Our pal Lou Lumenick of the New York Post is also at the Toronto Film Festival. He is reporting that "Che," which played to mixed reviews in Cannes and screens here next week, has been picked up for distribution stateside by Magnolia Pictures and could well run in at least New York and L.A. in December, thus qualifying for this year's Oscar race. This biopic of Che Guevara reunites director Steven Soderbergh and star Benicio Del Toro for the first time since they both won Oscars for "Traffic" in 2001.

When the four hour plus film unspooled at Cannes in May, Oscarologist Pete Hammond said, "Soderbergh's epic is deliberate and low key. Del Toro completely inhabits the role as you might expect. He was born to play Che." For Pete, "The first part, 'The Argentine,' is more expository. The second part, 'Guerrilla,' seemed to actually play better from where I was sitting. Early reviews are all over the map." Indeed, they ranged from a rave or two (Glenn Kenny, IndieWire) to widespread pans (Todd McCarthy, Variety, et al).

Steven Soderbergh is said to have reworked the film somewhat since then. The whole picture — all 262 minutes of it — screens Monday morning for journos while the public can pick whether to see parts one and two separately on Tuesday or together on Friday. And, as per Lou, "the NYFF will be screening 'Che' at the 1100-seat Ziegfeld and don't be surprised if that's where this epic has a reserved-seat, Academy-qualification running beginning on Dec. 12." That initial Gotham showing will include a 30-minute intermission. For more details – CLICK HERE

(Magnolia Pictures)