TIFF 2026 Review: Toy Gun Bandit

A prank escalates into a robbery spree for a free-spirited 15 year-old living in Quebec City but every action has a consequence.  

Social media obsessed Félix is proud of his dyed blue hair and his own interests is hanging out with his teenager friends playing video games, skateboarding, partying and doing pranks that goe from knocking the side mirror of a car out of defiance to stealing money from a gas station register.  He captures the attention of a much older wannabe gangster and a druggie; the trio have their Bonnie and Clyde moment but every joyride eventually loses momentum or comes to a crashing halt as reality has a habit of intervening.

Yet another movie with a youth posting selfies of mundane daily activities, which in this case involves Félix admiring the look of his blue-dyed hair.  The mindlessness of this action is the most worrying part as the number of lost generations grows as likes, followers, and influences matter way more than actually doing something meaningful. Whether someone like Félix can grow out of it remains to be seen but it will take a significant life-altering experience to make that happen.  Such an occasion occurs when an incident happens that goes way beyond what was intended.   A documentary handheld approach is adopted to create the impression that the viewer is an eyewitness to what is going happening.   The acting is serviceable while the story does not do anything to distinguish itself from other coming-of-age delinquent tales.

The 51st Toronto International Film Festival runs September 10-20, 2026, and for more information visit tiff.net.   

Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer who currently resides in Canada; he can be found at LinkedIn.