Here at Gorgon Reviews, we are always trying to check out more and more festivals out there, to see what new films are coming our way. And Fantasia Fest has been on my radar for years! I just missed out on it last year, the timing wasn’t there for me, but I am happy to say I am finally able to get to watch a few of the movies this year.
Without wasting too much time, here are some titles in particular I am excited for.
All You Need Is Kill“The innovative, time-looping Japanese sci-fi novel finally gets the anime version it deserves, visually striking, dynamic, and intense, with fierce and fluid action, and a look all it’s own.”
For many of you, this title should sound familiar, even if you didn’t read the book (I know I did not). Because it is absolutely the story that Edge of Tomorrow was based on (notably NOT called Live Die Repeat despite the confusing advertising). I do not know how close Edge of Tomorrow was to the source material, but I am excited to see an anime take on it, given the novel itself is also from Japan.
Anything That Moves“From the director of All Jacked Up and Full of Worms comes a darkly comic erotic thriller about a bike-courier sex worker caught in a deadly small town conspiracy and a serial killer’s reign of terror.”
This film I am excited for partially because there are so many descriptor words here that just almost feel like pulled out of a random word generator and a movie was born. But also, All Jacked Up and Full of Worms is absolutely a movie I have seen before, and I don’t remember how it was or where I watched it. But it is the type of title one cannot forget. Let’s see what this director can do.
The Bearded Girl“A rebellious, sword-swallowing bearded girl decides to leave her carnival sideshow home behind in search of love and adventure. A debut feature that’s charming, dryly funny, and filled with a fairy-tale aesthetic.”
I can’t be specific, but this absolutely gives me some Princess Bride vibes. You know, if the princess had a beard and went and had an adventure on her own. A fairy tale aesthetic really sells it home, and I always love when my protagonist in a movie has a beard. ALWAYS.
Fixed“From the visionary director of PRIMAL and SAMURAI JACK comes an adult animated comedy about Bull, an average, all-around good dog who discovers he’s going to be neutered in the morning!”
I realize that there could be more words to hype up this movie, so let me go ahead and state it hear. I mean, this is the guy who brought us Dexter’s Laboratory and Powerpuff Girls as well! He also directed every Hotel Transylvania movie, which I can forgive, because this is a movie made for adults with Idris Elba as the lead voice, as a dog about to lose his manhood. That sounds like a recipe for success.
The Girl Who Stole Time“What will unfold when a village girl with the power to control time encounters a cold-faced assassin? Top-tier digital animation from China, with a heartfelt story and on-point humor.”
The description itself lacks a little hype, but it also has a lot of mystery over what the story is really about. In all honesty, this movie sold me at the title alone, and I can’t wait to see what comes from it.
Good Game“Tai and his team of oddballs underdogs will have to combine their strengths in gaming if they’re to win a fierce esports competition.”
A movie like this sure, has a pretty generic and standard plotline for films. Plenty of underdog to champion stories out there. Why is that? Because they work. They are fun. They are having good times. There is room for shenanigans and silly ways of achieving success. So yes, I do want to see it work in the esports format as well!
Hold the Fort“An HOA turns out to be more hellish than usual in this wildly amusing, creature-packed horror/comedy about newly minted suburbanites forced to take part in a battle against monstrous forces.”
All of my homies hate the HOA. I moved time zones to go to a new place with one of our main focuses being no HOA to deal with. Now, I don’t think I am mistaken here, but I don’t recall a single horror movie about HOAs in general turning out to be evil demonic entities. We did have a movie called Karen from the BET, which was about, well, a Karen. But she was just a regular nasty woman in the neighborhood. So yeah, give me a horror movie dealing with an HOA. It reflects reality the most of any movie on this list.
Influencers“CW is on the prowl again. With the versatility of a chameleon and a spider’s skill in weaving a nasty web, she’ll welcome nasty twists and fatal errors in paradise!”
This description of a film made me laugh. I hope it wasn’t meant to be remniscient of superhero movies and shows, but hearing Chameleon/Spider and a character named CW, which of course is a TV network with a ton of heroes, it is where my mind absolutely went. This might be the film on here that sounds closest to a regular film you might actually get to see in theaters somewhere someday, so I am surprised I included it, but by golly, it looks interesting.
OBEX“Conor’s life takes a turn for the fantastical as he is transported into the video-game world of OBEX, where he must rescue his kidnapped dog and come to terms with the grief buried deep inside himself.”
I will be honest. Almost every single movie about someone getting sucked into a video game makes absolutely no sense. It feels like they were made by people who have never played a game before and only had them described. They lack consistency, make obvious references, and usually just feel like a game of unrelated puzzles and no plot. Will OBEX break the trend? I don’t know, but I always give this plot line a chance, hoping for the one that finally excels.
Terrestrial“Jermaine Fowler shines in a completely original and unpredictable dark comedy sci-fi thriller about belonging and paranoia, from the director of HOT TUB TIME MACHINE.”
And finally, a movie with almost no real description in it about the plot, a few genre buzz words, so on its own, might not be something to notice. However, it did say it was by Steve Pink, and I will give the man who gave us Accepted a shot.
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If you are going to Fantasia Fest, let me know what you are hoping to see, and stay tuned for hopefully a lot of reviews and interviews from the pictures coming out of Montreal!
