TIFF Opens on Lake Ontario Shores With Defiance Amid U.S.-Canada Trade Tensions

The 51st Toronto International Film Festival has unfolded against a backdrop of mounting tensions between the United States and Canada, though the atmosphere on the ground in Toronto has remained largely convivial.

As North America's largest film event, TIFF draws cinema from around the world, but its biggest influx of festivalgoers and industry professionals comes from south of the border. This year, the festival is taking place just weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump, amid an escalating trade war, signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario as "Lake America."

From opening night, the festival has responded to the contentious turn in U.S.-Canada relations with a blend of disappointment, sarcasm and defiance. Introducing the disability rights drama "Being Heumann," TIFF chief executive Cameron Bailey invited the audience to say the lake's original name with him. Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow also took a jab, noting that the film chronicles the relentless push by disability rights protesters to secure accessibility laws and equal rights. "It shows us that when people come together and stay tenacious, they can move mountains — even against the might of the U.S. government," Chow said.

In his second term, Trump has frequently sparred with the Canadian government while seeking new trade terms. In August, he said Canada had been "ripping us off for a long time." Last month, the U.S. announced 50% tariffs on $20 billion worth of Canadian goods. Canada responded with retaliatory tariffs on $20 billion worth of American goods, including steel, dairy products, appliances and farm equipment. On Sunday, Trump called Canada the "worst country to deal with."

Following the executive order, companies including Google and Apple changed their maps for U.S. users to read "Lake America." Some news organizations have said they will continue using the name Lake Ontario.

On TIFF stages, many have taken a side. Director Peter Farrelly, introducing his Sylvester Stallone drama "I Play Rocky," said he could not express how happy he was to be back on the shores of Lake Ontario.

Some films have found themselves unexpectedly speaking to the moment. Canadian writer-director Michael Dowse's "The Stunt Driver," starring Jay Baruchel as 1970s Canadian stuntman Ken Carter, is largely set along the waterways separating Canada and the U.S. The film, which made its world premiere at TIFF, chronicles Carter's long-held aspiration to jump a rocket-powered Lincoln Continental over the St. Lawrence River, taking off in Morrisburg, Ontario, and landing on the New York side. It is a comic and affectionate portrait of a quixotic if mathematically dubious dream.

The movie drew some of its biggest cheers for moments that took on a slight edge given current tensions. In one scene, Baruchel as Carter declares Canadians are "God's chosen people." Dowse said Carter was proud of his birthplace, branded himself "The Mad Canadian" and had a penchant for maple leaf T-shirts. "I hope people get behind the film not only as a great story but also to support homegrown films about a singular fascinating Canadian," he said.

In the film, Carter resents the more successful Evel Knievel, deriding him for performing while looking like, he says, "a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader." As played by Ben Foster, Knievel appears in the film, visiting Carter as he plans the jump. Their interaction leads to a nationalistic fight. "The last thing we need," Carter tells him, "is a Yankee doodle dandy telling us how to do our jobs."

At TIFF, the audience roared. Dowse grants it is a moment that now feels "meta." While he acknowledged considering making a Lake Ontario remark at the premiere, he ultimately chose not to. "I love Americans and this whole trade war feels like bravado on roids," Dowse said. "I hope they figure out a deal because we are better friends than enemies."