Fantasia 2012 - Final Thoughts and "Top 10 / Bottom 5 of the Festival"

Fantasia 2012 - Final Thoughts and "Top 10 / Bottom 5 of the Festival" – by Matthew Saliba

Fantasia's slowly wrapping up here in Montreal but for me the festival ended on Saturday. Due to some personal commitments, I won't be able to attend the remaining days of the festival which is a real shame as I wanted to see LOVE IN THE BUFF, CHAINED, DESPITE THE GODS, TOY MASTERS, VULGARIA and HIDDEN IN THE WOODS, not to mention whatever other gems I may have caught along the way. Alas, I will have to settle with my memories of the 28 films I did manage to see during the past two weeks and be content that there were several four-star classics in the bunch, many of which will undoubtedly find their way onto my "Top 10 of 2012" list come the end of the year.

I went into Fantasia this year thinking that things were going to be different and with the festival behind me, I more or less feel the same way.

Overall, I felt the programming was quite strong this year. I was especially happy to see Canadian feature films being slotted in more "fan-friendly" timeslots than they're usually put in. With weekend screenings at 4pm and 7pm respectively, films like LLOYD THE CONQUEROR and ROLLER TOWN played to sold-out crowds who discovered just how genuinely talented and fucking funny Canadians really are. On the subject of "comedy," these films were generally the most well-received of the festival this year. I'm always amazed at this, particularly given the fact that Montreal is a predominantly Francophone city and most of these comedies are in English or screened with English subtitles. Films like A FANTASTIC FEAR OF EVERYTHING, JUAN OF THE DEAD and GAME OF WEREWOLVES were real crowd-pleasers and with good reason, sharply written scripts, strong performances and a dash of the macabre made for winning combinations. There was also a greater sense of variety this year with films from nearly every major (and minor) country in the world being represented. I had a blast at India's SINGHAM, a.k.a. the Bollywood musical "remake" of DIRTY HARRY. If you ever wanted to see the true potential for action/comedy cinema along with how "alive" a film can really be when a strong filmmaking team who are inspired by the dazzling and vivacious culture that spawned them is at the helm, SINGHAM is the film for you. William Friedkin made the mother of all comebacks with his brilliant black comedy, KILLER JOE. When a guy who can watch a triple-feature of IRREVERSIBLE, MARTYRS and NEKROMANTIK and still be in the mood to make love to his fiancee like me, can get disturbed by watching a "standard" scene like a 12-year old girl getting raped by a man three times her age, you know a film has real power. Hong Kong proved once again why they're the most consistent providers of top-notch genre cinema be it martial arts (DRAGON) or WWII sniper dramas (COLD STEEL), while the Thailand/South Korean co-production, THE KICK, stole the show this year as being one of the most energetic, entertaining and absolutely thrilling martial arts films in recent years.

On the other hand, hyperbole strike hard and fierce this year with EXCISION being the worst offender of the bunch. It's no secret that the programmers at Fantasia want the screenings of films they've programmed to sell out and sell out quickly. So year after year, audiences are subjected to write-ups in the program which don't so much tell you what the film is about, inasmuch as they tell you how the world as you know it has shattered at the seams to the groundbreaking and mind-blowing nature of the picture. With all the "groundbreaking" films being shown at Fantasia this year, I'm surprised we still have an Earth to walk upon. EXCISION was probably the most overhyped film this year and as predicted, it did not live up to the promise of the program. A film that relied on bullshit shock dream sequences, blatant stunt casting which caused more distractions than anything else and a plot and characterization straight out of a far superior film called MAY, EXCISION is a film that may have been forgivable had the festival not blown its reputation out of proportion. Other duds included the overlong and uber-boring, UNDER THE BED, the tacky, unfunny and unscary MEMORY OF THE DEAD, the real "Never-Ending Story" THE TALL MAN and Takashi Miike's latest stinker, FOR LOVE'S SAKE. The two biggest disappointments this year were TOAD ROAD and LES AVENTURES DE CHATRAN. Both films subscribed to the "Ruggero Deodato circa CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST School of Irresponsible Filmmaking." If you hadn't stayed for the Q&A, you might have come out of TOAD ROAD thinking it was a modern-day masterpiece that brilliantly combined the aesthetics of Gus Van Sant, Larry Clark and David Lynch. However, if you did stay for the Q&A, you certainly came out feeling very disappointed and angry that a filmmaker in today's day and age would take advantage of non-professional actors and have them consume copious amount of drugs and alcohol and subject themselves to real-live beatings all in the name of "art." However, at least those kids consented to doing this, which isn't something you can say about the poor animals in LES AVENTURES DE CHATRAN. Here was a film that was supposed to be the cute and cuddly entry this year, but ended up being the most controversial film played in recent memory. The premise of the piece was that the filmmaker filmed the animals on his private island for a period of five years and then cut together the footage he had shot. The only thing is he deliberately placed these animals in harm's way resulting in some truly horrendous sequences that made you cry out for these defenseless creatures, whether or not you are a vegan, vegetarian and/or animal rights activist.

At any rate, another Fantasia is in the books and I want to thank the good folks over at Exploitation Retrospect and Rogue Cinema for allowing me to cover the festival for them this year. I got to walk around showing off my official press pass, which gave me satisfaction in large amounts. It also gave me a chance to take a chance on some films that I may have otherwise not gone to see due to lack of funds.

