Entertainment

TIFF's Top 10 films of 2013 taps Enemy, The F Word, Gabrielle

Canadian movies that earned film fest kudos around the world this year have made the annual list of Canada's Top Ten Films, with Denis Villeneuve, Michael Dowse and Chloé Robichaud among the directors honoured.
Michael Dowse's The F Word, starring Daniel Radcliffe and Zoe Kazan, earned praise for having the hallmarks of classic romantic comedies but with a dose of realism and more natural interactions between the two leads. (TIFF)

Canadian movies that earned film fest kudos around the world this year have made the annual list of Canada's Top Ten Films, with Denis Villeneuve, Michael Dowse, Xavier Dolan and Chloé Robichaud among the directors honoured.

The Toronto International Film Festival group, which administers the annual honour celebrating excellence in Canadian movie-making, unveiled the year's top 10 feature and short films in Toronto Tuesday evening.

"Canadian movies are global movies now, and TIFF's Canada's Top Ten Film Festival is the best opportunity to see our country's creativity on the big screen," said TIFF artistic director Cameron Bailey.

This year's picks include movies that won praise and awards at major festivals such as Cannes, Venice and Toronto, as well as titles in the running for year-end and other movie honours, such as the Oscars.

Canada's Top Ten feature films of 2013 are:

  • Asphalt Watches, dir. Shayne Ehman and Seth Scriver
  • Enemy, dir. Denis Villeneuve
  • The F Word, dir. Michael Dowse
  • Gabrielle, dir. Louise Archambault
  • Rhymes for Young Ghouls, dir. Jeff Barnaby
  • Sarah préfère la course (Sarah Prefers to Run), dir. Chloé Robichaud
  • Tom à la ferme (Tom at the Farm), dir. Xavier Dolan
  • Vic et Flo ont vu un ours (Vic + Flo Saw a Bear), dir. Denis Côté
  • Watermark, dir. Jennifer Baichwal and Edward Burtynsky
  • When Jews Were Funny, dir. Alan Zweig

Canada's Top Ten short films of 2013 are:

  • A Grand Canal, dir. Johnny Ma
  • Quelqu’un d’extraordinaire (An Extraordinary Person), dir. Monia Chokri
  • The Chaperone 3D, dir. Fraser Munden and Neil Rathbone
  • The End of Pinky, dir. Claire Blanchet
  • In guns we trust, dir. Nicolas Lévesque
  • Noah, dir. Walter Woodman and Patrick Cederberg
  • Nous avions, dir. Stéphane Moukarzel
  • Paradise Falls, dir. Fantavious Fritz
  • Subconscious Password, dir. Chris Landreth
  • Yellowhead, dir. Kevan Funk

The winners will screen, often accompanied by introductions and Q&A sessions with the filmmakers, at TIFF Bell Lightbox in Toronto from Jan. 3 to 12, 2014. Organizers will also hold several special events, including panels and onstage discussions, including: