No matter where you are, if the heat is radiating off the pavement then it must be time for the Fantasia International Film Festival.
From July 16th through August 3rd; genre fans from all across the globe to take in the very best that the world has to offer on the welcoming streets of Montreal. In between sightseeing, bagel and smoked meat runs among other things the or so films will be sucking audience into worlds ranging from Japanese anime, Canadian indie horror, blockbusters and everything else in between.
While our team couldn’t be there in person this year, our virtual warriors are highlighting a few movies that they hope they’ll be able to get to see.
I Fell In Love with a Grade Z Director in Brooklyn – DIR Kenichi Ugana
After charming the sometimes hard to please Midnight Madness audience at the Toronto International Film Festival with last year’s The Gesuidouz, director Kenichi Ugana brings his latest film to Fantasia this year for its world premiere. While The Gesuidouz marked a more eccentric side of his filmmaking personality, I Fell In Love with a Grade Z Director in Brooklyn distinctly takes him back his more blood-soaked roots. It’s the tale of a former Japanese screen star Shina that’s been abandoned in New York, not knowing any English and without any of her possessions or money. Shina meets Jack, an overly enthusiastic indie film director and things spiral from there. Both the film’s premise and the promised buckets of blood make this an anticipated film but add in Ugana behind the camera and it’s pretty much a must see. –Kirk Haviland
Lucid – DIR. Deanna Milligan, Ramsey Ferndall
Deanna Milligan’s debut feature which is based off of the short of the same name looks to build upon the artistic flourish demonstrated in said short. Promising 90s grunge aesthetics, Lucid tells the story of struggling artist Mia Sunshine Jones. Struck with a case of artist block and outcast by her peers due to her – occasionally morbid – artistic sensibilities, Mia needs to build a piece capable of demonstrating “heart” in the vague and frustrating parlance of her stodgy art professor. Seeking inspiration, Mia consumes a special candy elixir known as lucid. Unfortunately, she takes too much, resulting in a surreal, psychotic, nightmare fueled journey to self-expression.
Utilizing a DIY punk aesthetic that features a mix of 16 and 35mm film stock – as well as starting Canada’s Drag Race star Vivian Vanderpuss – Lucid promises to be what the filmmakers are terming a “coming of monster” story, and the latest great coming of age film at Fantasia Film Festival following other, smaller indie bildungsromans such as Booger and Little Sister. – Thomas Wishloff
Angel’s Egg – DIR. Mamoru Oshii
Under an ominous mechanical sun, among decaying relics of monumental technology, two solitary, white-haired youths each navigate a desolate, depopulated landscape. The teenage boy is a cynical warrior, the little girl, the guardian of a large egg. Within it, she believes, is an angel waiting to be born. Their paths cross and, despite their opposing perspectives, the pair establish a bond—but as broken souls in a broken world, can they keep this mysterious egg intact?
Celebrating it’s 40th Anniversary coming off of a debut at this past years edition of Cannes, this film is the beginning of a movement in Japanese anime that inspired a generation of filmmakers. Now in a glorious 4K restoration this movie that has been notoriously hard to see is now available to the masses. And we’re more than a little bummed that we can’t be there this year. – Dave Voigt
Foreigner – DIR. Ava Maria Safai
Everyone wants to fit in – but what happens if fitting in means losing who you are? Ava Maria Safai’s FOREIGNER follows Yasamin, or Yasi, a teen from Iran trying to find her place in a new Canadian world. As she deals with the pressure to change, Yasi is stuck between two lives: one that follows her family and faith, and another that faces peer pressure and hidden racism. Mixing coming-of-age with horror, FOREIGNER shows how hard it can be to build an identity in a world that doesn’t always welcome you. At In The Seats, we’re ready to be moved – and maybe even a little haunted – by this powerful story. – Caitie Talty
Holy Night: Demon Hunters – DIR Lim Dae hee
I’ll preface this entry by stating that I know little of the director Lim Dae-hee’s background. He only has this film listed, his directorial debut, as his only credit on IMDB and a cursory look online resolved nothing else. No, there’s only one damn reason why Holy Night: Demon Hunters is on this list, and that’s Don F’n Lee. Fresh off his Outlaws/The Roundup series, all 4 films of which played previous editions of Fantasia to my knowledge, Don not only stars in this film, but he’s also credited as a writer. It also marks Don’s first film back in the horror genre since the film that made him a star, 2016’s Train to Busan. If that’s not enough to make this a must watch, I’m not sure what would be. For those unfamiliar with Lee, the man oozes an amount of natural charisma and swagger that most actors would kill for. I’m ready to buckle in and enjoy the ride. – KH
Dui Shaw – DIR Nuhash Humayun
Nuhash Humayun’s DUI SHAW marks his second dive into Bangladeshi anthology filmmaking, weaving together four supernatural stories rooted in South Asian folklore. Tackling weighty themes like religious violence and patriarchal oppression, Humayun uses horror and fantasy as lenses to explore the region’s social ills with eerie precision. Early buzz describes the film as a “mini film festival” in itself – a bold, atmospheric blend of the culturally specific and the universally unsettling. At In The Seats, we’re eagerly awaiting the chance to dive into this haunting and timely cinematic tapestry. – CT
The Woman – DIR. Hwang Wook
Following last year’s smash breakout Mashville, Hwang Wook returns to Fantasia looking to defy genre boundaries and continue to tell bold stories. This time working in a completely different key, the former “neo-Western black comedy” director tries his hand at Hitchcock. His latest feature, The Woman, promises a beguiling murder mystery.
The beguilingness extends to the film’s trailer, which – cards on the table here – is probably one of the oddest and arresting trailers I’ve seen this year. Despite whatever summaries have been provided, The Woman feels like a film where anything can happen, a journey into the unknown that only a festival can provide. You’re always looking for the ability to say that you got to see something before anyone else at a film festival. This might very well be the film. –TW
Every Heavy Thing – DIR Mickey Reece
Festival darling Mickey Reece returns by giving us trademark dark humour with the backdrop of young women disappearing without a trace in this world premiere.
If Reece’s track record is worth anything, this film will be dripping with character as he ramps up it to 11 playing into a myriad of films that could end of as cult classics or as generally grounded flops, thankfully we got more then enough confidence in this team as we heard into the new year. You don’t often get a slam dunk at a festival like this but this is pretty much it. – DV
Blazing Fists-DIR Takashi Miike
Filmmaking auteur Takashi Miike returns to Fantasia this year with not one, but two films this year, though they could not be any different. While one sees the return to a familiar setting, most genre fans with be more excited for Blazing Fists. Loosely based on a true story, Blazing Fists follows Ryoma and Ikuto, 2 delinquents who meet in a juvenile facility and frequently get involved with scraps. However after an MMA fighter visits the facility, the duo are inspired to train and enter a fighting tournament labeled ‘Breaking Down’. Using the biography ‘Street Legend’ about fighter Mikuru Asakura as the template and hints of popular manga like Windbreaker, plus Miike behind the camera directing his version of a sports film, how could this not be eagerly anticipated? –KH
Go get your passes and tickets now!
