THE FANTASIA FILM FESTIVAL Announces Scary Final Wave Of Films!
Josh Korngut
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THE FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL is one of the most exciting genre-focused film festivals our planet has to offer. Now they’ve released their expectedly insane final wave of programming — and OH BOY.
The fest kicks off on August 5th with the World Premiere of Quebec zombie feature Brain Freeze— following the August 4th special event screening of James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad in celebration of the festival— and ends on August 25th with newly announced closing film, Takashi Miike’s hotly-anticipated The Great Yokai War – Guardians, a sequel to The Great Yokai War, which opened Fantasia in 2006.
Here are some select horror titles from Fantasia’s recently announced Final Wave. For their full list of programming, make sure to keep an eye on their official website.
What Josiah Saw — FANTASIA WORLD PREMIERE
In director Vincent Grashaw’s Southern Gothic nightmare, an estranged family grapples with the sins of the past… yanking the skeletons right out of their closet, kicking and screaming all the way! The superlative cast includes Robert Patrick, Nick Stahl, Kelli Garner, Tony Hale, Scott Haze and Jake Weber. It’s this year’s The Dark and the Wicked.
The Night House — CANADIAN PREMIERE
A distraught widow ( Rebecca Hall) tries to solve the mystery of her husband’s suicide. On top of it, she’s dealing with the paranormal disturbances at her lakeside home. Directed by David Bruckner (The Ritual, The Signal). Co-starring Sarah Goldberg, Vondie Curtis Hall, Evan Jonigkeit, and Stacy Martin.
The Sadness — NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
In an alternate version of Taiwan, a rapidly spreading pandemic suddenly mutates into a rabies-like affliction. The infected find themselves unable to control their id. It’s a nightmare vision steeped in unspeakably upsetting moments of violence! Rob Jabbaz’s new film plays like a return to the no-holds-barred shock sensibilities of ’90s Hong Kong Category III films.
Don’t Say Its Name — FANTASIA WORLD PREMIERE
An environmental activist is called back to the world of the living after a suspicious accident takes her life. And uh oh — an ancient spirit is reborn outside a small northern town. With a wealth of Indigenous talent both in front of and behind the camera, Don’t Say Its Name, the eerie feature debut from director/co-writer Rueben Martell. We’re hearing this one is a must-watch!
The Deep House — NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
Two daredevil Youtubers with a passion for abandoned urban edifices film themselves as they take a deep dive into the bottom of a lake where there lies a mysterious house with a sinister past. Award-winning French genre maestros Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury (Inside, Livide) display numerous filmic skills with this intelligent found footage style feature. The Deep House takes us down and further down, from mere unfamiliar discomfort to absolute and unfathomable terror.
On the 3rd Day — INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE
The latest from Argentinean director Daniel de la Vega and production house Del Toro Films (South America’s answer to Hammer Studios), this film follows an anguished mother (Mariana Anghileri) trying to find her missing son and the missing memory of what happened on the night of a terrible car accident.
Frank & Zed — QUEBEC PREMIERE
One of the year’s goriest films, promises just that. This bloodthirsty, bone-crunching, and strangely heartwarming movie is about odd-couple monster-duo Frank and Zed. A Frankenstein-type monster and his brain-eating companion, attempt to survive a medieval curse that has befallen a small village. And did we mention they’re all puppets? It’s an unmissable true DIY passion project, conceived and made over 6 years! Director Jesse Blanchard seizes an opportunity born from limitation to create an irresistible crowd-pleaser that embodies the resilience of thriving underground cinema. The above image is snagged from this wild horror show!
Alien On Stage — QUEBEC PREMIERE
A high-spirited group of British bus drivers set their minds to launching a homemade stage play adaptation of Ridley Scott’s Alien in Lucy Harvey and Danielle Kummer’s debut documentary. With a Christopher Guest-Esque charisma that particularly recalls his community theatre classic Waiting For Guffman, the film follows the ups and downs of the delightfully DIY production, with its second-hand costumes and cardboard sets, and the charming crew determined to make it succeed.
Fantasia is also proud to be screening over 200 shorts in its 2021 line-up.
The festival passport is already on sale online and individual tickets, for both virtual and theatrical screenings, will go on sale Friday, July 23rd at 1 PM EDT.
The 25th edition of the Fantasia International Film Festival will be presented by Videotron in collaboration with Desjardins and will be made possible thanks to the financial assistance of the Government of Quebec, SODEC, Telefilm Canada, the City of Montreal, the Conseil des arts of Montreal and Tourisme Montréal.
For more information, visit them on the web at www.fantasiafestival.com
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