This movie represents a good effort but fails to deliver the quintessential "Toronto snapshot" it really should have.
The first segment, "Shoelaces", touches on a pair of bullied & abused kids (themes not exactly exclusive to the city of Toronto) and strangely on the notion of a bizarre creature living underground.
The second segment, "The Brazilian" is the stand-out short, featuring Sook-Yin Lee (she wrote it, after all) and indie actor Tygh Runyan. Nothing echoes the vibe of Toronto better than the story of 2 awkward, emotionally-stilted eccentrics looking for love but unable to break down the emotional walls between them. Quirky and just a bit sardonic, this story is as Torontonian as Queen West.
Stories 3 and 4 tumble in the wake of "The Brazilian", focusing on a hostage situation from an escaped convict who can't accept his ex-girlfriend not wanting anything to do with him, and a drug addict homeless man (Gil Bellows) desperately striving to save a lost child to make up for the loss of his own child.
These latter stories are too dark, too gritty and would feel more at home in an anthology series about New York City or LA. They don't capture the spirit of Toronto, they don't sound like the people when the characters speak. They don't inspire interest.
Two out of four isn't bad, but if there's a sequel, the producers should take a broader look across the GTA.
The first segment, "Shoelaces", touches on a pair of bullied & abused kids (themes not exactly exclusive to the city of Toronto) and strangely on the notion of a bizarre creature living underground.
The second segment, "The Brazilian" is the stand-out short, featuring Sook-Yin Lee (she wrote it, after all) and indie actor Tygh Runyan. Nothing echoes the vibe of Toronto better than the story of 2 awkward, emotionally-stilted eccentrics looking for love but unable to break down the emotional walls between them. Quirky and just a bit sardonic, this story is as Torontonian as Queen West.
Stories 3 and 4 tumble in the wake of "The Brazilian", focusing on a hostage situation from an escaped convict who can't accept his ex-girlfriend not wanting anything to do with him, and a drug addict homeless man (Gil Bellows) desperately striving to save a lost child to make up for the loss of his own child.
These latter stories are too dark, too gritty and would feel more at home in an anthology series about New York City or LA. They don't capture the spirit of Toronto, they don't sound like the people when the characters speak. They don't inspire interest.
Two out of four isn't bad, but if there's a sequel, the producers should take a broader look across the GTA.