The 51st Toronto International Film Festival has landed in the middle of a diplomatic spat, and the city is not being subtle about which side of the lake it's on. North America's biggest film event, which draws crowds and industry figures from around the world — with Americans making up the largest share of visitors — opened just weeks after Donald Trump signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario as "Lake America" amid an escalating trade war with Canada.
Festival CEO Cameron Bailey set the tone on opening night, introducing the disability rights drama "Being Heumann" by welcoming guests to "the beautiful shore of — say it with me — Lake Ontario." Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow went further, telling the audience the film proved people can "move mountains — even against the might of the U.S. government." Director Peter Farrelly, premiering his Sylvester Stallone drama "I Play Rocky," joined in with a cheerful declaration of happiness at being back on the shores of Lake Ontario. Google and Apple updated their US maps to reflect the new name; the Associated Press and others say they won't.
The politics behind the jokes are serious. The US has slapped 50% tariffs on C$20 billion worth of Canadian goods, with Canada hitting back with matching tariffs on American steel, dairy, appliances and farm equipment. Trump has called Canada "the worst country to deal with." Yet on the ground in Toronto, the mood has been warm rather than hostile — defiance delivered with a wink, and American guests clearly still welcome.
One premiere found itself oddly on-theme. Canadian director Michael Dowse's "The Stunt Driver," starring Jay Baruchel as 1970s daredevil Ken Carter, premiered at the festival and is set along the waterways dividing the two countries. Carter spent years plotting to jump a rocket-powered Lincoln Continental over the St. Lawrence River from Morrisburg, Ontario, into New York State. The film's most raucous audience reactions came at lines that now carry extra charge — Carter branding Canadians "God's chosen people" and telling a meddling Evel Knievel, played by Ben Foster, that the last thing Canada needs is "a Yankee doodle dandy" running the show. Dowse admitted the moment feels "meta" now, but kept his own premiere remarks neutral: "I love Americans and this whole trade war feels like bravado on roids. We are better friends than enemies."
For travellers, TIFF remains one of the best reasons to be in Toronto in early September: red carpets, world premieres and a city that's easy to navigate on foot downtown. Just expect the lake's name to come up — and don't be surprised if the locals correct you.