Fantastic Fest

RETREAT Review

by Scott Wampler    Posted: October 24th, 2011 at 12:45 pm

This year’s Fantastic Fest went by in a blur, a seven-day avalanche of drinking, interviews, more drinking, and kick-ass genre-films that—from time to time—could feel a little overwhelming.  While I managed to catch almost everything I planned on seeing during Fantastic Fest 2011, I was forced to skip a few flicks thanks to an already-crowded schedule.  And so, when the folks behind one of those films– Carl Tibbetts’ Retreat– dropped me a line asking if I’d like to catch the film now, I was all too happy to say “Yes”.  So, did I miss out on this one back when Fantastic Fest was in full swing, or would it turn out that Retreat was better left unseen?  Find out after the jump, folks.

Fantastic Fest 2011: SLEEP TIGHT Review

by Bill Graham    Posted: October 5th, 2011 at 5:10 am

I find myself lost trying to wrap my head around the tension built in Sleep Tight. While the film may lack more than one thrilling action sequence, it doesn’t lack for thrills. We are introduced to a world where a man who cannot feel joy takes some semblance of it by torturing those that have it. A melding of an invasion thriller with a slow building revenge aspect thrown in makes for a short and satisfying film. Jaume Balagueró is best known for co-directing the awesome [Rec] and [Rec] ² horror flicks, and he brings the single setting of a vertical shaft apartment building back into the fold. Whether that was his influence or the writer’s is inconsequential. He knows how to play within these confines, and Sleep Tight benefits from it. Hit the jump for my full review.

Fantastic Fest 2011: A BOY AND HIS SAMURAI Review

by Bill Graham    Posted: October 4th, 2011 at 8:42 am

Director Yoshihiro Nakamura is on a roll. The Japanese director has continually scored big at Fantastic Fest, with 2009′s Fish Story and 2010′s Golden Slumber. He is back with a film that is on a smaller scale yet is possibly more charming than his previous two films combined. A Boy And His Samurai is a quiet, frill-free story of the complications this world can create when trying to balance work and family. Predictably, the film features a young, endearing boy who gains a transported samurai as his caretaker in modern Tokyo. While many of the standard adjustments to a foreign time themes are explored, Nakamura makes sure to tell a story that we can all relate to and fall in love with. Filled with endless charm, the film is rarely laugh-out-loud funny, but it might lead to a goofy smile continually present on any onlookers. Hit the jump for my full review.

Fantastic Fest 2011: Tom Six and Laurence Harvey Interview THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE 2: FULL SEQUENCE

by Scott Wampler    Posted: October 3rd, 2011 at 7:36 pm

About a month before Fantastic Fest 2011 had its way with us (I’m still walking funny), the film festival’s programmers announced that Tom Six’s heavily-anticipated The Human Centipede 2: Full Sequence would be the festival’s opening night film. This slot is generally reserved for the biggest, most buzzed-about film slated to screen during Fantastic Fest, and on the day it premiered, everyone was talking about what sort of pitch-black craziness Six might have come up with for the sequel to his surprise 2010 hit The Human Centipede: Would Six eschew the darkly comic moments that made the original so great? Would Dieter Laser return as the villainous Dr. Heiter? How does one make a twelve-person Human Centipede, anyway? The day after seeing the film (you can read my review here), I sat down with Six and Human Centipede 2 star Laurence Harvey to find out what they had to say for themselves. Read on for that chat, after the jump.

Fantastic Fest 2011: THE YELLOW SEA Review

by Bill Graham    Posted: October 3rd, 2011 at 12:45 pm

Action and character propel The Yellow Sea through an epic run time that features more knife fights than I could count. Everything about this film is dark, brutal, and unforgiving. Director Hong-jin Na (The Chaser) weaves a complex story of love, debt, and crime in a setting many are unfamiliar with. There is even a thread of dark comedy from the ways characters can do the unexpected. At 157 minutes, this isn’t an easy film to make time for, yet if you are looking for an action film with an actual plot, some surprises, and excellent fight sequences, it is something I cannot recommend enough. Hit the jump for my full review.