So without any further Apu, allow me to list my "Top 10 Favorite Films of Fantasia 2012" followed by my "Bottom 5, a.k.a. The Worst of the Worst, The Most Hated and Cursed."

Top 10 Favorite Films of Fantasia 2012

1. KILLER JOE (2011) - directed by William Friedkin (USA)
2. SINGHAM (2011) - directed by Rohit Shetty (India)
3. ROLLER TOWN (2012) - directed by Andrew Bush (Canada)
4. LLOYD THE CONQUEROR (2011) - directed by Michael Peterson (Canada)
5. YOU ARE THE APPLE OF MY EYE (2011) - directed by Giddens Ko (Taiwan)
6. THE KICK (2011) - directed by Prachya Pinkaew (Thailand / South Korea)
7. A FANTASTIC FEAR OF EVERYTHING (2012) - directed by Crispian Mills and Chris Hopewell (UK)
8. JUAN OF THE DEAD (2011) - directed by Alejandro Brugués (Spain / Cuba)
9. GAME OF WEREWOLVES (2011) - directed by Juan Martínez Moreno (Spain)
10. ROBO-G (2012) - directed by Shinobu Yaguchi (Japan)

Bottom 5 a.k.a. "The Worst of the Worst, The Most Hated and Cursed!"

1. LES AVENTURES DE CHATRAN (1986) - directed by Masanori Hata (Japan)
2. TOAD ROAD (2012) - directed by Jason Banker (USA)
3. BLOOD-C: THE LAST DARK (2012) - directed by Naoyoshi Shiotani (Japan)
4. MEMORY OF THE DEAD (2011) - directed by Valentín Javier Diment (Argentina)
5. FOR LOVE'S SAKE (2012) - directed by Takashi Miike (Japan)

Many thanks to Matthew for his great man-on-the-ground coverage of this year's Fantasia. You can check out more of his reviews in the upcoming print edition of ER as well as at his new blog, The Celery Stalks at Midnight.

Fantasia 2012: Week Two Wrap-Up by Matthew Saliba

Fantasia 2012 - Week Two Wrap-Up by Matthew Saliba

The second week of the Fantasia International Film Festival is traditionally the one where the festival suffers the aftershock of having blown its wad early on during its first week. That usually means that the expectations of the audience are set so ridiculously high that we are inevitably disappointed by the output of the fest come week two. It also doesn't help that week two is traditionally when Fantasia programs its more "experimental" and/or less-buzzed about films resulting in audiences sometimes being taken aback by the sudden shift in direction of the festival.

However, as I mentioned in my last report, this is shaping up to be one of the best years for Fantasia yet and I can happily confirm that I still feel the same way. With the exception of a few more duds than there were last week, this second week of Fantasia has been just as strong, if not, stronger than the last one!

Many of the films I saw this week will probably end up on my "Top 10 of 2012" list come the end of the year. Lots of innovative stuff and lots more controversial works as well. 12 seems to be my magic number as once again that was how many films I managed to catch for my second time out.

So without any further Apu, here's a list of what I saw and what I thought about them. (Note: All of Matthew's ratings are based on a four star rating system.)

THE MECHANICAL BRIDE (2012) – directed by Allison de Fren – USA / Japan / Germany
Anytime there's a new fetish-themed film, be it narrative or documentary, you can bet your bottom dollar, yours truly will be in attendance. It's almost becoming something of a yearly tradition where Fantasia screens something with a kink bent and 2012 was no exception.

THE MECHANICAL BRIDE explores a relatively obscure fetish that is predominantly sexualized by men in which rubber dolls are favored as sexual and/or platonic companions over their more organic counterparts. Given that the men who engage in such practices are often very reluctant to come forward and discuss their interests, it's quite an amazing feat that director de Fren was able to get these guys to open up. On that level, THE MECHANICAL BRIDE works as her subjects are almost always fascinating.

It also works on an historical one too as the film travels to Japan and Germany to give the audience a better sense of context on where this fetish developed and for that matter is continuing to evolve to this very day. I particularly found it very interesting that the very first rubber dolls were created by the Nazis of all people as a means to keep the troops "motivated" and to prevent them from contracting STDs from prostitutes and the like. What I found quite ironic is that these rubber dolls were made in the image of some rather androgynous female Olympic athletes who were representing Germany at the time.

I guess my main critique of the piece is that other than satisfying our inner voyeur and providing a few odd historical tidbits, THE MECHANICAL BRIDE doesn't really offer any new insights into how such a fetish might incubate itself into any given individual. And therein lies my overall critique of these kinds of documentaries. Ironically enough, back in the day I would often lament the lack of films and television programs devoted to the subject but now that they're being made by the dozen and more or less saying the same thing that's been regurgitated time and again, I find myself wondering whether there's even a point to these productions anymore.

However, all that being said, it's a pretty interesting film that's certainly worth a look if you've never watched an episode of KINK before. Rating: **1/2


TOAD ROAD (2012) – directed by Jason Banker – USA
I'm not entirely sure where I stand on TOAD ROAD.

On one hand, it's a brilliant film that majestically combines the aesthetics of Gus Van Sant, Larry Clark and David Lynch into an indie art-house fan's wet dream and one of the best films you'll see all year.

On the other hand, if the Q&A with director Banker is to be believed, it's a horrific real-life exploitation film that channels the moral irresponsibility of filmmakers like Ruggero Deodato circa CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST.

