TIFF reveals its picks for Canada’s top 2016 movies

The Toronto International Film Festival has announced its picks for the top Canadian films of 2016. And if you haven’t seen them all — some have played only at sporadic festivals to date — they will be screening at Toronto’s Lightbox cinema Jan. 13 through Jan. 27, and at select cities including Vancouver (Jan. 13-22), Montreal (Jan. 14 -31) and Edmonton (Jan. 20-29) through the winter and spring. The films, in alphabetical order:

Angry Inuk: by Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, is a documentary that looks at seal hunting from the point of view of the Inuit for whom it is part of a way of life.

Hello Destroyer: by Kevan Funk, is a drama about a young hockey player who must try to overcome the effects of an in-game act of violence.

It’s Only the End of the World (Juste la fin du monde): by Xavier Dolan, won the Grand Prize at Cannes last May, and tells the story of a dying writer’s attempts to reconnect with his family.

Maliglutit (Searchers): by Zacharias Kunuk, is an Inuit take on the 1956 John Ford western The Searchers, and tells of a man’s hunt for his kidnapped wife and daughter

Mean Dreams: by Nathan Morlando, stars Sophie Nélisse and Josh Wiggins as a teen couple in possession of a twice-stolen bag of money, on the run from the girl’s violent father, who’s also a cop.

Nelly: by Anne Émond, is inspired by the short life of Canadian sex-worker-turned-novelist Nelly Arcan, played by Mylène MacKay.

Old Stone: by Johnny Ma, is a gritty drama, set in China, in which a cab driver’s act of kindness toward a man injured in a traffic accident leaves him on the hook for medical bills.

Those Who Make Revolution Halfway Only Dig Their Own Graves (Ceux qui font les revolutions à moitié n’ont fait que se creuser un tombeau): by Mathieu Denis and Simon Lavoie, is a drama set during Quebec’s student-led “Maple Spring” of 2012.

Werewolf: by Ashley McKenzie, is a first feature that tells of two methadone users struggling to survive in a small town.

Widow Horses (The Poetic Persian Epiphany of Rosie Ming): by Ann Marie Fleming, is a feature-length animated movie about a young Canadian poet on a journey of discovery.