Music

The top 5 music films to see at TIFF

by Nicole Villeneuve

The 2011 Toronto International Film Festival starts TODAY and oh my god did you get any tickets have you seen any celebrities did you get invited to any parties and that’s how stressful TIFF is right? We’ve distilled the hundreds of films down to five in our preferred subject: love. Just kidding, we’re talking about music. If you’re planning and last-minute TIFF sleuthing, here’s what you should check out.

5. Paul Williams: Still Alive – Directed by Stephen Kessler

Mysteriously legendary singer, songwriter, and actor Paul Williams is the classic case of the huge celebrity that just sort of dropped off. In this film, director Stephen Kessler aims to find out whatever happened to him, and discovers Williams sober and still working, navigating the realities of life vs. show business. The two allegedly form a strange and tense relationship as Williams pulls Kessler into his life a little, guaranteeing an awesome movie about how strange and complex the rich and the famous so often seem so be. (Sunday September 11, AMC 6, 7:30pm; Wednesday September 14, AGO, 5:30pm; Sunday September 18, AMC 7, 4:00pm)

4. The Love We Make – Directed by Albert Maysles and Bradley Kaplan

More likely effectively timely than it will be great, Paul McCartney’s post-9/11 doc follows the singer as he visits the rattled city a month after the World Trade Centre attacks as he organizes a memorial concert. Exploring the “role of art and artists in a time of crisis,” it may play out as a montage of McCartney fans freaking out over seeing him in the streets, but we hope not. (Friday September 9, AMC 7, 9:15pm)

3. From the Sky Down – Directed by Davis Guggenheim

Because who are any of us kidding? U2 have a ton of money and a story and good music, so of course this is going to rule. Chosen as the revered opener of the festival this year, From the Sky Down examines the band’s endurance through a series of interviews and footage not only with the band, but with close longtime collaborators such as Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois. It’s going to be so high-budget and slick and so good, I just know it. (Thursday September 8, Elgin, 6:30pm; Thursday September 8, Roy Thomson Hall, 8:00pm, Friday September 9, TIFF Bell Lightbox 1, 9:00pm; Saturday September 17, Ryerson 6:00pm)

2. Pearl Jam Twenty – Directed by Cameron Crowe

Director Cameron Crowe knows a thing or two about music and he seems a perfect fit for this twenty-year celebration documentary on the powerful and interminable Pearl Jam—he’s been a fan since the early days, even casting the band in his 1992 classic Singles. Outgrowing the grunge trend to become one of the biggest and most consistent rock bands in the world, Pearl Jam go back in time here through a ton of exclusive archival performance footage and interviews, all through Crowe’s fan lens. (Saturday September 10, Princess Of Wales, 2:00pm; Monday September 12, Ryerson, 12:00pm)

1. Neil Young Journeys – Directed by Jonathan Demme

There’s only one screening of this and it’s followed by a conversation between director Jonathan Demme and the notoriously cagey Young, who have collaborated on a number of films together in the past, and anyway, it’s Neil Young, so of course it’s worth checking out. With live footage from Young’s two-night show at Toronto’s Massey Hall this past spring interspersed with more intimate interview footage culled from an Ontario road trip, Neil Young Journeys takes him back to his hometown for some reminiscing. (Monday September 12, Princess Of Wales, 7:00pm)