The Natalie Portman film “Jackie,” which on Monday became the first major deal of this year’s Toronto International Film Festival when it sold to Fox Searchlight, is typical of a particular kind of fall festival film: the awards contender whose biggest hopes in the Oscar race lie in pushing an actor or actress into contention.
The prime example of this in recent years was probably “Still Alice,” the 2014 drama that was acquired by Sony Classics at TIFF and went on to win the Best Actress Oscar for Julianne Moore.
And now, at this year’s TIFF, there’s “Jackie.”