The film stars Ioan Gruffudd as Wilberforce, international music star Youssou N'Dour, Rufus Sewell, Michael Gambon and Albert Finney, among others.
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