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CANADA Newsline OCTOBER 10, 2025 | The Indian Eye 35

The Cost of Heaven explores Greed,

Ambition and Desperation

BY MANSI M. near the end, mirroring Nacer’s in-
ternal unraveling.
Toronto
Denis crafts the film as a psycho-
athieu Denis’ The Cost of logical tug-of-war, testing how far
Heaven is a gripping explo- Nacer is willing to go to escape his
Mration of identity, ambition, perceived mediocrity. The director’s
and the quiet desperation that sim- intention is clear: he wants the audi-
mers beneath the surface of an ordi- ence to empathize with Nacer, even
nary life. as his actions become harder to justi-
At the heart of the film is Nacer fy. In Denis’ own words:
Belkacem (played by Samir Guesmi), “This film spoke of all the com-
a seemingly average man with a mod- plexities of identity – who are you,
est job, a loving wife, and three chil- where are you from, how do you deal
dren enrolled in private school. But with others.”
Nacer yearns for more—especially fi- es among the wealthy elite, begins to dissatisfaction morph into a series of The result is a haunting morality
nancial success and social status. His erode his sense of self-worth. reckless decisions, each one pulling tale that challenges viewers to con-
frustration over being passed up for As the story unfolds, Nacer’s him deeper into a moral and finan- front their own relationship with am-
promotion since 2019, coupled with choices spiral into increasingly dire cial abyss. The film’s tension builds bition, status, and self-deception.
the pressure to maintain appearanc- consequences. What begins as a quiet steadily, though the pacing slows Photo: Courtesy - TIFF

TIFF ANNOUNCES THE 2025 FILM AWARDS

BY ROHAN RAI HONOURABLE MENTION:
• A Soft Touch, dir. Heather Young
TORONTO
• Short Cuts Award for Best Animat-
he Toronto International Film ed Short Film:
festival (TIFF) that took place • To the Woods, dir. Agnès Patron |
Tfrom September 4-14 this year France
announced the award winning films in
an awards ceremony held in Toronto. FIPRESCI PRIZE : Forastera, dir. Lucía
TIFF announced 12 awards, includ- Aleñar Iglesias | Spain/Italy/Sweden
ing the Platform Award, TIFF’s only NETPAC AWARD : In Search of The
juried competition, and the coveted Sky (Vimukt), dir. Jitank Singh Gur-
People’s Choice Awards presented by jar | India
Rogers. This year’s awards include two BEST CANADIAN DISCOVERY AWARD
new additions: the International Peo-
ple’s Choice Award and the Short Cuts • Blue Heron, dir. Sophy Romvari |
Award for Best Animated Short Film. Canada
As TIFF’s 50th edition comes to A still from Hamnet – courtesy TIFF
a close, the Festival announced that it HONOURABLE MENTION:
welcomed over 700,000 guests, nearly dir. Neeraj Ghaywan • Second runner-up: The Furi- • 100 Sunset, dir. Kunsang Kyirong |
2,000 accredited media, 6,000 Indus- People’s Choice Documenta- ous, dir. Kenji Tanigaki Canada
try delegates, 1,200 screenings, and ry Award presented by Rogers: The
a stellar lineup of talent who graced SHORT CUTS AWARD FOR BEST INTERNA- BEST CANADIAN FEATURE FILM AWARD
110 red carpets. Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue, TIONAL SHORT FILM: • Uiksaringitara (Wrong Husband), dir.
dir. Barry Avrich
People’s Choice Award presented Zacharias Kunuk | Canada
by Rogers: Hamnet, dir. Chloé Zhao • First runner-up: EPiC: Elvis Presley • Talk Me, dir. Joecar Hanna | Spain/
• First runner-up: Franken- in Concert, dir. Baz Luhrmann USA HONOURABLE MENTION:
stein, dir. Guillermo del Toro • Second runner-up: You Had to Be HONOURABLE MENTION: There Are No Words, dir. Min
• Second runner-up: Wake Up There: How the Toronto Godspell Ig- • Agapito, dirs. Arvin Belarmino & Sook Lee | Canada
Dead Man: A Knives Out Mys- nited the Comedy Revolution..., dir. Kyla Danelle Romero | Philippines
tery, dir. Rian Johnson Nick Davis PLATFORM AWARD
International People’s Choice People’s Choice Midnight SHORT CUTS AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN To The Victory!, dir. Valentyn
Award presented by Rogers: No Other Madness Award presented by Rog- SHORT FILM: Vasyanovych | Ukraine/Lithuania
Choice, dir. Park Chan-wook ers: Nirvanna the Band the Show the
• First runner-up: Sentimental Value, Movie, dir. Matt Johnson • The Girl Who Cried Pearls, dirs. HONOURABLE MENTION:
dir. Joachim Trier • First runner-up: Obsession, dir. Chris Lavis & Maciek Szczerbows- Hen, dir. György Pálfi | Germa-
• Second runner-up: Homebound, Curry Barker ki | Canada ny/Greece/Hungary

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