TIFF 2013: Canadian director Denis Villeneuve’s Toronto double threat

It's extremely rare for any filmmaker to have two movies at the Toronto International Film Festival in one year. In fact, it’s not very often that a director even has two films out in the same year. However, Quebec’s Denis Villeneuve (“Incendies”) is apparently the exception to those rules. His latest films “Prisoners” and “Enemy” are both set to play during the opening weekend of TIFF 2013.

After Villeneuve’s “Incendies” earned an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film in 2011, the director was quickly tapped by Warner Bros. to helm “Prisoners” – a long-in-development crime thriller about the father of missing young girl who kidnaps the person he suspects is behind his daughter’s disappearance. Based on Aaron Guzikowski’s Black List screenplay, “Prisoners” stars Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Terrence Howard, Maria Bello, Paul Dano, Melissa Leo, and Viola Davis.

Under normal circumstances, “Prisoners” might have a little bit of Oscar talk based on its tremendous cast and disturbing subject matter alone, but when you throw in the promising script and a talented filmmaker like Villeneuve, you get a movie that has all the makings of a serious awards season contender. We’ll have a better idea about “Prisoners” after its TIFF premiere on Sept. 6 at the Elgin Theatre.

After wrapping up production on “Prisoners,” Villeneuve somehow found time to shoot another film – the mind-bending psychological thriller “Enemy.” Based on Nobel Prize winning author José Saramago’s novel “The Double,” the Canadian film follows an introverted teacher (“Prisoners” star Jake Gyllenhaal) who embarks on a search to find his exact lookalike (also played by Gyllenhaal) after spotting him in a movie. Playing both leads in the film -- an actor's dream -- Gyllenhaal is sure to make waves with his dueling performances. While not quite as buzzed about as “Prisoners,” Villeneuve’s “Enemy” also has a prime spot in TIFF’s opening weekend line-up. The film will premiere on Sept. 8 at the Ryerson.

Villeneuve made his mark on the film world with deeply disturbing fare like 2009’s “Polytechnique” and 2010’s “Incendies” – films that centered on things like mass murder, incest, and survivor guilt. Real feel-good stuff! Whether the Quebec filmmaker’s distinctive edge has survived the transition to Hollywood, though, is a question that will be answered at TIFF this year.

“Prisoners” looks extremely dark by Tinsel Town standards, but there are places that are simply off limits for most major studio films. While there are no indications that the director has held back anything with “Prisoners” (or been censored by the studio somehow), it's highly unlikely that the revenge thriller will be anywhere near as shocking as Villeneuve's earlier Canadian films. If word on the street about "Enemy" is to be believed, those looking to see a more unfiltered and out-there Villeneuve movie at TIFF this year should check out his Canadian offering.

The 2013 Toronto International Film Festival runs from Sept. 5 to 15.