Fantastic Fest 2011: RABIES Review

by Bill Graham    Posted: October 3rd, 2011 at 5:14 am

One would think a film titled Rabies would have something to do with the maddening disease that drives one into a frothing, hyperreactive rage within a few days of infection. This Israeli thriller instead focuses on how we can act with ferocity if pushed to our limits. Set in a forest filled with a maniac, an overreaching officer, and landmines, the innocent people that are leftover don’t have a chance. Especially when they start turning on each other. This short but brutal tale may be too forgiving to some characters yet is still a worthwhile experience. Hit the jump for my full review.

Fantastic Fest 2011 Mini-Reviews: AARDVARK, CLOWN, CARRE BLANC, THE DAY, SMUGGLER, THE CORRIDOR, LIVID, LET THE BULLETS FLY and More

by Bill Graham    Posted: October 3rd, 2011 at 1:17 am

Time isn’t always on your side. While at Fantastic Fest this year, I dove in way more than last year and exposed myself to nearly every film I could. Through screeners and screenings, I managed to fit in over 30 films over the last 11 days. Unfortunately, I just don’t have the time to review every one of them so instead, I will provide a slew of bite-sized capsules to provide a general feel and idea of what these films do well and where they might fail. So, without any more fanfare, join me after the jump for my reviews of Aardvark, Clown, Carre Blanc, The Day, Smuggler, The Corridor, Livid, Let the Bullets Fly, and A Lonely Place to Die.

TOP 5: Fantastic Fest Coverage, 50/50, MACHINE GUN PREACHER, GHOST RIDER 2, Tom Hiddleston Talks THE AVENGERS and THOR 2

by Jason Barr    Posted: October 1st, 2011 at 3:56 pm

With the fall film season now in full swing, I’m 100% ashamed to admit that I’ve yet to see two of my most anticipated fall films: Moneyball and 50/50. Now, I have every intention of ending this charade at some point this weekend but, for now, I hope you’ll give me a pass. If I’ve still yet to check them out when we meet here next week, I’ll understand if you choose to revoke my “mildly credible film blogger” credentials. In the meantime…

…In this week’s “Top 5″ installment, you can find all of our Fantastic Fest 2011 coverage. After that, interviews abound with the cast of Jonathan Levine’s dramedy 50/50, the cast, creators, and real-life inspiration for Machine Gun Preacher, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance director Brian Taylor, and Thor/The Avengers‘ Tom Hiddleston. Check out a brief recap and link to each after the jump.

FANTASTIC FEST 2011: BOYS ON THE RUN Review

by Bill Graham    Posted: September 30th, 2011 at 2:11 pm

Awkwardness can be infinitely easy to relate to because we have all felt out of place at one time or another. Some of us may even feel that way now, and Boys On The Run paints an interesting picture of how that can lead to mixed results in the real world. This story of love found and lost soon after is filled with over the top characters and situations, but at its core it is about how retarded we can be when love is on the line and all the dirt in between. Boys is a romantic comedy that follows an innocent looking guy that has good intentions but is sacked with a sex-drive that he can’t contain. Some of the real charm is its awkwardness and willingness to fully embrace those things most of us never mention. Hit the jump for my full review.

FANTASTIC FEST 2011 Recap and Awards Roundup

by Scott Wampler    Posted: September 30th, 2011 at 2:42 am

Well, folks, it’s over:  another year, another week-long cavalcade of awesome at Fantastic Fest.  This year’s lineup included some big name movies (Melancholia, Take Shelter), some smaller ones (You’re Next, Extraterrestrial), and some complete unknowns (Zombie Ass, A Boy and His Samurai), as well as some truly amazing, non-screening events.  Who won awards at this year’s Fantastic Fest, and what were the highlights of the week?  Find out after the jump, folks.

