Atom Egoyan set Chloe here because “Toronto is a prostitute”
For Torontonians, watching Hollywood stars Julianne Moore, Amanda Seyfried and Liam Neeson romp around their city in Chloe will be part—a large part—of the fun. The original screenplay was set in San Francisco, but director Atom Egoyan was keen on filming and setting the movie in Toronto. Chloe, the story of a wife who hires a prostitute to test her husband’s faithfulness, opens on Friday.
“At the level of metaphor, it’s interesting because Toronto is a prostitute. As a city, very often it pretends to be New York or Chicago or San Francisco,” Egoyan told the L.A. Times. “So it’s interesting that since this is a film about that, in fact the city becomes a character.”
Don’t take it personally, Toronto—we still think you’re a classy gal. Shall we leave our ticket money here on the nightstand?
• Chloe creates an odd triangle on and off-screen [Los Angeles Times]
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://torontolife.com/culture/atom-egoyan-set-chloe-here-because-toronto-is-a-prostitute/&title=Atom Egoyan set Chloe here because “Toronto is a prostitute”&picture=https://cdn.torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/AmandaSeyfried3-315x387.jpg&description=[caption id="attachment_21394" align="alignleft" width="315" caption="Amanda Seyfried at the Chloe premiere during TIFF (Image: Karon Liu)"][/caption]
For Torontonians, watching Hollywood stars Julianne Moore, Amanda Seyfried and Liam Neeson romp around their city in Chloe will be part—a large part—of the fun. The original screenplay was set in San Francisco, but director Atom Egoyan was keen on filming and setting the movie in Toronto. Chloe, the story of a wife who hires a prostitute to test her husband's faithfulness, opens on Friday.
"At the level of metaphor, it's interesting because Toronto is a prostitute. As a city, very often it pretends to be New York or Chicago or San Francisco," Egoyan told the L.A. Times. "So it's interesting that since this is a film about that, in fact the city becomes a character."
Don't take it personally, Toronto—we still think you're a classy gal. Shall we leave our ticket money here on the nightstand?
• Chloe creates an odd triangle on and off-screen [Los Angeles Times]){kind=link}
Harsh, but true. How can we be fine with so many films made here and none actually set here? This can’t be a worse city for setting a film than the major American cities if the city regularly fills in for those. I’m proud to live in Toronto and would like to see this great city appear in film more often!
No Doubt! I always wondered why the Toronto Maple Leafs were so damn good at sucking. And now we know the rest of the story! Go Sens Go!
Yes Toronto is a prostitute.
And so are its residents.
And the pimp? The City of Toronto.
Toronto is the best. In Canada, there’s nothing comparable and Canadians just aren’t mature enough yet for it. They never know how to think big, just whine about taxes and discuss American culture and vacation in distant places while ignoring home culture and living in the blandest communities. That’s why we need films like this, to mature as a nation. Quebec and Toronto are the only places to escape the primitiveness today. I’m talking shit architecture, some of most unimaginative urban infrastructure and a film industry which you could easily never notice once in your life unless you look long and hard.
No wonder the biggest talents leave for the U.S. in virtually every field.