Toronto International Film Festival: A cinematic carnival

Films from South Asia and the Middle East captivate audiences at the 39th Toronto International Film Festival

Eleven days and 40 films later, I emerged invigorated from an intense cinematic experience at the 39^th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) that ran from September 4 to September 14, 2014, in Toronto, Canada. While some people find watching five films a day slightly excessive, for journalists and filmgoers who converge at the TIFF every year, there is no substitute for the energy at an international film festival.

The festival not only marks the beginning of the awards season but is also considered the launching pad for films that are the frontrunners for the Oscars. The variety of films screened at TIFF — ranging from mainstream films such While We’re Young starring Ben Stiller to foreign language films such as South Korean thriller, Haemoo — ensures that every kind of cinematic taste is catered to. My focus, however, remained on cinema from and about South Asia and the Middle East and I saw several films that showed a slice of life from the regions.

Winter Sleep (Turkish)

A scene from Winter Sleep.

Master auteur Nur Bilge Ceylan creates cinema of Chekhovian proportions in this intense human drama set against the stunning backdrop of Cappadocia in central Anatolia. The film is based on the journey of Aydin (Haluk Bilginer) — a former actor who now runs a successful hotel in a small village and aspires to write a book on Turkish theatre — as he is stripped off of what he wants to be and comes to terms with who he truly is.

Ma’a Al Fidaa Silvered Water: Syria Self-Portrait (Arabic)

Ma’a Al Fidaa Silvered Water: Syria Self-Portrait documents the devastation of the country over the past three years.

This documentary by Osama Muhammad — a Syrian filmmaker/journalist who has been living in Paris in exile since 2011 — uses hours of distilled, real-life footage of Syria’s civil war posted by Syrians online to expose the audience to the brutality of a war that has ravaged the region for nearly three years now. Footage by Wiam Simav Bedirxan, a young Kurdish female activist on the ground in Syria, who continued filming during the siege of Homs in 2011 has also been used to show the magnitude of the devastation. Some of the shots used such as torture at the hands of Assad’s security forces, sights of devastated homes and hospitals, mangled cats in alleys and children playing amidst the ruins show an all-too-familiar side of a war-torn Middle East but the intensity will have you cringing in pain.

Red Rose (Farsi)

Red Rose tells the story of a young women and an older man set against Iran’s 2009 Green Revolution.

This film by Sepideh Farsi, an exiled Iranian director living in France, is set against the backdrop of Iran’s 2009 Green Revolution — the post-election protests against what was considered a rigged election. The film is an interesting blend of drama laced with scenes captured from Tehran’s streets using cameras and phones. The plot revolves around Ali, a well-to-do middle-aged man and a young student Sara who seeks refuge in his apartment during the street protests. As Sara makes advances on the much older man, he is impressed by her political activism, a reminder of his own passion during the younger days. While their conversations are engaging, it is the startling explicitness of their relationship, captured on film, which gives the director an edge for venturing into an area usually avoided by Iranian filmmakers.

Rosewater (English)

Rosewater is based on the experience of Iranian -Canadian journalist Maziar Bahari.

This film which marks the directorial debut of comedian/director Jon Stewart was also set during the same protests in Iran highlighting the experience of Iranian-Canadian journalist Maziar Bahari. Bahari was covering the Iran elections for Newsweek in 2009 and was interviewed by The Daily Show with Jon Stewart correspondent, Jason Jones in Tehran. He was picked up by government authorities for spying and the film focuses more on his detention in a prison cell in Tehran, rather than the events taking place in the city. The brilliant Gael Garcia Bernal carries the film with integrity but does not pull off being an Iranian convincingly, especially because of his accent. His detainers are neither too violent nor overly exacting and since the film is in English, it seems that the intensity of the interrogation is weakened. On the other hand, the flashbacks of Bahari’s activist sister and his imaginary conversations with his father, both detained in the post-Shah Iran, are far more engaging.

