TIFF 2025

Almost a month has passed since the festival ended (sorry, I wanted to finish posting all my reviews first, so I delayed this post a bit), and TIFF 50 already feels like a distant memory. It goes by so fast! When we are in it, it’s intense. Five films a day, literally running from venue to venue (making in just in time at least 3 times), spotting celebrities, and struggling to keep Letterboxd updated. But once it ends, it feels like it wasn’t nearly enough and that we could have gone for a few more days.

My fifth TIFF, and my first as press, has been the best I have experienced so far, thanks to a very strong lineup and, well, the fact of being press (Lavazza cold brew every day for ten days is a dream, as is being able to start the day at the theaters at 9 a.m., as well as talking to other critics before those early screenings).

It is always easy, especially when the lineup is announced, to look at what films are not there instead of the ones that are. “Tiffty” (how it wanted to be called for its 50th anniversary) gathered the most notable films from Cannes, Venice, and Berlin, along with a fair share of noteworthy world premieres (Wake Up Dead Man, Rental Family, Roofman). But as always, there were over 200 films, and enough to fill 11 days with many winners. Maybe I am getting better, but it was easier as well to spot what would be good or not. The Midnight lineup was specially strong (if you knew how to avoid the easy to spot stinkers) with three big highlights. Platform section was hit and miss as usual, and, as always, some of the best films were tucked into the Centrepiece program.

What struck me most, however, was that the world premieres in general were better selected. Compared with previous years, there seemed to be a stronger effort to keep the lineup curated, consistent, and solid. I can see something like A Big Bold Beautiful Journey making the lineup in a previous year, and we are better for having films like Poetic License and Tuner in its place. Audiences also picked a great winner (Hamnet was a much better choice than last year’s The Life of Chuck). By the time of posting, I have seen at least five of the notable films people were disappointed not to find here, and I can safely say that what made it in was a fantastic representation of the year. Overall, it was a very strong lineup in a very exciting year for films.

Festival Street did not have many attractions this year, and I missed Jane Schoettle, who apparently retired, presenting the films. Even so, my impression was that there was a bigger focus on the actual movies themselves, maybe due to the company and people I talked with during the festival.

Here is my ranking of everything I have seen from the lineup at the time of posting. This includes 11 films I saw at other festivals (Sundance and Cannes), 2 I saw after the festival, 14 I watched through screeners, and 46 I saw during the festival itself.

73. Charlie Harper (2025)

As a TIFF selection, Charlie Harper feels notably listless and stays away from anything tough or meaningful about love, regret, or toxic relationships.

TIFF 2025

TIFF 2025

TIFF 2025

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