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You are standing on a rooftop deck, three stories above the ground. A few stars can still be seen despite the light pollution from below. Horns blare, laugthen and drunken conversation rises up to you in two different languages. Around you on all sides are glowing neon skyscrapers, hotels, and office buildings, except for one. That side is pitch black, a massive hill that drinks all the light save for one small glowing cross atop it. Welcome to Montreal. Welcome to Fantasia 2013.
Our band of adventurers was smaller than in years past: Tony, Juliet, Amanada, and Mark. There were no horror stories of missing passports, no extended searches by border security, or speeding tickets. Just an eventful ride with lots of humor at about the third grade level. We were all staying with a friend of Tony's so our hotel money could be put to more decadent use. We collected our tickets and made it to our first movie on the festival, which would be one of the best ones.
The Machine: A scientist creates an AI that is housed in a robot covered with synthetic flesh. It's brain may hold the secret for curing the scientist's ill daughter, but the Minister he works for wants to use the machine as a weapon. The film has all the atmosphere and vibe of the original Terminator, a fact added by all the synthesizer music using sounds exclusivly from the 80's. It examines the nature of humanity, and the actress really nails the innoncence and wonder of a new life without coming off immature or childish. There's plenty of action in the movie as well, and an interesting sub-plot revolving around bio-enhanced soldiers. The film is low budget, but hides that fact very well. I look forward to owning this movie as soon as it's available. Rating: 5/5 cyborgs
We returned to our guests house for late night poutine, many drinks, and our trip to the roof that I mentioned before. Amanda, Mark, and I explored the area around our apartment (upper Rue St. Laurent) the highlight being an record store stuffed with rooms of old vinyl. The deeper you went, the older and more ecelctic the categories became. The old blues recordings playing over the speakers, the smell of faintly mildewed cardboard, all added to the timeless feel of the place. But, you didn't come here to hear about records. On to the movies!
The Complex: A young girl moves into an apartment complex, where she soon gets drawn into a supernatural experience with a variety of ghosts. The film starts with nice atmosphere and creepiness, but goes downhill quickly. The female lead is supposed to be sympathetic and pitiable, and there's a neat little twist to her story, but her utter spinelessness or ability to cope with her traums quickly grows insufferable. You're not supposed to cheer and applaud when a woman is slapped, but we did, and you will. In the end, it was disappointing but not offensivly bad. Rating: 2/5 spectres
Across the River: Separated from the rest of the world by a flash flood, a biologist sets up camp near an old abaondoned village. He begins seeing odd images on the cameras he's set in the woods to record wildlife. His investigation of the village reveals nothing. Then it starts getting wierd. Then it starts getting terrifying. The movie is extremely atmospheric, the minimalist score working hand in hand with the desolated village and small sounds that rachet the tension up, and up, and up... and then it stretches on, and on, and
on.... and all of a sudden you're irritated and desperately want something to happen. The movie keeps you at at this strained level for a long time, with nothing happening, and it's exhausting. The payoff finally comes, but the movie could have done with about
ten less minutes of dripping rain and billowing bloody tarps. That being said, it's a horror movie without tons of gore and violence, and the main actor conveys a lot of emotion and character with almost no dialogue. Rating: 3/5 buildings
Big Bad Wolves: How far are you willing to go for vengence, and what if the target of your vengence is innocent? These are the questions Big Bad Wolves asks you, and brother you aren't ready for the answers. A stunningly good movie from the directors of Rabies (Fantasia 2011), it follows the journey of two men (one a disgraced policeman, the other a father of a murdered girl) who kidnap the alleged killer and try to force a confession out of him. The movie is gripping and intense, the occasional violence broken by wry humor. The tension rises inexorably, but the pace is faster and better edited than in Across the River. The directors have their own style, and it shines all through the movie. Editing, sound, music, acting, it all comes together in a harrowing, unforgiving conclusion. This belongs right on your movie shelf next to Silence of the Lambs and Seven. Rating: 5/5 abductions
The last film of the night was supposed to be Zombie Hunter, but I passed on the film to catch up with the rest of my part at a club Tonly was DJing at. The Canadians have upped their drinking game by offering double shots of your bar drinks. This may not be new, but it was new to me. I ended the night talking to a loquacious Goth girl and we all stumbled home to sweet, sweet sleep.
