[Fantasia 2019] The Best Bets and Possible Threats of Fantasia 2019!

Are you in or near Montreal? Then you likely already know, as a genre fan, that your favorite month of the year is nearing. July means THE FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL is back. This year’s festivities runs from July 11th thru August 1st with the main hub once again at Concordia Hall Cinema! Once again the programmers have fully loaded up the most diverse and fascinating line up of over 130 films from across the globe — from world premieres to retro restorations — that ensures there’s a little something for every itch
you need to scratch.

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One of these years, I’m gonna get up there and experience part of it first hand, but I (and Andy Triefenbach) will again be covering this year’s slate remotely — as many movies as I can muster in a month, from the generous folks up North. Here’s a list I’ve compiled with what I’m almost certain to be unmissable, along with a few I’ve never heard of that might just be fest winners.

BEST BETS

10. Sadako (dir Hideo Nakata)

20 years after Fantasia premiered the first two Ringu films in North America, the director has brought the black hair and pasty skin back for a brand new J-horror entry to revive the subsect of the horror genre back to life. With Arrow’s recent U.K. release of the original film series bringing some major attention back, it’s only fitting that we get a brand new entry in that series with the man who started it all back at the helm! Gore Verbinski’s US remake is solid, but nothing holds a candle to the first time I watched Sadako crawl out of that TV, and I can’t wait for the chance to get those chills all over again all these years later. Fingers crossed!

9. A Good Woman Is Hard to Find (dir Abner Pastoll)

Sarah Bolger made a big impact on me as one of the two phenomenal children in Jim Sheridan’s In America, and later would chill me to the bone in Emile. Now she stars in this twisty tale of revenge as a recent widow both compelled to protect her children and find the truth behind her husband’s murder…at any cost. She’s said to deliver another level of stellar performance here, and I for one can’t wait to witness it. She’s a star in the making, and this looks like another step towards making it.

8. Dreadout (dir Kimo Stamboel)

After a double dose of Timo Tjahjanto last year, the other half of the Mo Brothers directing team (Killers, Headshot) makes his solo debut with this video game adaptation. I’m unfamiliar with the game, but it appears to be a survival horror involving catching ghosts with a camera. The film has the novel concept of kids broadcasting their trip to a haunted house. Kidding aside, this looks full of visual tricks and striking style to add up for a worthy debut.

7. Kingdom (dir Shinsuke Sato)

After seeing Sato’s phenomenal 2015 zom-com I Am a Hero, I’ve been anxious to check out the rest of his filmography. Where better to start than with this badass looking, Korean period epic? Love how this is shot, and the battles look spectacular. Not to be confused with the current Korean Netflix series…or the 2014 Audience Network series…or the 2007 Peter Berg film…or the 2007 BBC comedy series…was there no better title??? Whatever, I’m in.

6. Vivarium (dir Lorcan Finnegan)

Much-buzzed about at Cannes, this North American debut is a twisted tale of a young couple (Imogen Poots and Jesse Eisenberg) who move to a new neighborhood that is much easier to move into than it is to move out. The paranoid-thriller/horror in suburbia trope can usually get me pretty excited, and with a terrific pair of actors leading the way (who are also co-starring in The Art of Self Defense at Fantasia 2019), my interest is at its peak. Bring on the tension!

5. Freaks (dir Zach Lipovsky and Adam B. Stein)

Emile Hirsh stars in this paranoia-or-is-it story of a young girl and her extremely protective father who won’t let her leave the house, who manages to escape due to the charming tune of an Ice Cream Truck…and then discovers that the outside world isn’t exactly a safe place. The less known the better going into this one, which made its first splash at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival.

4. Swallow (dir Carlo Mirabella-Davis)

Haley Bennett is on the verge of breaking big any minute now, delivering great performances in overlooked or mediocre films. From the word of those who caught this one at Tribeca this year, she has finally found the one that can do it. Bennett stars as a newly pregnant housewife with a compulsion for swallowing household objects — a concept both fascinating and horrifying, like an episode of Intervention.

3. The Odd Family: Zombie on Sale (dir Lee Min-jae)

I know, I know…another Korean zombie movie, zombie comedy, no thank you. But just watch the trailer, you’ll want to see this one too. A dazzling mix of beautiful visuals, strong violence, and family drama looks and sounds excellent to me, and the word out there is that it’s exactly that.

2. Ready Or Not (dir Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett)

It’s not a secret that I absolutely adore Samara Weaving, the Australian beauty who stole my heart in 2018 with great performances all over the place — watch The Babysitter on Netflix for her, if nothing else. The trailer for this horror-comedy landed in my YouTube feed around a week ago and blew my socks off. Somewhere between You’re Next and My Big Fat Greek Wedding is about where this one lands, in a story where a newlywed Weaving is welcomed by her new in-laws with a wedding night from hell: a game of hide and seek…where the sought is marked for sacrificial death. Looks like a bloody great time.

1. Little Monsters (dir Abe Forsyth)

There are some movies that you hear slaying a crowd at another major festival, and then Lupita Nyong’o goes and gives a stunning duel performance in Us and I suddenly can’t wait to see her in another horror movie. She stars as a teacher on a field trip with grade schoolers who has to defend them against a horde of zombies…while trying to keep them under the guise that this is all part of a planned entertainment. Also, Josh Gad as an awful children’s entertainer. I’m all in on this one.

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POSSBILE THREATS

Now for those who show promise and just might be wicked hits.

5. Stare (dir Hirotaka Adachi)

J-Horror comeback continues! In addition to the return of Sadako, we’re being introduced to a new creepy ghost girl to assist in providing a new generation of viewers the fear we felt a few decades ago: Shirai-san. Hope she makes a spooky noise!

4. Black Magic for White Boys (dir Onur Tukel)

A failing magician decides to channel some actual magic in order to reinvigorate his career. Sure nothing can possibly go wrong there! I’ve enjoyed Tukel’s previous films Catfight and Summer of Blood a fair amount. Offbeat is definitely the word for his horror tinged comedy styling, matched again by Felt and Toad Road director Jason Banker handling cinematography.

3. Bliss (dir Joe Begos)

I’ve been slightly torn on both of Begos’ previous features, Almost Human and The Mind’s Eye…but I just can’t help but anticipate whatever he’s got next. He’s bold, he works efficently on a micro budget, and he’s inspired by things we love. Gorehounds, this looks like it’s probably the pinnacle of the year.

2. Aquaslash (dir Renaud Gauthier)

A killer waterslide. Yep.

1. Harpoon (dir Rob Grant)

Best trailer of the year so far, maybe? The immediate douche-chill of Donkey Punch hit me, but this looks outlandish, bloody, and aggressive. Plus it’s got accolades (real and imagined) up the wazoo.

Others to look out for: The Lodge, Homewrecker, Bruce McDonald’s Dreamland, Come to Daddy, The Wretched, Master Z: The Ip Man Legacy, Shadow, It Comes., Tone-Deaf, Jessica Forever, Killerman, Darlin’, Sator, The Prey, The Wrath.

So much to see, and almost a whole month to do it! Check back frequently for reviews, and if you’re heading to the fest reach out to let us know what you’re seeing!