According to Banker, virtually everything in the film was unscripted and all the people in the film, teens mind you, were non-actors performing very real things, including a copious amount of drug use and in one particularly nasty sequence getting punched in the face by a group of people at a fair.

So therein lies my dilemma. Do I follow the same path I did with the aforementioned cannibal classic and forget the real-life tragedies that happened on set and acknowledge the film for what it is, an unadulterated masterpiece, or does the fact that what I watched on screen was basically a series of happy accidents made at the expense of innocent youths ultimately deter me from appreciating this so-called work of art?

I guess in the end, I must concede that CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST is the worse offender as the animals that were butchered in that picture had no choice in the matter, whereas the "actors" who answered filmmaker Banker's ad on MySpace (!) clearly knew what they were getting into and could theoretically leave whenever they wanted to.

TOAD ROAD is one of the most unnerving experiences I've ever had at the Fantasia International Film Festival and will likely haunt me for years to come and I guess there's something to be said about that. I do, however, feel like Jason Banker for whatever his artistic pretenses may have been, is an incredibly irresponsible filmmaker who very much disappointed me with his film. Being a filmmaker myself, I can tell you that any kind of artistic achievement requires a lot of hard work, planning and thought. By casually remarking that what he had shot was virtually the process of chance dismisses the credibility of his cast, crew and especially himself as an artist.

So I suppose my main beef with this film lies in the realm of artistic credibility and Banker's lack thereof. I almost wish I hadn't stayed for the Q&A because had I not, I would've rated this film a full four stars and placed it very high on my "Top 10 of 2012." As it stands now, I'm afraid it gets my first "Zero Stars" rating of the festival. Rating: Zero stars.


A NIGHT OF NIGHTMARES (2012) – directed by Buddy Giovinazzo – USA
I was introduced to the work of Buddy Giovinazzo last year via his segment, I LOVE YOU in the anthology horror film, THE THEATRE BIZARRE.  It was my favorite short film of the bunch and I instantly became a fan of his minimalist, naturalistic approach to filmmaking. So when it was announced that he was making his first full-on horror picture, I was pretty pumped to see it.

On the whole, I would say he delivered the goods. He gets two great performances out of his leads. He creates a genuine sense of tension vis a vis an impeccable sound design, some creepy lighting and a very claustrophobic set (an isolated cabin in the woods). There's also a wonderful sequence at the end that channels an effect used in the original theatrical trailer to THE EXORCIST that had me smiling in appreciation.

On the other hand, this sub-genre has been done to death and unlike the brilliant CABIN IN THE WOODS, Giovinazzo doesn't exactly bring anything new to the table here. Not that that's a bad thing, mind you. Sometimes it can be fun and refreshing (especially in today's age of irony) to watch a good old-fashioned meat and potatoes ghost story. But on the other hand, imagine if Wes Anderson tried his hand at directing THE EVIL DEAD. You'd get a great concept directed by a man who may not have the corresponding vision to pull it off in the most ambitious fashion. Rating: **1/2

LES AVENTURES DE CHATRAN (1986) – directed by Masanori Hata – Japan
I wasn't planning to review this film as I went in expecting a cute, adorable film about kitties that was meant to ease my way into a four-film marathon I had planned that day.

Now don't get me wrong, this film definitely delivers on the cute and adorable front. But it's also a cruel, vicious little film that genuinely places a lot of the animals used in grave danger. There are sequences in which Chatran is attacked by a crab, a snake and even a bear.

Now the story behind this film is that director Hata is apparently a zoologist in Japan who owns his own island along with a plethora of beasts of every shape, size and color. And apparently, the film was approved by several Japanese humane societies. No one knows the story for sure, but it would appear that no animals were actually killed in the film. But that doesn't excuse the fact that we clearly see Chatran as well as his best-friend, an equally adorable pug puppy in visible distress while they're thrown into dangerous situations that they would never be in otherwise. For example, why would a crab be wandering around on a farm if it hadn't been deliberately placed there by director Hata? Why's a Pug going toe-to-toe with a bloody bear? What kind of living hell must Chatran be going through when he was thrown off a waterfall in a crate?

Once again, like TOAD ROAD, I bring up the CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST example. I would never imagine in a million years, equating a pre-YouTube cute cat phenomenon with Deodato's infamous spaghetti cannibal flick, but that's Fantasia for you! However, unlike TOAD ROAD, I can't abide this film. Hata may have pulled off quite a feat telling a rather engaging story with loads of fun characters and thrilling moments, but he also endangered the lives of creatures who have no verbal means to protest and refuse to participate in a mockery of art such as this.

This is easily my pick for the worst film of the festival. Rating: Zero stars


THE KICK (2011) – directed by Prachya Pinkaew – Thailand / South Korea
Nearly every year, Fantasia screens a special sub-genre of kung-fu films – the kids/family who knows kung-fu. And every year, it's always a huge sensation! This year, THE KICK was no exception.

From start to finish, THE KICK was a balls-to-the-wall non-stop action film featuring a plot straight out of an '80s kung-fu film and a dash of Jackie Chan-esque humor. I had a ball watching this film and after seeing so many self-important, taking themselves way too seriously, martial arts films over the years at Fantasia, it was so wonderful to sink back in my seat and watch a filmmaker who knows exactly what kind of genre he's working in and just make a FUN film! What a concept!

