TORONTO 2012

'Silver Linings Playbook' Wins People's Choice Award at TIFF 2012

by Alex Billington
September 16, 2012
Source: TIFF

The rest is history. Wrapping up the 37th Toronto Film Festival today is the announcement of the festival's awards, most notably the People's Choice Award. It's notable because (as TIFF reminded us with tags in front of every film) in past years Slumdog Millionaire and The King's Speech were winners of the "Audience Award", later going on to also win Best Picture as well as the hearts of the entire world. But of course, just because it won here doesn't mean much, besides that it's a damn good movie that most audiences love. This year's big winner is Silver Linings Playbook, the "sleeper hit" of TIFF which took everyone by surprise.

TIFF 2012 announced its award recipients on Sunday, September 16th, at a reception at the Intercontinental Hotel Toronto. The awards included prizes from FIPRESCI (the Prize of the International Critics) as well as NETPAC (Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema) highlighting a few foreign films. TIFF programmed a whopping 289 films in its line-up, from Special Presentations and a few Cannes holdovers, to many exciting premieres, including Cloud Atlas and PTA's The Master in 70mm. While I heard buzz that The Sapphires played well, and I was guessing maybe Rust & Bone or Looper, the real winner was Silver Linings Playbook.

Here's the full list from top to bottom, thanks to the press release put out via TIFF.net. If you click on any of the TIFF links, the page includes a little blurb about why it's so good, plus photos and info, so you can find these when/if they get released or hit another fest. Here's the Toronto Film Festival 2012 awards in full:

BlackBerry People's Choice Award:
Silver Linings Playbook directed by David O. Russell [TIFF]
Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, Julia Stiles and Jennifer Lawrence star in this acerbic comedy-drama from David O. Russell (The Fighter), about a former high-school teacher who returns to his family home after eight months in a mental institution and begins to slowly rebuild his life. (Watch the trailer)
Runners Up: Ben Affleck's Argo and Eran Riklis' Zaytoun

BlackBerry People's Choice Documentary Award:
Artifact directed by Bartholomew Cubbins [TIFF]
Telling harsh truths about the modern music business, Artifact gives intimate access to singer/actor Jared Leto and his band Thirty Seconds to Mars as they battle their label in a brutal lawsuit and record their album This Is War. The film is a true artifact of our times, as its subjects struggle with big questions over art, money and integrity.
Runners Up: Christopher Nelius & Justin McMillan's Storm Surfers 3D and Rob Stewart's Revolution

BlackBerry People's Choice Midnight Madness Award:
Seven Psychopaths directed by Martin McDonagh [TIFF]
A screenwriter (Colin Farrell) struggling to write a serial-killer script gets more real-life inspiration than he can handle when a dognapping scheme gone awry brings a galaxy of crazies to his doorstep. A top-notch cult-movie cast — including Christopher Walken, Sam Rockwell, Woody Harrelson, Tom Waits, Harry Dean Stanton — anchors this wacky, blood-spattered commentary on the psycho-killer thriller from the writer-director of In Bruges. (Watch the trailer)
Runners Up: Barry Levinson's The Bay and Don Coscarelli's John Dies at the End

City of Toronto + Canada Goose Award for Best Canadian Feature:
Laurence Anyways directed by Xavier Dolan [TIFF]

Skyy Vodka Award For Best Canadian First Feature Film:
Antiviral directed by Brandon Cronenberg [TIFF]
(tie) Blackbird directed by Jason Buxton [TIFF]

FIPRESCI Prize For Special Presentations:
In the House (Dans la maison) directed by Francois Ozon [TIFF]

FIPRESCI Prize For Discovery Programme:
Call Girl directed by Mikael Marcimain [TIFF]

Best Canadian Short Film:
Keep a Modest Head directed by Deco Dawson [TIFF]
Honorable Mention: Mike Clattenburg's Crackin' Down Hard

NETPAC Award for the Best First or Second Feature:
The Land of Hope directed by Sion Sono [TIFF]

Another solid list of TIFF awards this year. However I'm kicking myself, as I happened to miss pretty much every big winner (including Silver Linings, Seven Psychopaths, Artifact, and even Zaytoun). However, I've heard nothing by great things about Silver Linings Playbook, including even from Brad at RopeofSilicon. He comments: "It was probably my favorite film at this year's festival and the first film I gave an A+ to all year… what makes it so great is the way Russell creates an honest reality around those cliches with characters you can connect with and feel close to." That's more than enough of an endorsement for me, I can't wait to see it.

This wraps up our coverage from TIFF 2012, as the festival now comes to an end. However, this is just the start of the awards season and many of these films may still play at other fests, too. For more on the Toronto Film Fest and details on the juries or awards, visit TIFF.net. Until next year! Did you see any of these?

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