TIFF 26 Dispatch 2: Bucking Fastard, The Julia Set, Being Heumann, Elsinore

As promised, here is my second dispatch from TIFF. I can’t say I was shocked by the winner of the TIFF People’s Choice this year, which went to Netflix’s La Bola Negra. Perhaps stranger was the idea of an International People’s Choice winner which went to Elsinore. I think that’s the first time they’ve separated them and it kind of awards six films (each category has 2nd and 3rd place announced). When you have over 250 films playing in a given festival, maybe you can give six of those films some added attention. 

Below I have reviews of four more of the films I caught during TIFF 2026. I still have two more I'd like to add, so look out for those as well.

One film that was certainly not going to win any People’s Choice Awards was Werner Herzog’s Bucking Fastard. It’s supposedly been a passion project for Herzog for sometime now and if there was any question of what kind of film he was making, the opening titles of the movie open with a dedication to the late David Lynch. Bucking Fastard is the story of two sisters, Jean and Joan Holbrooke (played by Kate and Rooney Mara) who experience life in unison. They love the same man, they have the same dreams, and they even speak at the same time. Even though they are two different people, they walk through life as one. Although the film doesn’t really separate the film into distinct acts, it's almost as though the sisters are going through different adventures together. The first of which is a love affair with a sleazy man (Orlando Bloom) who claims to love both of them, but then marries someone else. 

The novelty of Bucking Fastard is seeing the two actresses recite the same lines concurrently. It’s fun to see how each of them decide to deliver the same line. But that novelty quickly wears off and there’s not enough here to follow the Holbrooke sisters on whatever weird sidequest they’ve got going on next. I’m positive it will end up being one of the most polarizing films of the year. [C-]

I did not expect to see a Disney Channel original at TIFF, but that’s what I ended up getting with The Julia Set. Starring Chase Infiniti (One Battle After Another), The Julia Set follows a young math genius who is preparing for the biggest test of her life, the Putnam mathematics competition. Doing well on the test will allow her to chase her dreams of attending MIT and proving to the doubters that she’s capable of greatness. One person who instantly sees her potential is her TA (played by Christopher Briney). He becomes romantically entwined with Julila and shares his own anxieties brought on by his genius parents (played by Gillian Anderson and Jason Isaacs). Even though Julia believes her boyfriend loves her, there’s a lingering doubt that he sees her as an equal in mathematics. 

There’s not too much I can say about this one. The boyfriend is a classic egotist, only capable of seeing his own potential. The writing in The Julia Set is so poor and contrived, that the premier audience I watched it with was shouting at the movie in disbelief. Maybe that strong reaction was what the filmmakers were looking for, but The Julia Set does not add up to the sum of its capable parts. It’s hard to believe that Chase Infiniti accepted this role after One Battle After Another, so hopefully she’ll appear in something better next time. [D]

The opening night selection has always been a mixed bag. Sometimes it's a glitzy starfilled extravaganza other times it's a documentary of a beloved Canadian comic. While Oscar Winner Sian Heder (CODA) didn’t bring a ton of celebrity faces with her, Being Heumann continues her mission of making films with a mission. Being Heumann recounts the 1977 sit-in that disability protestors undertook to get Section 504 signed. The government had proposed Section 504 years earlier and it was supposed to protect students with disabilities from discrimination in programs or activities that receive federal funds. This meant that only would these individuals needed to be treated with respect like all citizens, but accommodations would have to be made. Those accommodations would end up being very expensive and that’s something the government didn’t want to sign. 

One of the most determined individuals was Judy Heumann (Ruth Madeley) who was not only responsible for the organization of the protestors, but also led the movement for the sit-in. These people risked their lives to win their rights. It’s a fascinating true story, but Being Heumann can’t escape the trappings of a fairly by-the-numbers affair. This story has had its roughest parts smoothed around the edges, making sure that audiences feel this is a victory for everyone. I do appreciate that Heder added more demonstration at the end of the film as this is a battle that’s far from over. I’m certain that those that find Being Heumann streaming on Apple TV+ will have a pleasant enough time from it, but it's hard not to imagine a better version of this story. [C+]

Based on a true story was a big selling point for movies at TIFF and that certainly continued with Simon Stone’s Elsinore. Actually, it feels kind of disingenuous to attribute this one to Stone, actor Andrew Scott completely owns this film. Scott plays actor Ian Charleson, an British actor who was best known stateside as one of the leads of the Oscar winning movie, Chariots of Fire. Following that Charleson didn’t receive much work in Hollywood, but he was still a well known stage performer. So well known, that when Daniel Day Lewis stepped away from playing Hamlet at the National Theatre, Charleson was offered the role. It would be the role of a lifetime, the only problem is that Charleson was dying from HIV/Aids. Could he live long enough to see this job through?

I’ve been a fan of Scott’s for a while now, but I’ve never seen him in a role like this one. He’s phenomenal in this one, not only putting on an inspiring performance in Hamlet, but also slowly deteriorating from the effects of his illness. The cast is filled out with a lot of other great British mainstays like Billie Piper and Olivia Colman, who end up in the position of determining whether Charleson is healthy enough to perform. While the film itself is a little weak in places, it's worth catching to see Scott in this role. [B]