TORONTO -- One of the most frequent questions heard at the Toronto International Film Festival each year is: "What's the best movie you've seen?"
With about 400 titles in this year's festival including short films, it's easy for great movies to get lost amid the bustle of Hollywood buzz and red carpet glamour.
Here's a list of standout titles from this TIFF 2016 that flew under the radar, but are worth a spot on your must-see list:
"Lady Macbeth" -- Newcomer Florence Pugh is a revelation in this BBC production that reinterprets Russian writer Nikolai Leskov's 1865 novella "Lady Macbeth Of Mtsensk." Theatre director William Oldroyd transplants the original story to 19th century England with Pugh as the young woman who escapes her passionless marriage by seducing a local farmhand. What follows is a twisty drama rife with desperation and manipulation, all expertly captured by Pugh in a striking portrayal of a woman on the brink.
"Blue Jay" -- Former high-school sweethearts are reunited by chance and instantly spark a reconnection in Mark Duplass's story of regret and reflection. Mostly told with only two actors, Duplass and Sarah Paulson, this black-and-white film could've easily fallen into cliche territory. But it manages to capture the spirit of 1990s indie filmmaking at its finest, and offers some heartbreaking surprises along the way.
"Toni Erdmann" -- Ignore the fact this is a nearly three-hour-long German comedy because it's also one of the most delightful films of the year. It begins with a father whose predisposition for pranks has contributed to a faltering relationship with his grown daughter. As they spend a few days together, both of them drag their complicated personalities through a series of scenarios complete with false teeth, bad wigs, and an unforgettable rendition of Whitney Houston's "Greatest Love of All" by actress Sandra Huller.
"Raw" -- Cringeworthy in the most delightful of ways. This devilishly funny French cannibalism movie had audiences squirming in their seats and a few queasy patrons rushing for the exits. But it's far more than a gory horror film. Director Julia Ducournau brings a sense of humanity to the story of a vegetarian who gets a taste for human flesh after a university hazing ritual. "Raw" is the kind of vicious wake-up call the horror genre desperately needed, even if a few body parts were devoured in the process.
"Park" -- Athen's rundown 2004 Olympic village is the setting for this examination of Greece's troubled youth. Grappling with the nation's faltering economy and limited hope for a future, a group of teens seek friendship and love amid the ruins of a city's former glory. It's a coming-of-age storyline that feels somewhat familiar, but setting nearly every scene within the dilapidated buildings that once held so much promise is a statement in itself. Director Sofia Exarchou has delivered punk filmmaking that's a bit too literal at times, but it's hard to look away from her vision.
"Heal the Living" -- When a car accident leaves a 17-year-old boy brain dead, his family must decide whether to donate his organs. So begins Katell Quillevere's deeply emotional story of the many pieces that connect the loss of one life to the effort of saving another. The French-language film could have veered into sappy procedural-drama territory, but the director's meticulous attention to detail earns each supremely human moment between the doctors and their patients.
