Fantasia is always one of my favorite fests to cover, full to bursting as it is with genre fare from all over the globe. Though there are usually a few bigger ticket titles, it’s a smorgasbord of indie and international pictures I’ve never heard of and that you’ll be hard pressed to see elsewhere. Basically, it’s one of those fests where I pour through the list and just wind up checking out anything that looks cool or interesting or, in many cases, straight-up bonkers.
I won’t actually be there in person, sadly, but I am planning a full remote viewing slate. With that in mind, here’s what caught my eye on my first read-through of the catalog. Sound off below if there’s anything you’re particularly interested in checking out this year at Fantasia.
Brave Citizen
A teacher, who just so happens to be a former boxer, decides she’s seen enough and dons a mask in order to dispense some anti-bullying violence of her own.
The Roundup: Punishment
Ma Dong-seok just trucking dudes in a pure cinematic pleasure. And there are few places where that is on a clear display as in The Roundup movies. So you bet your ass when a new one drops, we’re already in line.
Wake Up
RKSS (the filmmaking collective behind Turbo Kid) returns with a tale of a cadre of masked Gen Z activists facing off against a violent security guard.
Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In
A throw-back Hong Kong Triad picture full of operatic criminal strife and brutal martial arts action. Yeah, that’s the good stuff.
Azrael
I’m a sucker for post-apocalyptic survival horror. And cults. And Samara Weaving (Ready or Not). And writer Simon Barrett (The Guest). And director E.L. Katz (Cheap Thrills).
Carnage for Christmas
At 19 Alice Maio Mackay already has a hell of a resume with T Blockers, So Vam, Bad Girl Boogey, and more. So when the Australian director shows up at the fest with a bloody Christmas movie, you better believe it’s a must-see.
Hell Hole
Would it even be a Fantasia without an Adams family movie? The literal family—mom, dad, daughter—routinely deliver off-kilter, inventive, DIY horror where they do pretty much everything. See their Hellbender and The Deeper You Dig for proof. I do not expect to be disappointed with this story of a sleeping monster awoken by fracking on a rampage.
Hamjinabi
All I know about this South Korean horror film is that it involves a ritual, a wedding ritual apparently, where someone wears a mask made out of a dried squid. I’ve watched movies for much, much less.
Oddity
I missed Damian McCarthy’s latest horror flick at SIFF earlier this year but have heard nothing but glowing praise from all corners. Folks I trust on these matters call it one of the scariest, most unsettling movies in recent memory.
The Soul Eater
A rural mystery, unexplained disappearances, grisly murders, and maybe a mythical creature thrown in for good measure. All from the creators of New French Extremity standout Inside. Color me intrigued.
100 Yards
Elaborate fight choreography, romantic rivalry, and Xu Haofeng (The Grandmaster, The Hidden Sword, The Final Master) at the helm all adds up to something I’m damn excited to see.
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