Blackbird (2019)

"Neill succeeds with a grace and good humour that do a great deal to calm the histrionics and bring things to a finish lit with a persuasive mingling of sadness and hope."

"While not all the notes in this film may work in harmony, it's the love in the story - between the characters and in the actors' performances - that holds the movie together."

"It works admirably well - at least to a point, at which some viewers may feel Torpe piles on one crisis too many. Nonetheless, this is a quality enterprise with numerous rewards for adult audiences..."

"For all the narrowness of its brief, it may be the most beautifully complete film you will see all year."

"The subject matter alone makes it unlikely to bother the latest Marvel movie, but in recent years the TIFF has primarily become an awards season bellwether, and Sarandon shines above the somewhat creaky material."

"Michell, screenwriter Christian Torpe...and a talented cast strike a delicate balance in a domestic drama that ably combines heartbreak and humour."

"Winslet is miscast, Sarandon is coasting, Neill is sleepwalking and Wasikowska, an extremely talented yet recently underused actor, is stuck playing the sort of role she should have grown out of by now."

"There almost isn't a single shot in it where every member of the cast isn't Acting."