ELLECanada.com's Carole Park dishes on the events, the swag and celebrity sightings during this year's Film Festival.
Day 2:
Celeb sightings:
Approximately 1:45pm a swarm of photographers brought attention to Richard Branson stepping out of Lobby after the ultra-exclusive Virgin UNITE luncheon. Branson flashed a smile of his much too bright whitened teeth the crowd of passers by before stepping into a black SUV.
Around 8:30pm at the Park Hyatt's rooftop lounge, Harvey Weinstien stops by to briefly speak to Ralph Fiennes. Fiennes sat at a table near a back corner whilst having drinks with a group of people.
Spotted in the hall off of the lobby at the Park Hyatt at 10pm are two fans getting autographs and photos taken with Brothers Bloom</i> co-stars, Rachel Weisz and Mark Ruffalo.
Burn After Reading
It was just last year when I sat in sheer horror at a late night screening of Joel and Ethan Coen's No Country For Old Men. Javier Bardem's hair cut and character haunted my nightmares for a week and quickened my pace while walking alone at night. In deep contrast to the western-horror, the Coen brothers return to TIFF with the brilliant comedy thriller, Burn After Reading.
Burn After Reading is a comedy disguised as a Washington spy thriller, where the spy and thriller part are driven by the trivial pursuits through the intertwining of unlikely characters. The Coen brothers seem to have this knack for odd hairstyles, as can-do fitness employee, Chad (Brad Pitt), has a piled high hair-do that is almost a pomp.
Tilda Swinton, John Malkovich, George Clooney, Richard Jenkins, and Frances McDormand round out the cast by perfectly playing distinctly quirky characters, bringing to light weird eccentricities convincingly enough that there is more comedy than oddity.
Holt Renfrew's TIFF party
For the launch John Varvato's new line for Converse, GQ hosted the stylish event at Holt Renfrew. The lower-level of the Bloor Street location was transformed into a massive dinner to emulate the now closed Florent in New York. The latest Converse ad campaign was shot by Ryan McGinley at the now defunct diner and a short film was premiered prior to MGMT's intimate performance. Miniature meat loafs and pies circulated around the ice cream sundae bar with tables full of candy as far as the eye could see. Guests got to pick out silk screened shirts and also piled into an old instant black and white photo booth to bring home a strip of photos to remember the evening by. Among those who posed for the flashbulbs at the party were: Jeremy Piven, Gael Garcia Bernal, Sofia Bush, Grace Park, and Dean and Dan Caten of DSquared.
Day three sightings on the next page!
