Posts Tagged ‘Slumdog Millionaire’

Award Season kicks off with the Venice and Toronto Film Festivals

Who would have thought the WWE-sounding film “The Wrestler” would take home the best picture prize at the Venice Film Festival?

The film by Darren Aronofsky (“Requiem for a Dream”, “The Fountain”) did just that Saturday while building up Oscar buzz for star Mickey Rourke.

The film about a retired wrestler trying to participate in one more fight while battling health problems, trying to reconcile with his daughter and romancing a stripper played by Marisa Tomei is one of the only films most critics agreed on.

According to the U.K.’s “Guardian,” jury members joked about whether or not to award any prizes this year. The only other films to receive critical acclaim were the Italian film, “The Birdwatchers,” and the Russian film, “Paper Soldier,” the latter of which won the second grand prize and best director awards. 

With the exception of the young performer prize awarded to Jennifer Lawrence, most of the winners were non-American. The African film “Teza” won the Grand Jury Prize and for best screenplay, Italian actor Silvio Orlando won best actor for “Il Papa di Giovanna” and French actress Dominique Blanc won best actress for “L’Autre.”

The Toronto Film Festival, which runs through Saturday, is showing more high profile films.

“Slumdog Millionaire” may win the top prize while The Coen brothers’ “Burn After Reading” and Charlize Theron’s “The Burning Plain” stumbled, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Dakota Fanning’s “The Secret Life of Bees” and Julianne Moore’s “Blindness” got split reactions, while Kristin Scott Thomas, Meryl Streep and Kate Winslet are the leading contenders for a best actress nomination, per the L.A. Times. 

Find out the winners when they are announced later this week.