The full list of films I've seen is at the end of this post - so if I don't mention something you're curious about be sure to hit me up for more info. I've left out some of the fabulous shorts that screened ahead of features. Hoping to do those justice in the days ahead.
The plan is to over time discuss in depth as many of these as possible. For now I'll start with my personal hits and misses.
Things I especially enjoyed
Listed roughly in some relation to their perceived awesomeness. But I generally suck at ranking things - so don't read too much into the ordering...
- Lee's Adventure - this film was insane. Insanely great. The most creatively stand out thing I probably saw during the festival. Includes well blended aspects of a crazy love story, time travel, anime, Nicholas Cage look-alikes and a guide to world history. It's a mash-up of so many genres I'm likely forgetting several. My big WOW film of the festival.
- History of Future Folk - Guy from outer space comes to destroy the earth. Seduced by music drops it all to live in hipster Brooklyn. Until a second guy follows up on what happened - and then things get real. Sounds possibly ridiculous, but it's sweet and it works. Sci-fi can have many faces History of Future Folk takes a chance and scores big. The music from the band it's based on (Future Folks) is pretty rocking too. If you don't leave randomly yelling out Hondo! I'd be pretty surprised.
- I Declare War - The simple comparison folks are using is Lord of the Flies meets Stand By Me. It's an easy but rather accurate description. The picture follows a group of kids playing war a bit too seriously and is both visually creative and well acted. Definitely worth seeing - and discussed in more depth earlier on this site.
- Flicker - A company is failing. Much of the place seems to be in states ranging from denial to extreme incompetence. One man knows the truth but can't quite get the message out due to a combination of social awkwardness and unbelievably bad luck with his PC. There's a lot of amusing things about the company, not the least their creation of some of the most tone-deaf advertisements in the history of mankind. Meanwhile anti-electricity guerrillas sabotage facilities across the nation injuring workers in the process. Things are looking pretty bleak - and they are. But the events are also pretty hilarious. Black comedy can be hard to get right, especially if you're looking for laugh out loud moments. Flicker delivers laughs repeatedly while having at its core a sweet heart. It's tempting to think about it as similar to something the Coen brothers would do - and as that's a pretty high compliment I'll make the comparison and leave it at that for now. Don't miss this one if the chance presents.
- Room 237 - A documentary focused on a range of theories about he subtext of Kubrick's The Shining. Someone described it to me beforehand as 90% fascinating analysis that knowing Kubrick's complexity seems more than reasonable. Coupled with 10% of stuff that comes across as bat-shit crazy. My mind was a bit blown (in good sense). Reminds me of Rembrandt J'Accuse in all the best ways.
- Young Gun in the Time - A time-travel love story / mystery / martial arts epic centered around a hardworking detective with a penchant for Magnum PI style Hawaiian shirts. Does it fully make sense? No, not exactly. Is it entertaining? yes - very much so. I didn't fully love the director's earlier picture Invasion of Alien Bikini. But Young Gun keeps the quirk and adds a more complete story. Putting this fun romp squarely in my "hits" of the festival bucket.
- Tower Block - A developer is trying to clear everyone out from a high rise outside London. Only a few stragglers in the crime ridden community remain - all on the top floor. One morning a sniper appears intent on erasing any remaining tenants from this mortal coil. An exciting enclosed space thriller results. Didn't expect to dig it but it made me jump more than once.
- Besties - Solid entry into the "you really should just call the police" genre. A freshman has a crush on her popular senior next door neighbor. During a party gone someone ends up dead (he does sort of deserve it). As fodder for a coming of age story that's an unusual premise. But as it turns out a very solid story about the two teenagers emerges. Audience laughed more than filmmaker intended. As did I - welcome to Fantastic Fest. ;-) Liked the dialog, performances and the extent the complex proceedings kept me guessing. Certainly enough so to recommend keeping an eye out for this picture.
- Black Out - Plays effectively with the criminal who was trying to get out but they pulled him back in genre. It's all there - lack of honor amongst thieves, gratuitous violence, missing cocaine and the joy of waking up with a dead body in your bed on the eve of your marriage. Starts well and holds up all the way through. 'nuff said
- Paris By Night - even though there were no vampires (seems like there should be from the title) I got into this portrayal of a night with a vice cop who clearly operates in the gray zones of the profession. Closer to a procedural than action it's the kind of thing that nothing much happens, but a lot transpires.
- Outrage Beyond - If you liked Outrage you'll almost certainly dig the sequel Outrage Beyond. If you didn't because it was so darn confusing you might still enjoy this pared down followup. A tad less violence but with an equally satisfying ending. I believe I may have enjoyed the sequel more than the original.
- Vulgaria - A film producer speaks to a class of students about his career and what it takes to get ahead. When he opens his talk by describing the job of a producer as analogous to that of pubic hair it becomes clear this one is going to be different. His tales capture the imagination of the class and the audience. Certainly includes the most logical integration of people having sex with a mule into a film plot I've ever seen. Overall it's amusing, fun, and slightly sleezy. As the person who introduced it said, clearly the Hong Kong/China market should make less sweeping historical epics and more films with boobs. Heard the film has been very successful in its native language market. Oral sex + pop-rocks references are a financial sure thing it would appear.