But perhaps the biggest star of this piece were the stunts. Absolutely incredible! We're talking ONG-BAK incredible! If you get a chance, do yourself a favor and check out this martial arts masterpiece pronto! It's one of my favorite films of the festival! Rating: ****


UNDER THE BED (2012) – directed by Steven C. Miller – USA
Hyperbole anyone? One of the most notorious aspects of Fantasia is its programmers' heavy reliance on using the most outrageous of hyperbolic statements in order to fill seats at screenings of films that they programmed. This year's worst offender (so far) is UNDER THE BED.

For some reason this film never quite got out of first gear for me. It starts off promisingly enough establishing a sense of dread and suspense over our protagonist's past and what his reemergence in the family dynamic will mean to his little brother, stepmother and father. But once we learn the cause of this and just how silly the whole thing is, you can't help but laugh at how pretentious the whole film really is.

In a nutshell, there's a bogeyman under the bed and rather than have fun with it, director Miller treats this subject matter with the same solemn manner that Christopher Nolan did with his DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY. As much as I love what Nolan did with Batman, I sometimes wish he never made those films as they've become the new FIGHT CLUB insofar as every filmmaker and his mother is trying to bring that "emo, dark and edgy" feel to their productions and that's what I feel Miller did with his film.

Between useless characters, red herring plot twists (the stepmother notices her washer and dryer shaking uncontrollably and her cleaning detergent floating in the air but never makes reference to it again) and the nauseating depressing feel of the picture, UNDER THE BED was one of my more unpleasant experiences at Fantasia this year.

I will give the film credit as far as the design of the creature goes. It looked fantastic and combined with some excellent sound design, managed to get a few jumps out of me. I especially appreciated how Miller went with practical SFX as opposed to the CGI diarrhea that everyone's been pumping out as of late. Rating: **


ROLLER TOWN (2012) – directed by Andrew Bush – Canada
By the time Fantasia ends this year, the story is going to be all about Canada and just how fucking funny we are. Seriously, Canada's probably been the most consistent country this year as far as delivering top-notch films that have come to redefine comedy in the 21st century. I didn't think there'd be a film funnier than LLOYD THE CONQUEROR this year, and as much as I deeply love and enjoy that great film, even LARPing must bow down to Disco - Roller Disco, that is!

Brought to you by the funny folks over at Picnicface, ROLLER TOWN is a non-stop laugh riot that will have fans of absurd comedy going through a 12-set of Fruit of the Looms after pissing through the entire bunch. I can't remember the last time I watched a comedy that literally made me cry from laughing so much. Much like an episode of FAMILY GUY, this film is so dense in terms of one gag coming after another, that you'll have to see this film several times before you can fully appreciate it.

Unfortunately, it doesn't appear that a DVD release is imminent though the aptly named director Andrew Bush did mention a limited theatrical run in September as well as a VOD release in August.

If you see ROLLER TOWN playing at a film festival near you, do yourself a favor and check this one out. It's the funniest damn film you're likely to see in a long time. Rating: ****


SINGHAM (2011) – directed by Rohit Shetty – India
Here's a film that reminded me why I attend Fantasia year after year. Montreal's a predominantly Francophone city but Fantasia somehow manages to bridge the gap between French and English audiences by giving them films that transcend any language barrier and brings them together in the name of entertainment. SINGHAM may very well be the best example of such a film.

A remake of the 2010 film of the same name (and American critics got their panties in a bunch over Sony rebooting SPIDER-MAN after five years!), SINGHAM is a film that basically plays like a Bollywood musical remake of DIRTY HARRY only with a Tony Jaa approach to kicking ass instead of a Clint Eastwood one. While it can sometimes be hard to determine just how much of the humor in this film was intentional (given the very over-the-top nature of Bollywood films), based on what I've read about the picture, it's more or less meant to be a comedy, if not, a parody of the recent string of cops-against-the-system series of films that have been successful as of late.

I haven't seen very many Bollywood films but the one thing that really struck me the most was just how "alive" the film seemed. There was an energy in the performances, the cinematography, the action sequences and even in the writing that put some of the best American films to shame. Perhaps it's something in the culture, but this vibrant, expressive energy definitely translates to the big screen and subsequently, to the audience watching the film as well.

I absolutely adored this film and had it been released in 2012, it would certainly have shot to the top of my list for best films of the year. Rating: ****


A FANTASTIC FEAR OF EVERYTHING (2012) – directed by Crispian Mills and Chris Hopewell – UK

Now here's a film that for whatever reason is getting a lot of flak from critics. I had a read a couple reviews of this going into the screening so I must admit that it was with some trepidation that I sat down at my seat before the film began. But once the film was over, I was reminded of how critics often know shit from shanola when it comes to entertainment.

A FANTASTIC FEAR OF EVERYTHING is just that, fantastic! Simon Pegg carries this film on his shoulders brilliantly and really captures the essence of Alfred Hitchcock's "Wrong Man" motif, particularly in a dazzling sequence at a laundromat towards the end of the film. Being a writer myself, I could totally relate to Pegg's home-life and the paranoia that comes with delving into a subject that hits a little too close to home for you.

There's also a gorgeous animated sequence that combines elements of stop-motion animation with some CGI that had the audience on their feet applauding once it ended.

