The Ups And Downs Of TIFF 2003

If there is one lesson to be learned from this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, says Ty Burr, it may be that audiences don’t want to see ‘sweetheart’ stars like Meg Ryan strutting around naked or cursing up a storm. But aside from Ryan’s jarring performance in Jane Campion’s much-maligned “In The Cut,” Burr says he found much to like at TIFF 2003. “The common threads this year were eye-catching star performances by women, striking ensembles of male characters, and the sort of visually stunning, hermetically sealed worlds that are only possible in cinema.”