We’re Gonna Haul Ass to Fantastic Fest 2023!
In just a few days, one of the most glorious weeks of the year will soon be upon us. Fantastic Fest, the week-long genre film festival held annually in Austin TX, kicks off this Thursday. And, as we’ve done in years past, Neon Splatter will be there! We’ll be watching the movies and hanging with our fellow nerds at Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar for those geektastic eight days and taking in all sorts of sights and sounds and smells of cinema. Turning in reviews and insights from our time at Fantastic Fest and hopefully hipping folks to some movies they should be checking out in the not-too-distant future.
Including shorts, restorations, and four (4!) secret screenings this year, there are over 100 titles playing the festival. They are intriguing—spanning the globe, time, and the boundaries of good taste with all levels of budgets present.
[As for the four secret screenings, my guesses is that it’ll be four from this bunch of eight titles: SAW X, THE EXORCIST: BELIEVER, THANKSGIVING, NO ONE WILL BELIEVE YOU, NEXT GOAL WINS, DICKS: THE MUSICAL, THE ROYAL HOTEL, HAVOC (Gareth Evans’ new film). Will I be right? Probably not! But we’ll see what the future holds.]
Here at NS, we’ll be checking out as many as possible and writing about them. Not to mention special events like Found Footage Fest Volume 10, podcast recordings, American Genre Film Archive (AGFA) presentations, a dope drag show, and much much more.
But what titles am I most interested in checking out at Fantastic Fest 2023? Glad you asked!
Ten Titles I’m Most Interested
In At Fantastic Fest 2023
(in no particular order)
THE PEOPLE’S JOKER
Directed/co-written/starring Vera Drew, this is a (for legal purposes, satirical) retelling of the well-worn dynamic betwixt the Dark Knight and the Clown Prince of Crime. Originally supposed to play Fantastic Fest last year, the intriguing movie was squashed by Warner Bros. and is only now beginning to make more festival rounds to rowdy rave reviews.
But what’s it all about? Gotham’s Clown Prince of Crime takes the superhero movie hostage to clear up some misconceptions. First, Batman is not the hero we need but a corporate branding megalomaniac, and second, the Joker is a trans woman trying to liberate comedy from tech giant overlords. If this sounds like it’s not officially sanctioned, you’d be a perfect candidate for the Penguin and Joker’s anti-comedy troupe. THE PEOPLE’S JOKER is a rebellious, copyright-pushing ode to the Harlequin of Hate.
WE ARE ZOMBIES
Anouk Whissell, Yoann-Karl Whissell, and François Simard make up the film collective known as RKSS, a badass trio responsible for TURBO KID and SUMMER OF 84. So I will always check out their latest. Always.
But what’s it all about? Set in a city populated by the living-impaired (the non-cannibalistic zombies, mind you), we follow a group of slacker buddies who have concocted a totally foolproof plan to score money off the zombies by ripping off the super-evil Coleman Corporation, which is making money off the living-impaired by promising them a sweet retirement plan by collecting their decomposing bodies from their families for a fee.
The trio intercepts the collection efforts in order to sell the bodies themselves. All seems to be going well until the gang’s grandmother is kidnapped by the corporation, and to pay off the ransom, they must run increasingly madcap and dangerous errands for them.
WAKE UP
Remember just above when I said I would always check out films by RKSS? Good news, everybody! They actually have two movies playing Fantastic Fest this year. The Montreal trio know how to deliver impressive violence, surprising gore, delightful comedy, and genuine heart with their works, and WAKE UP sounds like it’ll follow suit.
But what’s it all about? Incensed by the environmental destruction wrought by a fictitious minimalist Swedish furniture store, the band of six sneaks into the big-box store after hours to wreak havoc of their own, gleefully destroying displays and smearing animal blood on bathroom fixtures for the benefit of the ‘gram.
As emboldened as they may be, their sense of outrage pales in comparison to the seething, decades-long resentment of the night watchman, Kevin. Already teetering on the edge of sanity and now piqued by his mistreatment at the hands of management and the disrespectful 20-somethings, he eagerly accepts their bloody invitation, putting his "primitive hunting" techniques to good use. As Kevin creatively picks off members of the collective one by one, those that remain stage a final stand in an attempt to make it out alive
SPOOKTACULAR
Admittedly, this one is pure personal bias. A documentary about Spooky World has me from the jump as I went to that Massachusetts horror theme park A LOT as a kid and loved it. Now I get to see the rise, heyday, and fall of the whole operation—plus various inside stories and what’s followed after? Yes please.
The doc tells the story of Spooky World’s founder, David Bertolino, a PR-savvy mix of P.T. Barnum and Stephen King who parlayed his experience working in his father’s costume shop into creating the largest horror scream park of its kind. Interwoven into Bertolino’s narrative, the film delves into the lives of the aspiring actors and misfits from the nearby rural community who grew up working as the park’s haunters. The romances, the scandals, and so many potentially flammable scenarios...
THE CREATOR
Gareth Edwards has always been an intriguing filmmaker, from MONSTERS to GODZILLA and even his (disputed) work on ROGUE ONE. The director has a great eye for epic depictions of grand stories, while also delivering those grand stories on a more human level. This prescient tale of AI gone amuck (which combine with some Lone Wolf And Cub vibes it’s giving off) boasts cool visuals and the possibility of another melding of the human with the massive.