This is an oddly sweet and macabre film that should appeal to fans of Simon Pegg, aficionados of Victorian era True Crime and especially admirers of the black and absurd sense of humor that only the British can pull off with ease. I thoroughly enjoyed and it's one of the best films I've seen all year. Rating: ***1/2

ROBO-G (2012) – directed by Shinobu Yaguchi – Japan
I went into this expecting a heartwarming, funny and very entertaining film and I'm happy to report that filmmaker Shinobu Yaguchi delivered on all three counts.

A group of scientists have to present their latest robot design at a convention. But when it breaks down, they decide to hold auditions for an actor to play the robot so they can fool audiences at the convention that their design works. An old man bored with his life and retirement ends up getting the role and hilarity ensues.

This was a real touching film as the old man has sort of an estranged/forced relationship with his family in that the circumstances in which they get together aren't always the most pleasant or "wanted" of ones. So when he pays them a visit "in character," it's sort of bittersweet in that the kids are really happy to see the robot and their grandfather gets to experience vicariously through his character, what it must be like to have grandkids who genuinely love him and want to be with him.

ROBO-G is also a very funny film as evident by the non-stop laughs in the audience. It's one of my favorite films of the festival and the year so far. Rating: ***1/2


KILLER JOE (2011) – directed by William Friedkin – USA
And now we come to the film that barring any unforeseen masterpieces, will undoubtedly end up being my pick for the best film at Fantasia this year.

I must admit that I haven't really followed Friedkin's career, post-EXORCIST and from what I understand, I haven't really missed much. But if THE FRENCH CONNECTION and THE EXORCIST are Friedkin's two masterpieces, then KILLER JOE unquestionably completes the master's trilogy of cinematic excellence.

I like my comedies black as midnight on a moonless night and Friedkin definitely delivered the goods with this film. It's gorgeous to look at, the writing is so sharp and wickedly funny and best of all, we have Matthew McConaughey delivering the performance of a lifetime, and he didn't even need to take his shirt off!

I'm the kind of person who can watch a triple-feature of IRREVERSIBLE, MARTYRS and NEKROMANTIK and still be in the good to make love with my fiancee afterwards. So needless to say, it's very hard to shock me. So you know a film is powerful when even something as "standard" as a 12-year-old girl getting ploughed from behind by a man three times her age can make me feel uncomfortable and a little queasy.

Oh and did I mention the fried chicken fellatio scene? Yeah, there's a fried chicken fellatio scene.

'Nuff said, eh? Rating: ****


THE TALL MAN (2012) – directed by Pascal Laugier – Canada / USA
Oh Pascal Laugier, you sure do like taking your audiences on an emotional rollercoaster don't you? The only problem sir, is that even the most daring of rollercoasters have moments that allow the audience to process the experience they've just had before they suddenly take another left turn and go on an even bumpier ride. I'm guessing you never went on a rollercoaster in France did you.

I really wanted to like THE TALL MAN and I'd be lying if I said there weren't elements of the film that worked for me and had me rooting for Laugier to find a way to wrap this all in a satisfying manner that could give the audience reason to forgive some of the more questionable storyline decisions. Unfortunately, by the time the film lurches across the finishing line, I was exhausted and annoyed beyond belief.

Many critics have been bashing Laugier over the head regarding his script that is all over the page with sudden shifts in character, tone and even focus of plot. And while I didn't necessarily mind the different shifts as they all did build up to something, I also did feel that perhaps Laugier was trying to address too many issues here and as a result, the film comes across like the filmmaker had lots of ideas for short films and decided to put them all together with the thinnest threads of plot to connect them all together.

Now those who may have seen MARTYRS may argue that the major plot twist that comes 2/3 of the way into the film threw people for a loop. But my retort to that would be, there was only ONE twist and it gave audiences ample time to seek their teeth into. Just imagine watching MARTYRS with a good five or six of those major plot twists. Maybe if THE TALL MAN was a running television series, Laugier's attempt to address issues of small town hypocrisy, child abduction and mysterious paranormal activity in the woods would be a more satisfying experience for his audiences.

As it stands, THE TALL MAN tries to be too many things for too many people and gets lost somewhere along the way. Rating: **

And that about covers it for Week 2 of the 2012 Fantasia International Film Festival! I'll be back next week with my final coverage of the festival, including my Top 10 / Bottom 5 pics.

If you like what you see here, check out my blog, THE CELERY STALKS AT MIDNIGHT at matthewsaliba.wordpress.com.

Fantasia 2012: Week One Wrap-Up by Matthew Saliba

Fantasia 2012 - Week One Wrap-Up by Matthew Saliba

The first week of the 2012 Fantasia International Film Festival is in the books and while I may be a little premature in making such an announcement, I have to say that this year is shaping up to be one of the best years yet. I had a feeling going into the event this year, that there was a change in the air. The films were relatively unknown. The screenings had more of a "must-see" vibe about them than they had in previous years. And there was a sense of discovery akin to the one I felt back in 1997 when Fantasia popped North America's Euro-Trash cherry with 35mm screenings of all the Italian horror greats. There's still two more weeks to go so hopefully my sense of optimism won't diminish.

Over the course of seven days, I managed to catch 12 screenings, which admittedly is a little less than the number I was aiming for. But let's face it, I'm a little older, I have a couple of adorable kitties at home who aren't going to feed and/or snuggle with themselves and more importantly, my ass can only handle so much of what has to be THE most uncomfortable seats in the world. That being said, with the exception of a couple of duds, virtually every one of these screenings delivered making the comfort of my fine behind a secondary priority to the visual splendors assaulting my retinas in the most pleasant ways imaginable.

