Politics at the Toronto International Film Festival 2024

‘Russians at War’

TORONTO — The Toronto International Film Festival was back in full swing this year with its full lineup of 278 films from over 60 countries. But this year it was not without its share of protests and political drama. In a world where the collective West (which of course includes Canada) is aggressively defending its interests by reinforcing NATO in Ukraine against Russia, in Israel against the Palestinians, in the Middle East against Iran, Iraq Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and others, and in its confrontations with China—the country helping to lead the emerging multipolar world and the new powerhouse of BRICS nations that represent over a third of the world’s population—it’s no surprise that a massive cultural experience like TIFF would reflect these world dynamics in cinema.

Art, especially cinema, is always political. It’s the cultural representation of the political realities that exist in every country, whether it is embracing the status quo, usually as a numbing diversionary tool, or challenging the existing power structure and being censored.

With the current U.S. proxy war in Ukraine, it would be expected that there would be no positive Russian films shown in Canada, especially at TIFF with its filmgoers numbering in the millions, nor films from other countries that would represent a challenge to Western imperialism. Pro-Cuban, -Venezuelan, or -Nicaraguan films are almost always absent, and films from China, Vietnam, and other socialist countries are usually filtered for their political content. Politics is also used in other areas, as in a prestigious internationally produced film where all its participants were allowed to enter the country, except for those from Mongolia. Does Canada have something against Mongolia? Is it too close to China?

There was only one “so-called Russian film” offered this year, Russians at War, a doc made by a Russian-Canadian filmmaker Anastasia Trofimova. It was protested by a large picket of angry Ukrainians condemning TIFF for even considering showing a film from Russia, let alone the fact that it’s not from Russia: TIFF stated, “It was made without the knowledge or participation of any Russian government agencies.” And it isn’t pro-Russian any more than it is an anti-war work of art. It’s a treatise on the agony of war as frontline Russian soldiers are interviewed while confronted with the realities of gruesome fighting and death. Trofimova said she made the doc because “the fog of war is so thick that you can’t see the human stories it’s made of.” And this is a brave human drama, the filmmaker risking her life to capture the realities of soldiers fighting to the death, for some, not really knowing why. If anything, the protesters didn’t want the Russians to be shown as humans, and that peace through ceasefire and negotiations is not the answer. The director wisely stated, “It’s easy to start a war…but to finish it, just try!” And to get your film shown in the collective West, just try!

The large Ukrainian protests in front of the TIFF Lightbox Theater drew public attention, and the Festival released a strong statement saying they would not bow down to pressure and planned to go ahead with the screenings. “As we engage with the art made at this politically charged time, we are guided by the democratic values of freedom of conscience, opinion, expression, and peaceful assembly as protected in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms for all Canadians including Canadian artists.” However, in an “unprecedented move for TIFF” they reconsidered and stated “we have been made aware of significant threats to festival operations and public safety,” and all three screenings were canceled. Interestingly, Russian Canadians didn’t protest the showing of two Ukrainian films at TIFF, an anti-Russian sci-fi flick U Are the Universe, and Viktor, an anti-Russian doc about a deaf man who is disappointed he can’t be enlisted to kill Russians. Russians at War will be shown at the Windsor International Film Festival in a few days unless it gets canceled also.

At another protest, a large gathering of mostly Jewish activists supporting the BDS Movement (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) rallied outside the TIFF Lighthouse Theater, protesting the presence of an Israeli film at the Festival. Protester Gur Tsabar, from the Jews Say No to Genocide Coalition, says “Bliss is a film funded by the Israeli Film Council which uses art to whitewash the genocide happening in Israel. You’re not allowed to criticize the state of Israel, the Israeli military, or Zionism if you want to receive film funding from the State.” The protesters’ demands weren’t to threaten TIFF to cancel the screenings though, but rather to encourage filmgoers to avoid supporting the Israeli-funded films.

Despite the unusual amount of political diversions, the Festival presented an amazing array of world-class cinema, including a revelatory doc about a U.S. soldier’s failed attempt to invade Venezuela on a boat to instigate a coup d’état (Men of War); a devastating compilation from 22 directors filming in Gaza (From Ground Zero); an historical blockbuster about the first fascist, Mussolini (M—Son of the Century); a charming, singular doc about physical disabilities (Patrice: the Movie); a unique pseudo-doc about a Chinese marriage counselor who involves herself directly in stopping a husband from cheating on his wife (Mistress Dispeller); and new gems from veteran filmmakers, Brazilian director Walter Salles (Motorcycle Diaries), Haitian director Raoul Peck (I’m Not Your Negro), and British veteran Mike Leigh (Secrets and Lies), to name a few.

The world of great, important cinema is alive and well, and I’ll be writing about these and other new films released in Toronto in my upcoming columns.

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CONTRIBUTOR

Bill Meyer

Bill Meyer writes movie reviews for People’s World, often from film festivals. He is a keyboardist at Bill Meyer Music and a current member of the Detroit Federation of Musicians. He lives in Hamtramck, Michigan.