Artistic Consumption Log, Sept. 3, 2012 - Sept. 9, 2012

TORONTO—I am currently knee deep in going from movie to movie here at the Toronto International Film Festival (or, in the case of Neil Jordan's latest film, Byzantium, nodding off through it thanks to film-festival fatigue that finally caught up with me), so I'll keep my usual commentary to a minimum as I theoretically work on longer TIFF-related posts to share with you all. Theoretically.

Sans Soleil

Films

★ Premium Rush (2012, David Koepp), seen at AMC Empire 25 in New York
Consider this a placeholder for the longer review I'll perhaps one day write suggesting some of the hidden depths underpinning this deceptively slight, breezy thriller.

Toronto International Film Festival 2012, all films seen in Toronto:
★ Sans Soleil (1983, Chris Marker), seen at Jackman Hall
Tabu (2012, Miguel Gomes), seen at TIFF Bell Lightbox
★ Rust & Bone (2012, Jacques Audiard), seen at Ryerson Theatre
★ Pacific Sun (2012, Thomas Demand), seen at Jackman Hall
★ 21 Chitrakoot (2012, Shambhavi Kaul), seen at Jackman Hall
Many a Swan (2012, Blake Williams), seen at Jackman Hall
★ Departure (2012, Ernie Gehr), seen at Jackman Hall
★ Auto-Collider XV (2011, Ernie Gehr), seen at Jackman Hall
★ The Land of Hope (2012, Sion Sono), seen at Winter Garden Theatre
Stories We Tell (2012, Sarah Polley), seen at TIFF Bell Lightbox
★ Seven Psychopaths (2012, Martin McDonagh), seen at Scotiabank Theatre
Something in the Air (2012, Olivier Assayas), seen at Winter Garden Theatre
No One Lives (2012, Ryuhei Kitamura), seen at Ryerson Theatre
Cloud Atlas (2012, Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski & Tom Tykwer), seen at Winter Garden Theatre
Mr. Pip (2012, Andrew Adamson), seen at Winter Garden Theatre 
Other than the free screening of Sans Soleil I saw as my first screening of this year's Toronto International Film Festival (to which I say "holy shit fucking masterpiece where have you been all my life"), I can't say I've been super-blown away by much of what I've seen so far. Exceptions: Martin McDonagh's exhilaratingly unpredictable Seven Psychopaths and Ernie Gehr's two terrific new abstract shorts Departure and Auto-Collider XV (you seriously will not see train travel or highway rides quite the same way after watching those two).