Ava DuVernay’s Middle of Nowhere, Spike Lee’s Bad 25 Headed For Toronto FestPosted by Wilson Morales
August 14, 2012
Ava DuVernay’s MIDDLE OF NOWHERE, starring Emayatzy Corinealdi, has been selected as an Official Selection of the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival, along with Spike Lee’s BAD 25.
Both films will be screened in September as part of the Contemporary World Cinema program and Special Presentations program, respectively, at TIFF.
After premiering at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, where DuVernay won the Best Director Award, and other festival domestically, Middle of Nowhere will make its international debut at the festival. The film stars Emayatzy Corinealdi, David Oyelowo, Omari Hardwick, Lorraine Toussaint, Edwina Findley, and Sharon Lawrence.
What happens when love takes you places you never thought you’d go? Middle of Nowhere chronicles a young woman caught between two worlds, and two men, in the search for herself. Ruby, a bright medical student, sets aside her dreams when her husband is incarcerated. This new life challenges her to the very core. Her turbulent path propels her in new, often challenging, directions of self-discovery.
Lee’s documentary, “Bad 25,” marks the 25th anniversary of Jackson’s 1987 album “Bad.”
Bad 25 features captivating behind-the-scenes footage of the recording sessions for several of Bad’s biggest songs (“The Way You Make Me Feel” being among the most memorable). There are also revealing interviews with a number of fellow artists who worked with Jackson — such as Sheryl Crow, with whom Jackson shared the duet “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” on stage during the Bad world tour — and those who were inspired by him, including Kanye West, Cee Lo Green and Mariah Carey. Lee offers us a more intimate side of Jackson, one rarely glimpsed amidst the glitter and circus-like atmosphere that surrounded the notoriously private superstar, especially as his personal life (and appearance) became a scandal-rag mainstay in the years that followed Bad. As the landmark album takes shape before our eyes, we see Jackson’s dedication to his craft, his talent for inspired collaboration, and his sly sense of humour — as well as some hints of the toll that his relentless work ethic had on his psyche..
