The Forger, Still Alice Picked Up at Toronto Film Fest

Julianne Moore in Still Alice

Two more Boston-related successes have emerged from the Toronto International Film Festival this week, as The Forger and Still Alice were both picked up after premiering at the festival.

The Forger stars John Travolta, Christopher Plummer, and Tye Sheridan as three generations of a Boston family. Travolta plays the forger, and the MFA’s “Woman with a Parasol” by Claude Monet is his muse. The film was shot late last year throughout the city and was written by Medford native Richard D’Ovidio.

In preparation for the role, Travolta got a little method, meeting with real-life art forgers and trying to forge a Monet. Also appearing in The Forger is Abigail Spencer, who plays an undercover agent. She reportedly also did her fair share of research, doing a ride-along with Boston police. Little Miss Sunshine getting gritty on the streets of Boston? This we have to see.

Alas, early reviews out of TIFF suggest that the research may not have been very helpful. The Hollywood Reporter’s bottom line, for example, is “The title says it all: Nothing original here.”

Perhaps people just really aren’t in the mood for priceless art to be knocked off and stolen? Regardless, the heist flick was sold to Saban Films.

Meanwhile, Julianne Moore is getting Oscar buzz out of Toronto for her portrayal of Alice Howland, a college professor who falls prey to early-onset Alzheimer’s disease in Still Alice. Based on the bestselling book by neuroscientist, writer, and Harvard alum Lisa Genova, the film adaption moves the setting of the story from the Boston area to New York.

Alec Baldwin plays Alice’s husband, and Twilight starlet Kristen Stewart plays one of Alice’s children, Lydia.

Two good signs in favor of Still Alice:

1. Reviewers are saying Stewart is actually really good in it!
2. Sony Pictures Classics has acquired it for Oscar season.