TIFF 2 for 3

For our 10th Anniversary year, TIFF08 feels like a washout. Saw Synecdoche, New York last night at the WinterGarden. Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Catherine Keener were there along with writer/director Charlie Kaufman who stayed for Q&A. Kaufman was the screenwriting genius behind Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (directed by the filmmaking genius Michel Gondry) and Adaptation (directed by gifted Spike Jonze). Synecdoche was Kaufman's directorial debut. In the hands of a visionary director, this film's premise could have been brilliant. Instead, it was a disappointing, endless piece that underutilized everyone in the cast except PSH and drove my friends crazy.

At the start of Q&A someone asked "Can you talk about the burning house?" to which he replied: "No." Then he tried to justify it by saying his interpretation doesn't matter, he did it for us and what matters is what we take from it. Later, a member of the audience asked: was it your intention to let the film spiral downward deeper and deeper into despair? Everyone laughed. Serves Kaufman right for refusing to answer the first question. I think even Cameron Bailey was surprised at the guy's 'tude during the Q&A.

Listen Charlie, being glib doesn't work with seasoned TIFF moviegoing audiences. The question was fair, and your response was arrogant and insulting, along with most of the rest of what you had to say. Your feeble attempt to backpedal at the end didn't win you any new friends. Stick to writing in your turret, find a publicist to handle questions and leave the directing to somebody else.