The Toronto International Film Festival announced nine more feature-film premieres yesterday, and the big names attached to the projects provide an early indication of the star power that could be coming to town this September. Among the celebrities starring in the two gala and seven special presentations are Keira Knightley, Gerard Butler, Dakota Fanning, Queen Latifah, Paul Bettany, Jennifer Hudson, Alicia Keys, Ricky Gervais, Greg Kinnear, Ralph Fiennes and Jeremy Piven. TIFF, which runs Sept. 4 to 13, will host a world premiere gala for Gina Prince-Bythewood's Secret Life of Bees, starring Fanning, Latifah, Keys, Hudson and Bettany in a film based on the bestselling novel of the same name. The second gala is Saul Dibb's The Duchess, with Knightley as Georgiana Spencer, the duchess of Devonshire. Based on the award-winning biography by Amanda Foreman, the duchess was England's original "It Girl," a remarkable woman who helped to usher in sweeping political changes. Fiennes plays her husband. Special presentations include Guy Ritchie's RocknRolla, a feature about a Russian mobster and London's criminal underworld, starring Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Thandie Newton and Piven. Also announced was David Koepp's Ghost Town, with Gervais cast as a man who dies but is revived, only to realize that he can now see ghosts. James Stern and Adam Del Deo's Every Little Step is a documentary on the making of Broadway's A Chorus Line. Larry Charles's Religulous follows political humorist Bill Maher as he travels the world interviewing people about God and religion. Wong Kar-wai's Ashes of Time Redux is a rework of his only martial arts film. In addition, there are Mike Leigh's comedy Happy-Go-Lucky and Ari Folman's Waltz with Bashir. Thirteen titles were also added to the Masters and Contemporary World Cinema categories, including Jan Troell's Everlasting Moments. Fuente |