TIFF 21 | The Last Movie Guy

The Power of the Dog (2021)

Posted on December 15, 2021 by Hugo Pagan Soto

Deliver my soul from the sword, my life from the power of the dog.
Psalms 20:22

Surely under the dust of the old North American west many stories remain buried. Much has changed since the era of archetypal Westerns. The genre has found life again and again thanks to directors who take risks and take it down unexplored paths. Veteran director Jane Campion joins that list and with The Power of the Dog (2021) she leaves us a film that breaks some molds and delves into the psychological profile of the characters to compose from the intimate. The actions are born from the wishes of the characters, everything revolves around their deepest desires and what happens in the foreground always has a more complex background.

The other Tom (2021) TIFF 2021

Posted on December 1, 2021 by Hugo Pagan Soto

He was not the model child of the place. The model boy he knew well enough and hated him with all his heart.
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Director Rodrigo Plá cannot imagine Tom Sawyer living in this era. Twain would surely not have been able to capture his adventures because with a hasty diagnosis of hyperactivity or another syndrome they would have filled him with pills to calm him down. How good that Tom could live in another time and what a pity that the new Tom had to live in this one. The other Tom (2021) began to make noise with his nomination at the Venice Film Festival and from there he went on to the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). It was at this stop where I was able to coincide with the film. Its circuit of festivals has not stopped and along the way it has been collecting various awards.

The electrical Life of Louis Wain (2021) TIFF 2021

Posted on November 10, 2021 by Hugo Pagan Soto

There are characters that are born to be immortalized on celluloid, well now it’s a hard drive. But the idea is that they are figures so unique that they seem destined to be captured by the lens. The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2021) does just that, in its almost two hours it only delves into the life of the English artist Louis Wain. It was his peculiar paintings of cats that earned him social recognition and redirected his artistic career. With the characteristic chronicle of the biographical genre, the director Will Sharpe tells us a drama centered on the study of his central character, more from a personal level than from the artist’s point of view.

The Humans (2021) TIFF 2021

Posted on November 9, 2021 by Hugo Pagan Soto

Humans can’t handle too much reality.
Thomas Stearns Elliot

First, we hear some noises, we cannot distinguish anything. Then some voices become more and more recognizable, and humans appear. An air of mystery covers that introduction, and we are disoriented for a few minutes. Stephen Karam’s The Humans (2021) takes very little to achieve much. Minimalist in his staging and in the resources that accompany the narrative. From there he tackles with great rigor an analysis of characters that set the stage for an intense drama.

The Rescue (2021) TIFF 2021

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Hugo Pagan Soto

The Great Cave of the Sleeping Lady (Tham Luang Nang Non) is a cave located in a mountain system that marks the border between Thailand and Myanmar. Its maximum depth is 279 feet, and its total length is 10.3 kilometers. Prior to 2018 it was just a tourist spot frequented mainly by cave diving enthusiasts. On June 23, 2018, the whole world was going to know this remote place. The Rescue (2021) tells the odyssey of 12 children and their soccer coach after being trapped inside this cave system. The documentary is approached from the perspective of rescuers and personnel who worked to accomplish one of the most incredible rescue missions.