Photo Coverage: Inside TIFF's Opening Presentation of THE JUDGE
By: Walter McBride Sep. 05, 2014
The Toronto International Film Festival is in full swing, continuing through September 14, 2014. A total of 393 films are scheduled to be shown, including 143 world premieres. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you photos from inside the opening presentation for THE JUDGE.
Robert Downey Jr. and Robert Duvall lead a cast of Hollywood heavyweights in this tough and rousing drama about the searing clashes that carve a rift between father and son - and the unexpected crisis that may just help to bridge it.
When slick Chicago defence attorney Hank Palmer (Downey) returns to his Indiana hometown to bury his mother, her passing proves only the precursor to greater upheaval. Hank's father, Judge Joseph Palmer (Duvall), stands accused of murder, alleged to have run down a former defendant whom he failed to convict, and who later committed a heinous crime. Despite their bitterly dysfunctional relationship, Hank agrees to take his father's case. But he is up against a formidable opponent in Dwight Dickham (Billy Bob Thornton), the local prosecutor who knows how to use Judge Palmer's reputation against him. The ensuing trial is an electrifying display of lawyerly ingenuity and familial tension.
Coming back down to earth after reaching the stratosphere as Iron Man, Downey retains the grace, charisma, and impeccable wit that made him such a singular star. Duvall - who will also grace our Mavericks stage for a conversation about his illustrious career - shows that his ability to find the cracks in even the most hardened characters remains peerless. And the outstanding supporting cast, including Vincent D'Onofrio and Academy Award nominee Vera Farmiga, helps to create a multi-faceted portrait of a world so different from the cosmopolitan milieu Hank normally calls home.
Directed by David Dobkin, whose breakthrough feature, Clay Pigeons, screened at the Festival in 1998, The Judge is much more than a courtroom procedural. It puts a lifetime of family grievances on trial, finding no one wholly innocent - and everyone worthy of a second chance.
The Toronto International Film Festival has become the launching pad for the best of international, Hollywood and Canadian cinema, and is recognized as the most important film festival after Cannes. TIFF is dedicated to presenting the best of international and Canadian cinema to film lovers. What began as a ten-day film festival has grown to embrace programming 365 days a year. TIFF offers screenings, lectures, discussions, festivals, workshops, industry support and the chance to meet filmmakers from Canada and around the world. In September 2010, the opening of our new home, TIFF Bell Lightbox, enabled TIFF to expand to truly become a creative, community and global leader, and one of the world's premiere organizations in the discovery and understanding of film.
Photo Credit: Walter McBride
Director David Dobkin
David Dobkin
David Dobkin
David Dobkin and Dax Shepard
Robert Downey Jr.
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Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr.
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Robert Duvall and Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr.
Robert Downey Jr.
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