So there I was, staring up and down the street, abject isolation, wondering if I could hack this Fantasia coverage gig alone. Terrifying. More terrifying, perhaps, than anything on the bill this year at Fantasia’s predictably impressive spread for fans of horror, shock, schlock, and cult cinema. I almost thought about testing out that floating-toaster-in-the-bathtub theory, or whether a gallon of gas is as expensive in relation to self-immolations these days. You see, it’s no small task to look down both barrels of Fantasia’s impressive cannon of content alone.
There was also a fetish show that was really short. The picture you see here makes the show seem better than it actually was, but it was not a total loss as there were several hot ladies in knockout fetish clothes strolling around for most of the night.
On the fun side, Jon Knautz’s Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer was mentioned to me by Johnny Butane with a mix of excitement and resentment, as he seemed genuinely annoyed that I’d get a chance to see it before him. Tokyo Gore Police looks like good times, too. And what contemporary genre festival is complete without a film by Uwe Boll? Tunnel Rats doesn’t appear to be based on a video game, and in the synopsis it is stated that “given the right materials and intentions, he (Boll) is a remarkable cinematic craftsman”. Yeah, well we’ll see about that! Tunnel Rats does actually look good though, so I’m fully prepared to eat my words if it delivers. Speaking of potential and delivering on a promise, Argento’s Mother of Tears is playing tomorrow night. Can he wrap up his legendary trilogy in a worthwhile way considering the reverence in which the other installments are held? I will soon find out for myself.
Anyway, that’s just a small taste of the gut-bucket that will be dumped unapologetically over the audiences at Fantasia this year. The Fantasia catalogue as usual is an amazing thing that comes with a full DVD of trailers, so if you get the chance buy it even if you’re not going to make it to the Festival in person. You an also peruse the full array of content online (including the trailers) by going to the Fantasia website.
It looks like things are going to get real messy around here…