The ahem, obsession with Curry Barker‘s “Obsession” began at last year’s TIFF, when the horror film had its world premiere in the Midnight Madness section of the festival to rave reviews, prompting Focus Features to swoop in for its distribution rights for an eye-popping $15 million. The rest is history: “Obsession” is easily the buzziest film of the year, a critical darling that’s made over $450 million worldwide (so far), and prompting some critics to predict an awards season run for lead actress Inde Navarette.
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No wonder then that TIFF wants to give “Obsession” its flowers in this year’s Midnight Madness section. Deadline reports that Barker’s film will return to Toronto this Fall for a special reprise in the festival’s late-night line-up on September 11. Barker and Navarette will also be at TIFF for a Dialogues discussion at the John Bassett Theatre. Will the upcoming TIFF screening reignite the film’s box office? With what a sensation “Obsession” has been, the film may still be in theaters in five weeks, and another surge in popularity is very possible.
But let’s take a look at what else is part of the TIFF Midnight Madness this year. Na-Hong Jin‘s sci-fi pic “Hope,” fresh off its Cannes Film Festival world premiere, is arguably the true headliner of the ten late-night screenings this year, but there’s plenty of other intriguing new films in the genre line-up. Perhaps most enticing is the world premiere of Anna Biller‘s “The Face Of Horror,” her first film since 2016’s “The Love Witch.” Biller takes her fascination with vintage aesthetics all the way back to the 14th century in that one, as the film follows an unfaithful widower haunted by his former wife.
Elsewhere, Duncan Jones‘ “Rogue Trooper” has its North American premiere in the section, a CGI motion-capture adaptation of the 2000 AD comic book. “Spree” director Eugene Kotlyarenko has his new movie, the yakuza pic “Vintage Violence,” ready for its world premiere, too. Same goes for Joshua Giuliano‘s slasher “River,” another film with plenty of buzz ahead of TIFF.
Check out the entire line-up, curated by Peter Kuplowsky, for TIFF’s Midnight Madness section below. All ten screenings are at the Royal Alexandra Theatre, starting at 11:59p.
Anchors Aweigh | Matt Barats | USA
International Premiere
Arrested Memory | SABU | Taiwan, Japan
North American Premiere
HALF | Samjad | India
World Premiere
Kick On | Nick Kozakis | Australia
World Premiere
Ladies and Gentlemen, Brian Mulroney | Matthew Rankin | Canada
World Premiere
River | Joshua Giuliano | USA
World Premiere
Midnight Madness Opening Night Film
Rogue Trooper | Duncan Jones | United Kingdom
North American Premiere
Midnight Madness Closing Night Film
The Face of Horror | Anna Biller | United Kingdom
World Premiere
The Spiral | Paolo Strippoli | Italy, France, Belgium
International Premiere
Vintage Violence | Eugene Kotlyarenko | USA, Japan
World Premiere
