8 Things You Need To Know For September 15

Happy "Friday Jr." — Andrew from Narcity here! ☕

Off The Top: A 25-year-old was charged with two counts of assault with a weapon after a parking lot brawl in Brampton, Ontario, where one participant brandished a distinctly medieval device. The fallout proves that it is in fact the penal system that is mightier than the sword.

In Case You Missed It

1. Monday Is A Federal Holiday But Not All Provinces Get The Day Off

Despite Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announcing that federal workers will have Monday off to mourn the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, not every province has followed suit. Ontario will observe a "Day of Mourning" — but no holiday, meaning provincial services like schools will continue to operate as normal. On the other end of the spectrum, B.C. Premier John Horgan announced that public schools and Crown corporations would be closed in the province on Monday. Helena Hanson details what we know about each province and territory's plan so far.

2. The Feds Announced New Benefits Aimed At Low-Income Canadians

Speaking from the Liberal caucus retreat in New Brunswick earlier this week, PM Trudeau unveiled a number of new measures meant to help low-income Canadians stay afloat amid current inflationary pressures. For one, the GST rebates that already go out on a quarterly basis will rise, putting more money in the pockets of qualifying Canadians as early as October 5. The government will also increase the Canada Housing Benefit by $500, a support that will impact about 1.8 million renters in the country, Tristan Wheeler reports.

3. Canada's First-Ever Michelin Stars Have Officially Been Awarded

Canada's fine dining establishments are finally on the map — in the eyes of one particularly prestigious tire manufacturer, at least. The famed Michelin Guide revealed the restaurants that have made its inaugural Toronto edition. After a rigorous and secretive inspection process, 13 restaurants earned coveted Michelin Stars — including Canada's first and only two-Michelin Star operation. Another 17 restaurants received the Bib Gourmand designation, in recognition of offering great food at a fair price. Here's Madeline Forsyth with the full list.

• Go Deeper: Toronto's top restaurant, according to Michelin? That'd be Avenue Road's Sushi Masaki Saito, which offers an omakase dining experience where the chef guides the patron through a gauntlet of high-quality courses.
• In His Words: "This is going to help us on that path to being the city that I know we are, which I believe is the greatest city in the greatest country in the world," Mayor John Tory said at Tuesday's unveiling.

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What You Need To Know About TIFF So Far

We're going to switch things up this morning with an all-TIFF section.

😭 THE FRASER FILES
After fading from the spotlight since his late-90s/early-00s heyday as leading man, Toronto-raised Brendan Fraser is back in a big way as an early Oscar contender for his role as a 600-pound man in Darren Aronofsky's The Whale. Here's his tearful response to receiving the TIFF Tribute Award for Performance.

🎥 ROGEN'S HEROES
Narcity caught up with Seth Rogen and Michelle Williams on the red carpet for the premiere of Steven Spielberg's semi-autobiographical Best Picture contender The Fabelmans and dished on what it was like working with the iconic director.

↕️ ASCENDING ANNA
No, it wasn't a scene from a forthcoming spy caper; on her way to the premiere of her film Alice, Darling, Anna Kendrick wound up stuck in an elevator with a bunch of festival-goers. She quipped that she was thankful to have not worn a short skirt while literally escaping through a hatch in the roof.

😂 FRIENDLY FEUD
The light-hearted vendetta between Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds continued this week after the former longtime X-Men series star made a crack at the Deadpool lead's expense while on the red carpet to promote his new film, The Son.

❄️ FIRST SNOW
Game of Thrones alum Kit Harrington was in town for the premiere of Baby Ruby and said that being in Toronto was "like coming home" — which makes sense when you consider he spent the better part of the last decade freezing his butt off while filming in Iceland.

👑 THE KING AND I
Spoiler alert: our Mira Nabulsi loved The Woman King, the forthcoming historical epic starring Viola Davis as the leader of an all-female warrior unit in Western Africa in the 1820s. Here's why she thinks you need to check out this film.

🍝 STARGRAZING
Forget Michelin stars; Madeline Forysth has the inside scoop on the nine Toronto restaurants where you're actually likely to run into a celeb or two during film festival season.

Thanks for reading Narcity's Canada Morning Brief — the newsletter eagerly awaiting the affirmation of the Michelin Man.

What upcoming movie release are you most excited to see? Let me know at andrew.potter@narcity.com or harass me on Twitter if you'd prefer at @andrewjoepotter.

Have a great day. My colleague Alshaar will see you back here tomorrow to round out the week!