Later this month the 27th edition of Canada’s largest genre festival, Fantasia, begins. Running from 20th July – 2nd August. The event will host an abundance of new movies that all embrace either the horrific, fantastical or quirky. Fantasia is one of THN’s favourite festivals to cover and our excitement for it to begin is on a par with a child the night before Christmas. During the last few weeks the epic line-up has been slowly teased, released in three waves of news. With every new reveal there have been even more movies that we’re desperate to watch come festival time. Here is just a small selection of the films that we feel should not be missed.
Suitable Flesh
We’ll start with one that we’ve actually already seen – Suitable Flesh. Directed by Joe Lynch, Suitable Flesh received a rapturous premiere at TriBeca. Dedicated to the late Stuart Gordon, Suitable Flesh is a modern adaptation of the short story ‘The Thing on the Doorstep’ by H. P. Lovecraft, and tells of a psychiatrist whose life is irrevocably changed after meeting her latest patient. Suitable Flesh stars Heather Graham, Judah Lewis, and Barbara Crampton, and is set to enthral and titillate the Fantasia audience with its heady mix of occult body swapping, feminine desires, sex appeal, and goo.
Late Night with the Devil
With roles in the highly anticipated The Last Voyage of Demeter and Oppenheimer on the horizon, and a small, but pivotal role in The Boogeyman already, 2023 looks set to be the year of David Dastmalchian. This thought is solidified further by the arrival of Late Night with the Devil. The film debuted at SXSW and has amassed several other US festival screenings, the response being overwhelmingly positive. Stephen King himself has even been shouting about the movie. Set in the world of 70’s late night talk shows, Late Night with the Devil joins Dastmalchian’s host Jack Delroy for the wildest broadcast of his career. Early buzz has likened it to a US spin on UK horror institution Ghostwatch, placing it very high on our ‘need to see immediately’ list.
Birth/Rebirth
THN caught Birth/Rebirth at the start of the year at Sundance. A riff on Frankenstein, but also so much more than that, Birth/Rebirth is a story of two women coming together in the most dire of circumstances. Celie (Reyes) is an overworked maternity nurse and single mother, Rose (Ireland) a pathologist obsessively working on an experiment to reanimate the dead. The two become entangled after the tragic death of Celie’s daughter Lila (A.J Lister), and their different outlooks on life collide as they work together to achieve a common goal. Bleak and foreboding, Birth/Rebirth presents an exciting new exploration of the themes of motherhood. Made whole by two exceptional lead performances from Judy Reyes and Marin Ireland, Birth/Rebirth is almost too suffocatingly uncomfortable to endure, but simultaneously a vital viewing experience.
Sympathy for the Devil
We at THN will never turn down the opportunity to watch a Nicolas Cage film. Granted, there was a time when his projects were a little wobbly, but over the last couple of years the star has been riding an almighty high. This is especially true of his work in the indie arena, and so Sympathy for the Devil has us very intrigued. Also starring Joel Kinnaman, the synopsis for Sympathy for the Devil teases “being forced to drive a mysterious passenger at gunpoint, a man finds himself in a high-stakes game of cat and mouse where it becomes clear that not everything is as it seems…” Collateral with Nick Cage? Sign us up!
Stay Online
Screen-life films have been steadily rising in popularity and Fantasia will play host to one of the most devastating in the burgeoning sub-genre, Stay Online. Filmed in the Ukraine during the ongoing Russian invasion, Stay Online is a dramatic thriller ripped straight from the headlines. Volunteer Katya (Yelyzaveta Zaitseva) is using a government donated laptop to help the Ukrainian forces when she receives a call from the owner’s son. Realising the boy has been separated from both his parents, Katya begins a frantic search for them, but can she locate them before it’s too late. Filled with moments of high tension and gut-punches of emotion, this extremely topical thriller is sure to be the talk of Fantasia.
Skin Deep
Skin Deep screened earlier this year at Glasgow Film Festival, but somehow snuck under the radar of most viewers. Hopefully Fantasia can reset this travesty as Skin Deep is a very special title. Folk horror becomes folk fantasy in Alex Schaad’s transformative philosophical tale of finding contentment in oneself. Young couple Leyla (Mala Emde) and Tristan (Jonas Dassler) travel to a remote island where they participate in an usual ritual that allows people to see the world through someone else’s eyes (literally). A modern day fantasy, Skin Deep explores gender identity in an innovative way. There haven’t been many, if any, body swap movies like this before, the emphasis being on finding the body that works for you. Schaad’s exploration is delicate, elegant, and above all, honest. Truly stunning, Schaad tells an emotive musing on what it means to love oneself and another. Intoxicating and dizzying, Skin Deep is the sort of film that sneakily drills deep to the emotional core, connecting with the viewer at their soul.
Where the Devil Roams
The familial unit of John Adams, Toby Poser, and Zelda Adams are a force of nature. Their last two movies, The Deeper You Dig and Hellbender both took the festival circuit by storm, each earning the full five star treatment from THN. It is safe to say then that we are eagerly awaiting a chance to lay eyes on their latest project, Where the Devil Roams. Once more the threesome have been entirely hands on with the project; writing, directing, and starring in the film which tells of a family of murderous sideshow performers as it travels around the world on the dying carnival circuit. Set during Depression-era America, we can’t wait to see how the Adams family tackle this period serial killer chiller.
Fantasia runs from 20th July – 2nd August 2023, with tickets available here. As ever, THN will be bringing you reviews throughout the festival.
