Remington’s strip club hosts a somewhat befuddling TIFF party

The notorious men’s strip club Remington’s opened its doors last night to all kinds for a TIFF after-party of sorts. When we heard there was a TIFF party happening at the Yonge Street bar, we didn’t ask questions, we just hauled our butts down there. Big mistake. We managed to sneak in past the pretty lax security guy checking off guest listed names, but unfortunately for us, not the fellow taking money at the door. After paying our entry fee, we received “stripper bucks,” the purpose of which we are still unclear on, but we hope the random girl we gave them to enjoyed them. Yes, women at Remington’s.

We asked everyone wearing a green lanyard we could find (many were otherwise occupied), what’s the deal? What does this have to do with TIFF? “I don’t know” was the resounding response from everyone we spoke to. One partygoer was a bit more clear. “Well, it’s an unofficial after-party. They just round up all us assholes and send us here.” Why Remington’s? “It’s fun, judgment free and, hey, look around!” Yes, a large number of men in the film industry are gay. What better way to celebrate selling your film at TIFF than to take all the money you raised and spend it on the ’rippers?

We asked one partygoer from California, a producer, how Toronto’s bars compare with California. “Much better here,” he said enthusiastically, “Everyone in Toronto is so friendly.” We think that’s probably true at $20 a dance.

As we were leaving, we heard one woman yell loudly “Me and my fags! Gay men and downtown fag hags!” We’re still perplexed by the night.