Well, I just finished watching 28 films over the last eight days, and I think it's safe to say that I'm all movied out.  I think TIFF is one of my favourite times of the year -- as a movie city, Toronto may not have the cache of New York or L.A., but as far as film festivals go we've got everyone else beat.  I saw some really great films at the festival this year, and some not-so-great ones.  A few highlights:

The Wrestler -- Wow.  Easily the best film of the festival.  I wasn't sure what to expect from this one going in, but this was an exceptionally well made character study (featuring none of Darren Aronofsky's usual stylistic quirks) with an absolutely stunning lead performance from Mickey Rourke.  Yes, you heard that right: Mickey Rourke (!) gives the performance of the year, if not the decade.  He's that good.

Still Walking -- From Hirokazu Koreeda, director of stuff like After Life and Nobody Knows, this was an extremely low-key and slow-paced drama about a family gathering -- under a lesser director it probably would have been pretty dull, but Koreeda's style suits the material perfectly.  This has been compared a lot to Tokyo Story, but I like it even better than that film.

RocknRolla -- This is coming out really soon, but I'm a fan of Guy Richie's, so I couldn't resist.  Richie doesn't exactly cover any new ground here, but if you enjoyed Lock Stock and Snatch, you'll enjoy this.

Chocolate --  Prachya Pinkaew's follow-up to Ong Bak and the Protector, this kicks some pretty serious ass, despite the absence of Tony Jaa.  It takes a bit too long to get started, but once the action starts it pretty much doesn't let up until the end credits roll.  Good stuff.

Che -- Ah, Che.  This was my most anticipated movie going into the festival, and while it's seriously overlong at four-and-a-half hours (!), I'm still glad I saw it.  It's worth it if only for Benicio Del Toro's powerhouse performance as Che Guevara.  

Of course, there were some duds too -- Three Monkeys was dull beyond belief despite getting some positive buzz,  and Deadgirl (about a couple of guys who stumble onto a nude zombie in an abandoned sanatorium and proceed to use it as a sex toy) was one of the worst films I've seen in a while -- but overall it was a pretty good festival.