- Holy Motors - A difficult to explain film, largely in that it's difficult to understand. A man is chauffeured around Paris on a series of assignments. They range from panhandling, to working in a motion capture studio, to playing the accordion in a rousing musical number to running amok in the streets eating flowers. You'll spend the whole film trying to figure out what's going on. I kind fellow I met at the festival gave me a pretty convincing explanation as to the picture's artistic point. Though I still maintain it could be a series of totally unconnected bits where the long con is in fooling your brain into believing there must be a common narrative thread. Either way it's gorgeous to watch, and extremely engaging.
- Taped - Couple in Argentina on vacation videotape a cop killing a suspect in cold blood. Things go badly after that. Tension is inherent from the premise and the folks who made it don't get in the way of keeping that tension up. The worst tourism advertisement I can picture for Argentina - but a serious white knuckle ride.
- Dom - A Russian Family - What seems like a traditional, if well made Russian family drama eventually turns into exactly that. Just with a 2nd act that features a dramatic amount of gunplay.
- Unit 7 - solid cops gone too far type of thing. Solid cops on the edge film, it's no Elite Squad but certainly solid.
Fantastic Fest is the hardest place for me to make a "best of list" in that the overall quality is so amazingly high. And given a different day the above list could well be somewhat different. I certainly liked a lot of other films. Graceland, Cockneys vs. Zombies, Judge Dredd, Crave, Frankenweenie, and Fuck Up all had many positives. Fantastic Fest consistently has the highest ratio of hits to misses of any festival I've attended. So if it's not in the "misses" part below then I pretty much liked it. Even the misses are actually pretty good (except for Antiviral). They're mostly there due to the whole grading on a curve thing. Amazingly nothing I saw the entire time felt like a waste of time.
In no particular order...
- Memory of the Dead - A man dies and his wife invites his closest friends over for a night of remembrance. Later she lets on thatthe plan is to resurrect him - which will be totally safe for everybody there. Not surprisingly that last part isn't 100% accurate. Possibly a very good movie if one cut 1/3 - 1/4 of the middle out. Well made visually and the skeleton of the story is conceptually slick. Problem in my view is too many ghosts hitting you over the head with unsubtle things in the middle section. If they edit it down it could actually be very good. Of all the films I didn't really get into Memory of the Dead is the one most people I met agreed with. But also the one where I felt the issues are most correctable.
- No Rest for the Wicked - A cop with a drinking problem makes some bad mistakes and then spends the film covering things up. Maybe I was expecting something else - more action less police procedural. It has its charms, but felt a bit draggy. And with so many other bad cop films to choose from I preferred Unit 7 and Paris By Night. Especially as the path things were heading seemed a bit obvious which weakened the intended big reveal moment.
- Wrong - I had high hopes for this followup from the director of Rubber. But it wasn't in the same league for me. Similarly it wears its strangeness on it's sleeve, and the bit about a group that kidnaps your pet to re-invigorate your love for them is a solid piece of high-concept. But I just never really got hooked. I'm guessing it will do well with most people who liked Rubber. This one didn't impact me as effectively as his last picture did.
- Antiviral - A world where people want to be infected with the same virus their favorite celebrity had. That combined with a booming trade of steaks made from farmed celebrity muscle tissue created a fucked up world - that was so far gone it was hard for me to go along with. Technically the film was fine. I guess if you want to be a bit creeped out stylistically it's a winner. But the premise is too stupid for me to suspend disbelief long enough to care too much. The film I liked least at Fantastic Fest this year.
- Warped Forest - I talked about this some earlier. Cool looking visuals, amusing penis gun - but not something I'd want to rush out to see in a theater.
- American Scream - everyone but me seemed to love it. Interesting topic, folks who build over the top haunted houses for their neighborhood. Just felt sort of TV documentary to me. Which of course is what it really is.
- Paris by Night
- Henge / Big Gun
- Cockneys vs Zombies
- Fuck up
- Young Gun in the Time
- Cold Blooded
- Combat Girls
- The Warped Forest
- I Declare War
- Tower block
- The American Scream
- Outrage Beyond
- Wrong
- Unit 7
- ABC's of Death
- Frankenweenie 3D
- Judge Dredd 3D
- Memory of the Dead
- Fantastic Shorts
- Dom - A Russian Family
- Graceland
- Holy Motors
- New Kids Nitro
- Besties
- No Rest for the Wicked
- Plan C
- Crave
- Lee's Adventure
- Flicker
- Bring Me the Head of Machine Gun Woman
- The History of Future Folk
- Two Rabbits
- Black Out
- Vulgaria
- Antiviral
- Taped
- Tai Chi Zero
- King of pigs
- The Conspiracy
- Room 237
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