FILMS Festival thrives on variety

This year's Toronto festival includes off-beat and original movies.
By JAY BOYAR
ORLANDO SENTINEL
Some of the most intriguing films at the recently concluded 29th annual Toronto International Film Festival are all over the movie map.
Take "House of Flying Daggers," a stylish martial-arts masterpiece from director Zhang Yimou. Like the filmmaker's recent "Hero," "Flying Daggers" is shockingly original in its use of color. But unlike "Hero," it's not heavy-spirited.
Style of another sort is on view in "I (Heart) Huckabees," a comedy pastiche about existentialism from indie-whiz David O. Russell ("Three Kings") and starring Jude Law, Naomi Watts, Dustin Hoffman, Lily Tomlin and Mark Wahlberg, among others.
Festivalgoers seeking a more traditional cinema could check out Al Pacino's turn as Shylock in a new version of Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice." There's also "Ladies in Lavender," a genteel fairy tale set in the 1930s, directed by actor Charles Dance ("Gosford Park") and starring Judi Dench and Maggie Smith.
Two documentaries that raise family issues were drawing a lot of attention: "Tell Them Who You Are," a film about the great cinematographer Haskell Wexler, directed by his son, Mark S. Wexler, and "Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession," a look at a quirky Los Angeles-area cable station from director Xan Cassavetes, daughter of filmmaker John Cassavetes and actress Gena Rowlands, and sister of director Nick Cassavetes ("The Notebook").
Then there's Jiminy Glick in "Lalawood," a comedy featuring Martin Short's hilariously rotund celebrity-interviewer character. The movie, which is set at the Toronto International Film Festival, was the closing-night feature at this year's 29th edition.
"I love the shallowness of it all!" announces Jiminy, upon arriving at the festival. And although there's some very serious cinema on view at this event, the Glickster is definitely onto something.