Fantastic Fest 2011: KNUCKLE Review

by Bill Graham    Posted: September 27th, 2011 at 5:53 pm

Sometimes feuds last for generations. Without any present rhyme or reason, the Irish Travellers at the heart of Knuckle may never find absolute peace from each other. Producer and director Ian Palmer puts us in the middle of the family feuds that end up utilizing bare-knuckle fights to solve their differences. Palmer’s lens focuses on James Quinn McDonagh, an undefeated champion of his family, who slowly begins to lament his position as the face, fist, and mouth of his namesake. Over 12 years, we are given a glimpse into the secretive nomadic families that is both tragic and thrilling in its brutality and upsetting because of the never-ending cycle of violence. More shocking is that bloodlines are so mixed and interwoven that it isn’t uncommon for brothers, uncles, and nephews to fight. Palmer gives us a brief look and with James as the focus, Knuckle will draw you in and leave a lasting impression. Hit the jump for my full review.

FANTASTIC FEST 2011: EXTRATERRESTRIAL Review

by Scott Wampler    Posted: September 27th, 2011 at 4:01 pm

Nacho Vigalondo made quite the splash here at Fantastic Fest a few years ago when he debuted his twisty, brilliant, hard sci-fi time-travel flick TimeCrimes, and since then, fans of the dude’s work have been wondering when he’d drop another clever little film into our laps.  Well, the wait is over:  Vigalondo’s Extraterrestrial made its debut here at Fantastic Fest 2011, and after checking it out, I’m prepared to make it official—Vigalondo’s a helluva talent, one of the best genre directors currently producing original material.  Read on for my Extraterrestrial review, after the jump.

Fantastic Fest 2011 – ELITE SQUAD: THE ENEMY WITHIN Review

by Scott Wampler    Posted: September 26th, 2011 at 8:23 pm

So, by this point, you’ve probably heard a thing or two about Jose Padilha’s Elite Squad: The Enemy Within (formerly Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within).  I’d heard about the film all the way back during Sundance, when a friend of mine raved about the film endlessly for weeks after seeing it.  Since then, I’ve heard through the grapevine that Padilha’s film was one of the best action films ever made (no, really), and so I knew—the moment I saw the film on the Fantastic Fest schedule—that I’d have to make an effort to see the flick.  Did it live up to the hype?  Find out after the jump, folks.

FANTASTIC FEST 2011: TAKE SHELTER Review

by Scott Wampler    Posted: September 26th, 2011 at 5:27 am

Austin filmmaker Jeff Nichols’ Take Shelter has been building buzz for some time now, ever since a compelling trailer arrived online a few months back…and particularly after the film enjoyed a rave-review-filled run up at the TIFF.  This weekend, Fantastic Fest’s programmers managed to snag the film for a very special, one-time-only screening for the film geeks currently mobbing the Alamo Drafthouse, and it’d be fair to say that the screening was just as difficult to get into as last night’s You’re Next screening.  Anticipation was running high, the TIFF hype had done its job, and the screening was appropriately exclusive—but did the film live up to the hype?  You’re gonna have to read on to find out, folks.

FANTASTIC FEST 2011 Day Two: SHORT FUSE, URBAN EXPLORER, and Fantastic Fest’s Online Ticketing System

by Scott Wampler    Posted: September 25th, 2011 at 7:00 pm

Fantastic Fest is actually four days into a week-long run here at the Alamo Drafthouse, but due to some technical problems with the Fest’s online ticketing system, yesterday was actually my second day of attendance.  After adding an online ticketing option for badgeholders this year, Festival attendees have discovered that picking up your tickets online might not be all it’s cracked up to be.  I’ve also got mini-reviews of Short Fuse (Fantastic Fest’s horror-shorts collection) and Urban Explorer (a “teenagers-trapped-underground” horror flick) after the jump, folks.

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