So without any further dudes, here's a list of what I saw this week, along with my review and star rating (based on **** rating system).

FOR LOVE'S SAKE (2012) - directed by Takashi Miike - Japan
Takashi Miike is the quintessential inconsistent director. I suppose that inconsistency goes with the territory of being a filmmaker who churns out more films than Lindsay Lohan churns out STDs. But that being said, it can sometimes be very frustrating watching a Miike film because I know that this is the same man who gave us such classics as ICHI THE KILLER, VISITOR Q and GOZU and if he only took a more "auteur" approach to filmmaking and concentrated on delivering one film every couple of years, his body of work would be regarded in a more positive light. Instead, Miike has developed into a filmmaker whose work can cause a sense of anxiety and dread insofar as you don't know which Miike you're getting this time around. What is consistent about him, however, is his ability to create an incredible opening sequence, a memorable ending and a middle that jumps from one tangent to another before puttering out altogether.

FOR LOVE'S SAKE is very much a Miike film in that regard. This is a musical that combines elements of GREASE with WEST SIDE STORY and going into this, I almost forgot that this was a Miike film and decided to appreciate it as a musical, one of my favorite genres. The first act is a wonderfully absurd commentary on the arbitrary nature of the musical and how in spite of the most serious or ridiculous of circumstances, characters will stop what they're doing to break into song and dance. I really wish the film kept that up for the entire duration of the picture. Unfortunately, as with most Miike films, the story develops and it's a real mess. The film jumps from one scenario to another and goes a good hour without any musical numbers whatsoever. Miike's talents are not in the storytelling department and it shows here. What's really unfortunate is that the film has quite the incredible climactic sequence that actually brought a tear to my eye. But by the time the film lurches over the two-hour mark to get to this sequence, I was bored out of my mind with the rather uninteresting narrative that just plods on and on with no end in sight.

All this being said, the film did go over very well with the audience and that got me thinking about what Miike really excels at. He's the perfect "film festival director" in that while most of his films don't hold up well on home video, they do seem to hit all the right points as far as being a crowd-pleasing production goes. Everyone loved the musical numbers, the sudden bursts of violence and the surreal, black comedy that Japanese genre films seem to do exceedingly well at. And I have to admit, that while I would've hated this film had I been watching a screener alone at home, the fact that I was with an audience made this film seem a lot more tolerable.  Rating: **


DRAGON (2011) - directed by Peter Chan - Hong Kong / China
Donnie Yen is certainly no stranger to Fantasia audiences. His famous IP MAN series were real crowd-pleasers and his screen presence is undeniable. So when it was announced that Yen would be returning to the big screen with another kung-fu classic, I was very much psyched about seeing DRAGON.

Earlier I was discussing consistency and Miike's lack of it as a director. Well, one thing you can't accuse Hong Kong cinema of is inconsistency. The genre films that pour out of the Hong Kong film industry are almost always excellent and are usually the highlights of the Fantasia International Film Festival. It's hard to pinpoint exactly why audiences seem to really connect to these pictures, but I'd have to say that between the glossy, Hollywood-esque production values to the stories that feature timeless values of good vs. evil to the nostalgia factor of genres like martial arts which conjure up memories of watching Shaw Bros., Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan films on VHS, you have sufficient reason for their success.

DRAGON is another winner for Team HK. If you didn't know any better, you could almost confuse this film for being another sequel to IP MAN. It features Yen in a familiar role, a local loved and admired by his village, pushed to the brink of his tolerance for incivility and forced to defend himself and his family against the tyranny of an oppressing regime via his unbelievable kung-fu skills. But what makes this film particularly stand out is its use of absurd comedy vis a vis the character of an inspector who suspects that Yen is more than what he seems. The inspector is also well versed in medicine resulting in a film that sometimes comes across as IP MAN meets HOUSE M.D. Other examples of humor can be found at the end with some comedic overacting on the part of the main villain and the especially absurd way in which he is dispatched.  There are also numerous references to classic Shaw Bros. films, including THE ONE-ARMED SWORDSMEN which got a chuckle out of me.

There are times when it's hard to tell whether DRAGON is supposed to be taken seriously or as a comedy. But by the time the third act rolls along, you realize that this film is clearly meant to be an homage of sorts to the sensibilities of the old Shaw Bros films that always did a magnificent job of balancing serious drama with slapstick humor. If you go into DRAGON thinking that, you'll come out with a big smile on your face. Rating: ***


BLOOD-C: THE LAST DARK (2012) - directed by Naoyoshi Shiotani - Japan
I love anime. Actually, let me correct myself. I love anime circa '80s and '90s. Back then, anime was something new and exciting boasting mature storylines and beautiful hand-drawn animation. Nowadays, I find anime to be cold and pretentious with enough CGI imagery to fool you into thinking you're watching a cut-scene from FINAL FANTASY VII.

I very much enjoyed BLOOD: THE LAST VAMPIRE back when I saw it at a local Manga film festival here in Montreal. But this film left me feeling empty inside. Between a plot that was so convoluted it made MISSION IMPOSSIBLE seem like BILLY MADISON and a style of animation that was just plain ugly to look at, I have to admit that I actually walked out on the film.