Coming Soon: More movies, more munching, more madness!
Our band of adventurers was smaller than in years past: Tony, Juliet, Amanada, and Mark. There were no horror stories of missing passports, no extended searches by border security, or speeding tickets. Just an eventful ride with lots of humor at about the third grade level. We were all staying with a friend of Tony's so our hotel money could be put to more decadent use. We collected our tickets and made it to our first movie on the festival, which would be one of the best ones.
The Machine: A scientist creates an AI that is housed in a robot covered with synthetic flesh. It's brain may hold the secret for curing the scientist's ill daughter, but the Minister he works for wants to use the machine as a weapon. The film has all the atmosphere and vibe of the original Terminator, a fact added by all the synthesizer music using sounds exclusivly from the 80's. It examines the nature of humanity, and the actress really nails the innoncence and wonder of a new life without coming off immature or childish. There's plenty of action in the movie as well, and an interesting sub-plot revolving around bio-enhanced soldiers. The film is low budget, but hides that fact very well. I look forward to owning this movie as soon as it's available. Rating: 5/5 cyborgs
We returned to our guests house for late night poutine, many drinks, and our trip to the roof that I mentioned before. Amanda, Mark, and I explored the area around our apartment (upper Rue St. Laurent) the highlight being an record store stuffed with rooms of old vinyl. The deeper you went, the older and more ecelctic the categories became. The old blues recordings playing over the speakers, the smell of faintly mildewed cardboard, all added to the timeless feel of the place. But, you didn't come here to hear about records. On to the movies!
The Complex: A young girl moves into an apartment complex, where she soon gets drawn into a supernatural experience with a variety of ghosts. The film starts with nice atmosphere and creepiness, but goes downhill quickly. The female lead is supposed to be sympathetic and pitiable, and there's a neat little twist to her story, but her utter spinelessness or ability to cope with her traums quickly grows insufferable. You're not supposed to cheer and applaud when a woman is slapped, but we did, and you will. In the end, it was disappointing but not offensivly bad. Rating: 2/5 spectres
Across the River: Separated from the rest of the world by a flash flood, a biologist sets up camp near an old abaondoned village. He begins seeing odd images on the cameras he's set in the woods to record wildlife. His investigation of the village reveals nothing. Then it starts getting wierd. Then it starts getting terrifying. The movie is extremely atmospheric, the minimalist score working hand in hand with the desolated village and small sounds that rachet the tension up, and up, and up... and then it stretches on, and on, and
on.... and all of a sudden you're irritated and desperately want something to happen. The movie keeps you at at this strained level for a long time, with nothing happening, and it's exhausting. The payoff finally comes, but the movie could have done with about
ten less minutes of dripping rain and billowing bloody tarps. That being said, it's a horror movie without tons of gore and violence, and the main actor conveys a lot of emotion and character with almost no dialogue. Rating: 3/5 buildings
Big Bad Wolves: How far are you willing to go for vengence, and what if the target of your vengence is innocent? These are the questions Big Bad Wolves asks you, and brother you aren't ready for the answers. A stunningly good movie from the directors of Rabies (Fantasia 2011), it follows the journey of two men (one a disgraced policeman, the other a father of a murdered girl) who kidnap the alleged killer and try to force a confession out of him. The movie is gripping and intense, the occasional violence broken by wry humor. The tension rises inexorably, but the pace is faster and better edited than in Across the River. The directors have their own style, and it shines all through the movie. Editing, sound, music, acting, it all comes together in a harrowing, unforgiving conclusion. This belongs right on your movie shelf next to Silence of the Lambs and Seven. Rating: 5/5 abductions
The last film of the night was supposed to be Zombie Hunter, but I passed on the film to catch up with the rest of my part at a club Tonly was DJing at. The Canadians have upped their drinking game by offering double shots of your bar drinks. This may not be new, but it was new to me. I ended the night talking to a loquacious Goth girl and we all stumbled home to sweet, sweet sleep.
Coming Soon: More movies, more munching, more madness!
