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Fantasia 2014: Movie reviews!
Aug. 19th, 2014 03:16 pmI've been reviewing films at Fantasia every year that I go, and this will not be the year that I break that habit.
We packed the car with our usual suspects this year: Tony, Amanda, Juliet, Mark, and yours truly. There was no passport drama this year, but there was a savage thunderstorm as we entered New Hampshire. It was a proper deluge! We arrived around 1:30 and decompress on George and Cathernie's roof deck like we did the year before. My friends were ready to party, but I was ready for bed, and did my best to sleep through the revelry. It didn't work so well. The great thing about vacations is that you can sleep in as much as you like. After a tasty Indian lunch and some lounging around we were ready for Thursday's movies.
At the Devil's Door: http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2014/en/films-schedule/63/at-the-devil-s-door This was a great start to the festival. Rich in atmosphere with a dream-like quality to it, the movie starts as a haunted house story and moves into demonic possession. The cast was primarily female, with good narratives for each of the protagonists. This film was like Absentia from a few year's back in its ability to find dread and terror in the mundane and open spaces. There were still a few jump scares to be found, including one that caused every women around me to shriek at the top of their lungs. It was like being surrounded by Nicole's! I rated this film lower initially, but compared to the rest of the pack I'd call it 4/5 stars.
Predestination: http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2014/en/films-schedule/243/predestination I didn't expect much from this film, as I'm not a big fan of time travel and the paradoxes that come with them. I was wrong. Boy, was I wrong. The basic plot is a man who works for a Time Agency is trying to prevent a bomber from killing thousands of people. The story twists and turns from there as we are introduced to am amazing female character. Her story is beautiful to behold and completely draws you in. Most sci-fi films forget about characterization to sell you on their science, but character is integral to this movie. The movies twists and turns and bends your head, but in a good way. By the end I was still trying to hash out the details of what happened, but one thing I knew for sure: This was a Must See film. 5/5 stars! As soon as this is available, I will have a showing for everyone.
Friday we met our other Boston party (Nicole, Forest, and Vanessa) along with several Montreal natives and explored a haunted house. A dozen shipping containers were linked together to create a spooky maze, manned by various "inbred" operators. They were quite inventive: simulating earthquakes, hanging bodies, warped passageways in near total darkness. After that the real horror awaited us at the DHC art gallery. "Come and See" was the collaberation of Jake and Dinos Chapman, who presented a variety of sketches, statues, dioramas, and a short film depicting their ghastly take on consumer culture and art history. The signature pieces were the Hell dioramas, depicting thousands of miniature Nazis, skeletons, and McDonald's characters in tableus that would shock Clive Barker. You can see examples of their work at http://dhc-art.org until Aug 14, or google come and see jake dinos chapman. I take no responsibility for any mental anguish their work causes! Forest and Vanessa and I grabbed tapas for dinner and headed to the movies!
Han Gong-ju: http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2014/en/films-schedule/17/han-gong-ju A brutal and powerful South Korean film about a girl making her way in a new school district, who never looks at the Internet and won't let herself be filmed. Her story unfolds as new friends try to break through her shell. Snips of her like are revealed in flashbacks, and as more of her story comes to light, you have to decide if she is the hero or villain of the story. Suspense and drama are built up beautifully with a gut-punching finale that offers a ray of hope, if you choose to believe it. 4/5 stars.
Closer to God: http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2014/en/films-schedule/105/closer-to-god A scientist has cloned the first human being! Religious groups accuse him of defying God's laws, other praise the possibility of scientific research and medical advances it can bring. The doctor's success is tainted by ghosts of his past, which began to catch up with him. This was the director's first feature, and he pulled it off splendidly. The movie was low on jump scares, building more dread out of what couldn't be seen. The movies presents both sides of the cloning issue, and while it paints the religious in a very unfavorable light it also shows the perils of science as well. 4/5 stars
Coming Up: The Saturday marathon!
We packed the car with our usual suspects this year: Tony, Amanda, Juliet, Mark, and yours truly. There was no passport drama this year, but there was a savage thunderstorm as we entered New Hampshire. It was a proper deluge! We arrived around 1:30 and decompress on George and Cathernie's roof deck like we did the year before. My friends were ready to party, but I was ready for bed, and did my best to sleep through the revelry. It didn't work so well. The great thing about vacations is that you can sleep in as much as you like. After a tasty Indian lunch and some lounging around we were ready for Thursday's movies.
At the Devil's Door: http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2014/en/films-schedule/63/at-the-devil-s-door This was a great start to the festival. Rich in atmosphere with a dream-like quality to it, the movie starts as a haunted house story and moves into demonic possession. The cast was primarily female, with good narratives for each of the protagonists. This film was like Absentia from a few year's back in its ability to find dread and terror in the mundane and open spaces. There were still a few jump scares to be found, including one that caused every women around me to shriek at the top of their lungs. It was like being surrounded by Nicole's! I rated this film lower initially, but compared to the rest of the pack I'd call it 4/5 stars.
Predestination: http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2014/en/films-schedule/243/predestination I didn't expect much from this film, as I'm not a big fan of time travel and the paradoxes that come with them. I was wrong. Boy, was I wrong. The basic plot is a man who works for a Time Agency is trying to prevent a bomber from killing thousands of people. The story twists and turns from there as we are introduced to am amazing female character. Her story is beautiful to behold and completely draws you in. Most sci-fi films forget about characterization to sell you on their science, but character is integral to this movie. The movies twists and turns and bends your head, but in a good way. By the end I was still trying to hash out the details of what happened, but one thing I knew for sure: This was a Must See film. 5/5 stars! As soon as this is available, I will have a showing for everyone.
Friday we met our other Boston party (Nicole, Forest, and Vanessa) along with several Montreal natives and explored a haunted house. A dozen shipping containers were linked together to create a spooky maze, manned by various "inbred" operators. They were quite inventive: simulating earthquakes, hanging bodies, warped passageways in near total darkness. After that the real horror awaited us at the DHC art gallery. "Come and See" was the collaberation of Jake and Dinos Chapman, who presented a variety of sketches, statues, dioramas, and a short film depicting their ghastly take on consumer culture and art history. The signature pieces were the Hell dioramas, depicting thousands of miniature Nazis, skeletons, and McDonald's characters in tableus that would shock Clive Barker. You can see examples of their work at http://dhc-art.org until Aug 14, or google come and see jake dinos chapman. I take no responsibility for any mental anguish their work causes! Forest and Vanessa and I grabbed tapas for dinner and headed to the movies!
Han Gong-ju: http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2014/en/films-schedule/17/han-gong-ju A brutal and powerful South Korean film about a girl making her way in a new school district, who never looks at the Internet and won't let herself be filmed. Her story unfolds as new friends try to break through her shell. Snips of her like are revealed in flashbacks, and as more of her story comes to light, you have to decide if she is the hero or villain of the story. Suspense and drama are built up beautifully with a gut-punching finale that offers a ray of hope, if you choose to believe it. 4/5 stars.
Closer to God: http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2014/en/films-schedule/105/closer-to-god A scientist has cloned the first human being! Religious groups accuse him of defying God's laws, other praise the possibility of scientific research and medical advances it can bring. The doctor's success is tainted by ghosts of his past, which began to catch up with him. This was the director's first feature, and he pulled it off splendidly. The movie was low on jump scares, building more dread out of what couldn't be seen. The movies presents both sides of the cloning issue, and while it paints the religious in a very unfavorable light it also shows the perils of science as well. 4/5 stars
Coming Up: The Saturday marathon!