Tigers (Hindi, English, Urdu, German)

Emraan Hashmi plays the Pakistani whistle blower who exposed Nestle for its lethal formula in the film Tigers.

This film is based on the true story of Syed Aamir Raza (played by Emraan Hashmi), the former Nestlé formula salesman who had to leave Pakistan after he exposed the company for selling formula that killed hundreds of babies, especially in the country’s poorest areas. Director Danis Tanović, Bosnian Acadamy Award-winning director of No Man’s Land, has taken a compelling story and breathed life into it by the attention to detail and accurate portrayal of events as they happened. This does not come as a surprise given that Tanović travelled to Pakistan to learn about the extent of the fallout.

Raza was honoured for his bravery by the Canadian government at TIFF last month and was also present at the world premiere of Tigers with his wife where he was applauded by the audience. Tanović believes that the film focuses on a complex global issue that cannot be reduced to one corporation alone. He bases his film in Pakistan, however, since Raza was the only whistleblower who had evidence and came out in the open with it.

Villa Touma (Arabic)

Villa Touma traces the remnants of a dying aristocracy in Palestine.

This film gives you a glimpse into the lives of the last of the Palestinian Christian bourgeoisie living in Ramallah during the early days of the Israeli Occupation. The Toumas are three single sisters who continue to live in their old family home which encapsulates the lifestyle and values of a time gone by. In an essential and brave attempt to depict a Palestine removed from its ravaged, war-torn reality, director Suha Arraf tries to keep war out of her film and focuses on a dying aristocracy desperately trying to shut out the voices of war that get louder and louder each day.



Arraf, a Palestinian Muslim living in Israel, also stirred controversy when she attempted to classify her film as Palestinian rather than Israeli even though the film was made mostly with Israeli public funds, including the Israel Film Fund. “The State of Israel never accepted us as citizens with equal rights. Why, then, am I expected to represent Israel with pride?” wrote Arraf in a recent article. She submitted her film to TIFF without naming a country. Her film remains stateless.

Mardan (Kurdish)

Mardan’s stunning visuals are the film’s highlight.

This visually stunning film set in Iraq’s rugged terrain depicts a place and people, with authentic insight. The lead character, Mardan is a brooding police officer, tortured by disturbing childhood memories and the current guilt of taking bribes. When confronted by a problematic case, Mardan helps a young mother look for her missing husband. As the plot progresses, the film is brought to life by the way the location, customs and characters are pictured. Mardan is the debut feature of Batin Ghobadi, brother of acclaimed director, Bahman Ghobadi, whose films on Kurdistan including Turtles Can Fly and Half Moon have been widely acclaimed at film festivals around the world.

Margarita, with a Straw (Hindi, English)

Margarita, with a Straw deals with the unusual subjects of disability and sexuality.

This coming-of-age film deals with two important issues that are generally overlooked by mainstream cinema in India — disability and sexuality. But more than that, it tells a story of courage and the triumph of human will over fear. The film is based on Laila (Kalki Koechlin), a young woman with cerebral palsy who yearns for all the same things as her peers — love, men, success and fun. After finishing her education at Delhi University, she makes it to a college in New York and falls in love with Khanum, a female Pakistani-Bengali fellow student. The film is inspired by people and events in Shonali Bose’s own life and the director’s sensitive treatment of the subject along with Koechlin’s phenomenal acting make it a delight to watch.



The themes and characters in most of the films from South Asia and the Middle East shown at TIFF were not strikingly unusual for those who belong to the region or are well-versed with its realities. The strong scripts, exceptional cinematography and detailed portrayal of characters, however, added a freshness to subjects which one may have seen in the past but may not have been necessarily moved by them. These films were also a reminder that sometimes seeing real life events projected on reel is what it takes to drive a point home.

Amna R Ali is a journalist who writes about culture, people, the arts; books, cinema and contemporary art; food, lifestyle and the current cultural buzz.

Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, October 5^th, 2014.