While I'm hesitant to give this film a rating at all, I do feel I sat through enough of it to get the gist of where it was going and unfortunately, it was a road not worth travelling on. Rating: *


JUAN OF THE DEAD (2011) - directed by Alejandro Brugues - Cuba
Now this is when Fantasia really got started for me!

I went into this expecting a SHAUN OF THE DEAD clone only with more Cuban cigars, but came out with my stomach literally hurting from having laughed my ass off throughout the entire film. Make no mistake, JUAN OF THE DEAD owes a major debt to its British counterpart. From the concept of an average Joe confronted with an impending zombie apocalypse to the fat comedic sidekick who's horny and dumb as dirt, you could easily write this off as a SOTD knock-off. However, the fact that this film was shot in Cuba and has the 50-years plus background of Communist tyranny behind it, makes this film one of the most fascinating genre mashups ever conceived.

My only regret after watching this film was that I wished director Brugues was in attendance for a Q&A. I would have loved to have learned how a film like this could have been made in Cuba and what, if any, difficulties he experienced in getting the film off the ground. Rating: ***1/2


COLD STEEL (2011) - directed by David Wu - China
While you may not be familiar with the name David Wu, you're most certainly aware of his work as an editor, cutting such Hong Kong classics as A BETTER TOMORROW, HARD-BOILED and A BULLET IN THE HEAD among others. After working in television for 17 years in North America, Wu was finally enticed to return to China to direct this emotional powerhouse of a war film, COLD STEEL.

COLD STEEL has many things going for it. It has a very engaging story that manages to put a human face on wartime and how it affects the individual living through it. It has strong performances that resonate quite profoundly with audiences. And it clearly has Wu's background as an editor imprinted all over it as evident by the smooth pacing of the film that actually makes you wish the film was a little longer than it actually is because you are so sucked into the narrative.

On the other hand, the film does sometimes veer into Michael Bay territory, circa PEARL HARBOR with its pro-China propaganda. In the wake of films like Clint Eastwood's LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA, the gauntlet has been thrown down and the challenge for filmmakers making war pictures is to find a way to move away from the "woe is me, my country is all innocent" motif and into more subtle, mature presentations of what war is really like. However, evil the enemy may be, a lot of the footmen doing the fighting for the powers that be do not necessarily agree and support the mentality that sent them off to war in the first place. Therefore, it behooves filmmakers to find a way to portray both sides as being capable of good and evil. This is a trend I've noticed in a lot of these Chinese war films, which makes one wonder about Chinese-Japanese relations and the politics that underline them. In my interview with David Wu, I tried to get him to open up about this and discuss just how ingrained the memory of what happened in WW II is and whether any lingering negative connotations associated with the enemy may influence their depiction in contemporary films and screenplays. Wu was adamant about wanting to move away from these kinds of films and offer a more human approach and to his credit, he does have a couple of characters that represent the "good side of Japan." But a stronger more consistent effort to present both sides would have been appreciated and is almost expected in today's day and age.

But that being said, the film is a lot of fun with lots of great action set-pieces that conjure up memories of the good old days of Hong Kong genre cinema. Rating: ***


SUSHI GIRL (2012) - directed by Kern Saxton - USA
Let's face it. If this film were made without the killer lineup of cult film heroes that director Saxton was able to rustle up, I don't think the film would have received anywhere near the kind of attention that it's been getting. The story isn't particularly original and the groan-inducing twist at the end is just that.

That being said, the strength of this film lies not in its story and the cliches that comprise it, but rather in the performances of the absolutely dynamite cast and the dynamics of the relationships between the characters that only accomplished and experienced thespians such as these can deliver.

Some of the highlights of this film include Tony Todd delivering a gut-wrenching monologue that will bring as many tears to your eyes as Todd manages to bring to his while reciting his lines. Mark Hamill delivers a deliciously wicked performance that recalls elements of his Joker from BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES. And perhaps the biggest surprise is seeing Atreyu himself, Noah Hathaway delivering a strong leading male performance that will hopefully open more doors for him in the years to come.

Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed the film and the cat-and-mouse game that ensued throughout the piece. There's some great music and sound design that adds an awful lot to the tension of the film. I'm just painfully aware of how unoriginal it is and even more than aware that if there was ever a film whose success was entirely indebted to its cast, it's SUSHI GIRL. Rating: ***


LLOYD THE CONQUEROR (2011) - directed by Michael Peterson - Canada
This is a film that for me, completely epitomizes the newfound "discovery feeling" of the festival. I went into this film with pretty much zero expectations as I hadn't read anything about it nor heard any buzz about the film going into the festival. But when I came out, I had a huge smile on my face and a confident feeling in the future of Canadian cinema, provided that Michael Peterson is given a blank check to make whatever the hell he wants to make from this point out.

LLOYD THE CONQUEROR was my favorite film of the week and will most definitely find a place in my "Top 10" come the end of the festival on August 9th.

As odd as this is going to sound, what this film reminded me of more than anything else was THE SANDLOT. Granted, the characters are a lot older, the film takes place in Calgary, Alberta Canada, and the subject matter is LARPing and not baseball. But the fundamentals of the two films are the same insofar as you have a group of close friends that remind me of my old high school gang who hang out, bust each others' balls and dream about finding that one woman who will blow their mind, among other body parts. This group finds itself in a pickle and enlists the help of the town legend to fight a mutual enemy that stands in their way to a better tomorrow. And in the end they triumph with loads of laughs along the way.

