Revisit

Nothing says “awards season” like a fall film festival. The Times’ reporters, critics, videographers and photographers are on the ground at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival, bringing you all the news from TIFF’s 50th edition. Our coverage includes our TIFF Daily newsletter, along with photo and video highlights from the Los Angeles Times Studio.

Bookmark this site and revisit all weekend to see new actors, directors, documentarians and international icons who couldn’t wait to say hi to us. And be sure to check out our complete coverage of TIFF 2025 throughout the festival.

Elle Fanning from the film “Sentimental Value.”

(Christina House/Los Angeles Times)

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1. Back row left to right, Nadia Latif and Willem Dafoe. Front row left to right, Anna Diop and Corey Hawkins from the film “The Man in My Basement.” 2. Anna Diop.

Channing Tatum, Kirsten Dunst and Derek Cianfrance from the film “Roofman.”

Back row left to right, Anita Afonu and Ben Proudfoot. Front row left to right, Nana Adwoa Frimpong and Ghanaian Brandon Somerhalder from the film “The Eye of Ghana.”

Pete Ohs from the film “Erupcja.”

Left to right, Lisa Barros D’sa, Glenn Leyburn and Eanna Hardwicke from the film “Saipan.”

Director Oliver Laxe from the film “Sirât.”

Kirsten Dunst from the film “Roofman.”

Stephen Amell, left, and Sean Astin from the film “Little Lorraine.”

Elle Fanning and Stellan Skarsgard from the film “Sentimental Value.”

than Hawke from the film “The Lowdown.”

Riz Ahmed and Aneil Karia from the film “Hamlet.”

Left to right, Thomas DeGrezia, Director Eif Rivera, Brad Feinstein and Christina Weiss Lurie and Diego Boneta from the film “Killing Castro.”

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1. Jay McCarrol. 2. Matt Johnson from the film “Nirvana: The Band – The Show – The Movie.”

Connor O’Malley, Vanessa Bayer, Kate Berlant, Claudia O’Doherty, Eric Rahill and John Early from the film “Maddie’s Secret.”

Channing Tatum from the film “Roofman.”

Left to right, Samara Weaving, Kyle Gallner, seated, and Adam Carter Rehmeier from the film “Carolina Carolina.”

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1. Samara Weaving from the film “Carolina Carolina.”

Left to right, Idan Weiss and Agnieszka Holland from the film “Franz.”

Left to righy, Chris Candy, Jennifer Candy and Colin Hanks from the film “John Candy: I Like Me.”

Potsy Ponciroli from the film “Motor City.”

Back row, co-Director Tom Dean and Emilia Jones. Front row, co-Director Mac Eldridge and Nick Robinson from the film “Charlie Harper,”

Left to right, Megan Lawless, Cooper Tomlinson, Curry Barker, Michael Johnston and Inde Navarrette from the film “Obsession.”

Back row, Chandler Levack and Juliette Gariepy. Middle row, Stanley Simons and Barbie Ferreira. Front row, Devon Bostick from the film “Mile End Kicks.”

Megan Arz, who lives in Germany, has visited 30 countries and has a few in Europe that she would not revisit – and some of her choices might surprise you

Selecting the ideal holiday destination can prove tricky. With breathtaking coastal resorts across Greece and vibrant metropolitan breaks in Rome, options are plentiful.

Yet one globe-trotter who has explored 30 nations might assist you in refining your selections. Megan Arz, dubbed the ‘friendly neighbourhood tour guide’, has resided on the continent for approximately six years but reveals there are certain sought-after European cities she wouldn’t wish to revisit for different reasons.

Nevertheless, prepare yourself, her assessments are rather scathing and even feature a UK destination.

On TikTok (@meganarztravels), she began her catalogue with a ‘semi-obvious’ city which is ‘so easy to punch down’. “That is Frankfurt, my neighbouring city here in Germany,” she remarked.

“Frankfurt does lack a lot of character, especially when you compare it to other cities in Germany and smaller towns. It’s a banking centre and you can feel that.

“It’s the centre of the European Central Bank and it just doesn’t have that kind of warm and cosy feeling about it.”

Beyond this, Megan highlighted the absence of quality local beer and the dominance of bankers – or ‘financial bros’. She continued: “It just leads to the sense of like ‘eh’ – it’s not that cool.”

Remarkably, a renowned Italian tourist destination featured next on her criticism list. Despite her visit occurring some time previously, she condemned the location for its ‘cheap souvenirs’ and proposed it was rather a ‘day trip place’ than a week-long holiday spot, reports the Daily Record

Megan continued: “Can’t wait for some super defensive Italians in my comments here, but Italy made the list this time around with Pisa. Now, admittedly, I only went to Pisa once and it was quite a while ago, but I don’t remember there being anything to do in the town besides see the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

“And that whole area around there is so mobbed with like cheap souvenirs and people trying to sell you things and pickpockets, and it just like didn’t have a very nice feeling about it.”

