The most dazzling, hilarious and thought-provoking movies we saw at the Toronto International Film Festival

Hello friends! Welcome to the It List TIFF guide, where I’m sharing my picks for the best of the festival’s films. Catch the weekly It List here for the latest releases that we can’t wait to watch, stream, listen to, read and binge.

This year, 278 films screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, also known as TIFF. The hotly anticipated titles range from award-season darlings like Anora to incoming streaming-service phenomena like Emilia Pérez.

I caught about 20 movies on the ground at this year’s festival, which ran Sept. 5-15, and though I have terrible regrets for missing People’s Choice Award winner The Life of Chuck and the Pamela Anderson vehicle The Last Showgirl, I’m sure I and the rest of the world will have a chance to see them soon.

I assigned superlatives to nine of the best movies I saw, along with some honorable mentions. Get your watch lists ready — I’ll walk you through them.

Best on-screen chemistry: We Live in Time

• What to know: Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield star as a couple whose unconventional love story is jolted by a cancer diagnosis and feels like it’s constantly running out of time.

• Why I recommend it: Though I knew I’d leave the theater with my heart shredded to pieces, it was worth it to watch these actors put some of life’s biggest and most intimate moments on display. And yes, that viral horse carousel meme makes it into the movie.

• How to watch: It’s in theaters Oct. 11.

• Honorable mention: On Swift Horses stars Daisy Edgar-Jones and Jacob Elordi as in-laws reckoning with their sexualties and their penchant for gambling.

Most demanding of the biggest screen possible: Megalopolis

• What to know: The film follows a genius artist (Adam Driver) who clashes with the mayor of New Rome (Giancarlo Esposito) in his quest to build a utopia, but you’ve probably heard more about the controversy and fanfare surrounding the movie.

• Why I recommend it: Honestly, don’t even worry about the plot — just brace yourself for the futuristic and dazzling imagery that Francis Ford Coppola spent $120 million of his own money on. It shows!

• How to watch: It’s in theaters Sept. 27.

Best crowd reaction: Friendship

• What to know: A suburban dad (Tim Robinson) obsesses over his relationship with his neighbor, a quirky weatherman (Paul Rudd). Chaos and absurdity linger in every corner.

• Why I recommend it: I caught a Midnight Madness screening with a rambunctious crowd that cackled throughout the film’s run time. It’s a hilarious indulgence in cringe comedy that feels like an extended I Think You Should Leave sketch.

• How to watch: A24 snagged distribution rights after the festival, but has not yet announced a release date.

Best vacation inspo: Queer

• What to know: Based on a William S. Burroughs novel of the same name, the film follows an expat (Daniel Craig) who flees the U.S. for Mexico after a drug bust. He chases romantic and chemical highs, becoming obsessively infatuated with a younger man (Drew Starkey).

• Why I recommend it: Don’t get me wrong — I don’t want to vacation in this movie, it just makes me want to go on vacation. Anything director Luca Guadagnino touches, from Challengers to Call Me by Your Name, is visually stunning, and this is no different — but there’s something about how much corruption and pain is depicted in this film that makes me think, “Wow, I need to go somewhere gorgeous like Mexico City or the South American jungle and have a much better time than these characters.”

• How to watch: A24 has not yet announced a release date, but it will likely be in theaters later this year.

Most pleasant surprise: Nightbitch

• What to know: Amy Adams stars as a woman who abandons her career as an artist to focus on raising her toddler son. She also suspects that she is turning into a dog.

• Why I recommend it: I loved the Rachel Yoder novel of the same name that the movie is based on, but I was skeptical that the whole dog transformation arc could be adapted to the screen in a way that wasn’t corny. It manages to be a poignant — sweet and sometimes heartbreaking — meditation on parenthood.

• How to watch: It’s in theaters Dec. 6.

• Honorable mention: Shell features Elisabeth Moss as a struggling actress who tries to advance her career with an experimental treatment. If you think it sounds a lot like The Substance, you’re right, but there’s a shocking twist I would never spoil for you.

Most memorable: Emilia Pérez

• What to know: A lawyer (Zoe Saldaña) helps a cartel leader (Karla Sofía Gascón) fake her death and start anew without her wife (Selena Gomez) and kids. A higher calling and family entanglements complicate the plan.

• Why I recommend it: Simply trying to describe the film’s genre is a challenge: It’s a Spanish-language French musical crime comedy. If you come expecting amazing performances, you’ll leave with whispers of its plot, themes and originality echoing in your head for days.

• How to watch: It’s in select theaters on Nov. 1 and begins streaming on Netflix Nov. 13.

Best distraction: Babygirl

• What to know: Nicole Kidman plays a high-powered CEO who risks her career and family to have an affair with an intern (Harris Dickinson).

• Why I recommend it: Kidman seems like one of the busiest actresses in Hollywood right now, but from what I’ve seen from her this year, this is her most powerful performance. What might seem salacious on the surface becomes complicated, tense and hilarious. I could only catch the screening that coincided with the last presidential debate, and to be honest, it was great counter-programming.

• How to watch: It’s in theaters Dec. 25.

Most thought-provoking: The Piano Lesson

• What to know: Based on the August Wilson play of the same name and set in the shadow of the Great Depression, the film follows siblings (John David Washington and Danielle Deadwyler) duking it out over whether they should sell a precious family heirloom.

• Why I recommend it: At times literally haunting, the film reckons with the burden of inherited trauma, racial tension and what defines a family. I’ll be unpacking this one for a while.

• How to watch: It’s in select theaters Nov. 8 and begins streaming on Netflix Nov. 22.

Most delightful cast: Riff Raff

• What to know: A former criminal’s quiet life is upended by an unexpected family reunion.

• Why I recommend it: Beloved actors like Jennifer Coolidge, Ed Harris, Pete Davidson and Bill Murray round out the cast of this comedy, delivering the wonderful performances you’d expect from them. Still, it was newcomer Miles J. Harvey, who plays the well-meaning stepson at the heart of the story, who captivated me the most.

• How to watch: It will be in theaters in 2025.

• Honorable mention: Eden is a survival thriller based on the true story of a group of people who turn their backs on society and settle on an island. It stars Ana de Armas, Vanessa Kirby, Sydney Sweeney, Jude Law and Daniel Brühl.

For more film recommendations, check out our fall movie guide.