Maybe this film spoke to my inner arrested adolescent or maybe it reminded me of my own childhood and how I grew up with a bunch of friends who had interests that weren't necessarily mainstream-friendly, but either way, I thoroughly enjoyed every frame of this film and sincerely hope this film gets some kind of major theatrical release as the world deserves, nay, needs to learn that Canadians are more than capable of making comedies about men with brooms. Rating: ****



DEAD SUSHI (2012) - directed by Noboru Iguchi - Japan
I have to admit that I was really going to pass on this film. Year after year, I get suckered into watching one of Iguchi's films and I always come out feeling angry and a little less alive for having subjected myself to such unmitigated crap. But my fiancee really wanted to see this film and far be it from me to disappoint her.

Boy am I glad I didn't pass on this!

DEAD SUSHI was surprisingly a lot of fun and a film that managed to sustain the level of absurdity that the concept of the piece promised. While the film is undoubtedly over-the-top and certainly not meant to be taken seriously at all, I was especially surprised to find myself caring about the main female protagonist. I also felt that Iguchi grew as a filmmaker with DEAD SUSHI with some really nice camerawork and angles. Granted, the cinematography still looks like it was the result of a Mini-DV prosumer camera, it does reflect the work of a filmmaker who is starting to mature as an artist.

Never thought I'd say something like that about a film which features a singing egg-sushi! Rating: ***



MY AMITYVILLE HORROR (2012) - directed by Eric Walter - USA
This was one of my most anticipated films of the festival and in many respects I felt it delivered on its promise. I've been following the Amityville story for some time now and I'm a huge fan of the original films, namely the first three, yes even the goofy 3D one! I was especially intrigued by the possibilities of what Daniel Lutz would bring to the table as far as shedding new light on what exactly happened in that fabled house.

To director Eric Walter's credit, Daniel Lutz is given ample time to speak his mind and let his character be revealed bit by bit. We learn that this is a very intense and sad man who was clearly traumatized by whatever happened that night and believes his life was irrevocably scarred by supernatural forces brought upon by his stepfather's interest in the occult. That latter point is probably the most interesting aspect of the film and adds another layer to the mystery of what may have happened that night. In this film we learn that George Lutz was apparently into Satanism, hypnotism and the like and given his penchant for being into such things, it is believed that he served as a gateway for these paranormal forces to influence the lives of the Lutz family.

I found myself absolutely enthralled by this film. My feelings on whether or not this is real notwithstanding, I thought Walter did a tremendous job of not only letting Lutz speak his mind, but also providing another perspective of the story and balancing some of Lutz's more outlandish claims with facts grounded in reality. Truth be told, Lutz does paint a very vivid picture and almost fools you into believing him. It's only when he starts bringing up stories of his stepfather levitating tools in his garage with his mind that Lutz comes across as being delusional, which is a shame because there's a part of me that really wants to believe that there are more things in Heaven and Earth than that of my philosophy. Rating: ***1/2


YOU ARE THE APPLE OF MY EYE (2011) - directed by Giddens Ko - Taiwan
Year after year, Fantasia presents a crop of romantic comedies from the Far East which put the sappy, melodramatic crap Hollywood churns out to shame. This year was no exception. YOU ARE THE APPLE OF MY EYE tells the age-old story of the girl who got away, a feeling that most men can probably relate to. This film was funny, smart, incredibly well-written and more importantly, one of the most realistic romantic comedies I've ever seen in that while we do get a happy ending of sorts, it's a bittersweet one and one that in many respects, can be interpreted as being quite sad. This was a real crowd pleaser and one of my favorites of the fest by far. Rating: ****


MEMORY OF THE DEAD (2011) - directed by Valentin Javier Diment - Argentina
Sadly the only thing memorable about this screening was the fact that for some strange reason, R. Kelly's TRAPPED IN THE CLOSET was playing before the film unspooled on the big screen.

MEMORY OF THE DEAD was billed as a horror-comedy in the vein of EVIL DEAD II, and while the film certainly has that cabin in the woods besieged by supernatural phenomena going for it, it has very little else to show for itself. It's inability to balance comedy and horror coupled with some garish lighting, a cliche-ridden screenplay and some horrible CGI effects where the filmmaker clearly implemented for the sake of doing so and not because he had to, MEMORY OF THE DEAD is a memory I'll be suppressing for the rest of my life. Rating: *1/2


ALTER EGOS (2012) - directed by Jordan Galland - USA
And finally we come to the last film I saw during the first week of Fantasia and boy did it end my week with a bang!

Some might argue that the whole deconstructing the superhero genre and placing these mythological characters within the context of everyday life is played out, particularly in the wake of films such as KICK-ASS, SUPER and to a lesser extent the Christopher Nolan DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY. But quite frankly, if filmmakers can find new and exciting ways to tell these kinds of stories, then more power to them!

ALTER EGOS employs a combination of styles ranging from the neurotic nature of Woody Allen, to the pitch-perfect naturalism of Kevin Smith dialogue to the visual minimalism of Wes Anderson and succeeds in the most entertaining and imaginative way possible. I would love to see this world explored further in a television series where we get to follow the continues adventures of Fridge and the rest of the Superhero Corps. Director Galland creates a universe that is entirely plausible if superheroes did in fact exist in today's world. All the performances are excellent and the costume design is particularly inspired. But is just me or did the actor playing See-Through look an awful lot like Trey Parker? Rating: ***1/2