Third on her list was a destination you might not recognise.

Megan disclosed that Kiruna in northern Sweden, which sits practically in ‘the middle of nowhere’ ranked among her least favourite spots.

She continued: “You go there to hunt for Northern Lights and you can visit the original ice hotel here. But honestly, other than that, it’s a mining town that’s going through a major transition.

“[…] But it’s an odd place and definitely one of the most forgettable places that I’ve visited, sorry Kiruna!”

You might be shocked to discover that Prague claimed fourth place on her list.

Mass tourism and excessive stag parties were Megan’s primary complaints, and she felt she’d experienced everything the city offered in a single visit.

“Prague in the Czech Republic […] it’s a city that has a lot of bachelor [and] bachelorette parties and it’s suffering a bit from overtourism which leads to this feeling of just like: ‘what’s going on here?’,” she said.

“I’ve only visited once and while I would consider going back, I would only consider going back if I had a local perspective and someone who could show me other parts of it […] I was there for five days before and I kind of felt like I saw what I needed to see.”

Brits might be shocked to learn that the final destination on her list was actually a UK city.

Despite enjoying her stay, she described it more as a ‘launching pad’ for exploring elsewhere.

She disclosed: “The last European city that I probably wouldn’t visit again is Inverness in Scotland. I absolutely love Scotland and while I did have a good time in Inverness, it’s quite a small city and doesn’t have that much to offer from a tourist perspective.

“It’s a great jumping-off point for seeing the Highlands or visiting Speyside, but honestly after a couple of days there, I feel like I saw everything I needed to see and probably wouldn’t come back for a return visit.”

Predictably, the assessment sparked a flurry of responses on TikTok, with countless viewers weighing in with their own opinions about each destination.

One individual concurred, stating: “I super agree with you on Pisa! I was staying there for a day and I got soooo bored after seeing the leaning tower and main attractions and even that wasn’t as impressive tbh.”

Another added: “Just got back from Inverness and I agree! It’s a great place to base yourself to see the Highlands, but the city itself just isn’t great.”

However, not everyone agreed with Megan’s perspective. One viewer countered: “I’ve been to Prague dozens of times and would be glad to visit it again. Love that city!” Another added: “So sad to see Prague here, it’s my favourite city I’ve seen in Europe so far.”

The nightclub is being replaced with a permanent memorial to one of the US’s worst mass shootings in modern history.

Survivors and family members of the 49 victims killed at an LGBTQ+ friendly nightclub in the United States have gotten their first chance to walk through it before it is demolished and replaced with a permanent memorial to what at the time was considered the worst mass shooting in modern US history.

In small groups over four days starting Wednesday, survivors and family members of those killed plan to spend half an hour at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, where Omar Mateen opened fire during a Latin night celebration on June 12, 2016, leaving 49 dead and 53 wounded. Mateen, who had pledged allegiance to ISIL (ISIS), was killed after a three-hour standoff with police.

The Pulse shooting‘s death toll was surpassed the following year when 58 people were killed and more than 850 injured among a crowd of 22,000 at a country music festival in Las Vegas.

The city of Orlando purchased the Pulse property in 2023 for $2m and plans to build a $12m permanent memorial that will open in 2027. These efforts follow a fumbled attempt to create a memorial over many years by a private foundation run by the club’s former owner.

The existing structure will be razed later this year.

“None of us thought that it would take nine years to get to this point, and we can’t go back and relitigate all of the failures along the way that have happened. But what we can do is control how we move forward together,” Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said two weeks ago, when county commissioners pledged $5m to support the city of Orlando’s plan.

The opportunity to visit the nightclub comes on the ninth anniversary of the mass shooting.

About 250 survivors and family members of those killed have responded to the city’s invitation to walk through the nightclub this week. Families of the 49 people who were killed can visit the site with up to six people in their group, and survivors can bring one person with them. The club has been cleaned, and lighting has been installed ahead of the walk-throughs.

The people invited to visit are being given the chance to ask FBI agents who investigated the massacre about what happened.

Mental health counsellors will be available to talk to those who walk through the building in what could be both a healing and traumatic moment for them.

“The building may come down, and we may finally get a permanent memorial, but that doesn’t change the fact that this community has been scarred for life,” said Brandon Wolf, who survived the massacre by hiding in a bathroom as the gunman opened fire. He does not plan to visit the site.

“There are people inside the community who still need and will continue to need support and resources.”