But what’s it all about? Joshua, a hardened ex-special forces agent grieving the disappearance of his wife, is recruited to hunt down and kill the Creator, the elusive architect of advanced AI who has developed a mysterious weapon with the power to end the war…and mankind itself. Joshua and his team of elite operatives journey across enemy lines, into the dark heart of AI-occupied territory, only to discover the world-ending weapon he’s been instructed to destroy is an AI in the form of a young child.
THE SACRIFICE GAME
Throwbacks are a tricky gamble. For every HOUSE OF THE DEVIL there are three MURDERCISEs. While the era trappings hopefully help the story, the premise of isolated kids squaring off against a satanic cult in ways sinister and madcap sounds terrific. Wexler’s previous film (and feature debut), THE RANGER, had its issues, but hopefully time and experience has ironed those out for this new movie to soar.
But what’s it all about? With nowhere to go for the winter break, Samantha and Clara must spend the season at their snowy boarding school. Unbeknownst to them, the building is the end point of a series of demonic sacrifices, and the two students are the only ones left to put a stop to the summoning ceremony before it’s too late.
With a little bit of HOME ALONE, a little bit of teen angst, and a lot of grisly murder, THE SACRIFICE GAME examines 1970s disillusionment as a feminist coming-of-age tale with plenty of haunts and kills along the way. As the ritual creeps closer, the girls must confront the dangerous cult and the numerous ways their guardians and institutions have failed to protect them from patriarchal control.
TRIGGERED
Festival programmer Lori Donnelly wrote of this film: “Boasting a massive body count that would make John Woo proud, TRIGGERED revels in decadent ‘80s- and ‘90s-style bloodshed.” A movie that tries to recapture the bullet ballet of those Hong Kong? Even if it misses the mark, that’s an endeavor we can get behind and hopefully leads to more revivals of such intense outings.
But what’s it all about? Miguel is the sole survivor of a military operation gone horribly wrong, haunted by the brutal death of his best friend at the hands of a militant cult in the heart of the Philippine jungle. Still suffering from the effects of PTSD, Miguel procures a job as a night watchman in a Manila warehouse where (in)conveniently "everything is flammable and explosive" as he attempts to uneventfully re-enter civilian life.
Living in the city’s northern slums, Weng attempts to keep her good-for-nothing younger brother, Bogs, on the straight and narrow. When he runs afoul of the local kingpin, Weng reluctantly agrees to return to her illicit past as a drug runner for the notorious Valdez crew in exchange for his life.
Meanwhile, Romero, the head of a by any means necessary anti-narcotics unit, has been given orders by his colonel to wipe the Valdez crew out to keep the corrupt mayor’s ties to cartel money off the record. When Weng and Bogs narrowly escape the bloody scene and take shelter in Miguel’s warehouse, he escorts the interlopers from the premises, but not before the police intervene. Now Miguel and Weng must engage in the most brutal warfare in a no-holds-barred fight for their lives.
KILL
Another movie that’s been getting lots of buzz from its other festival showings, KILL sounds like a relentless actioner full of impossible stunts and bone-breaking sequences. Not only are these types of films deliriously good times, but throw in a genre crowd and you have the recipe for an all-timer screening filled with raucous applause and face melting action.
But what’s it all about? Army commando Amrit has just finished a mission off the grid, and he’s looking forward to spending his time off-duty with his girlfriend, Tullika. Unaware of their clandestine relationship, Tullika’s father has arranged a marriage to another man. She’s set to travel back to New Delhi by train with her family the next morning.
Strong headed Amrit is not going to just stand by, and he boards the train with his best bud, another commando named Viresh, in the hopes of getting her back and proposing to her. The plans are rapidly shattered by a group of 40 violent, blade-wielding thugs led by Fani, who have boarded the train to relieve the passengers of their precious belongings. Amrit and Viresh are men of action, and they’re not going to just sit and watch. Let the skull crushing begin.
TOTALLY KILLER
Yet another throwback! But this feels more like a self-aware, BACK TO THE FUTURE-style exploration of the era as opposed to superficially wrapping itself up in the decade’s trappings. TOTALLY KILLER’s time traveling high concept is reminiscent of the other slashers + plot gimmicks that have come out recently—like the killer plus body swapping of FREAKY or the time loop plus murderer of HAPPY DEATH DAY. Director Nahnatchka Khan helmed the delightful ALWAYS BE MY MAYBE after years producing American Dad (one of the best and least appreciated shows airing in the past decade). Hopefully she’ll bring that irreverent hilarity to a movie with some genuine scares.
But what’s it all about? 35 years after the shocking murder of three teens, the infamous “Sweet Sixteen Killer“ returns on Halloween night to claim a fourth victim. 17-year-old Jamie ignores her overprotective mom’s warning and comes face to face with the masked maniac and on the run for her life, accidentally time travels back to 1987, the year of the original killings. Forced to navigate the unfamiliar and outrageous culture of the 1980s, Jamie teams up with her teen mom to take down the killer once and for all before she’s stuck in the past forever.
RIDDLE OF FIRE
Cards on the table: I’m a sucker for “Kids on Bikes Go On Adventures” movies. Hell, I co-wrote a musical based on one of them! And, again, throwback movies can be a precarious situation. Luckily, RIDDLE OF FIRE seems to only harken back to the spirit of those Amblin entertainments and not the literal decades. There’s plenty of buzz from the other festivals its played, leaving us very intrigued about what writer/director Weston Razooli has concocted.
But what’s it all about? Three mischievous children on dirt bikes, armed with paint guns and cocky attitudes, launch an attack at a local warehouse, outwitting a security guard and “liberating” the very latest video game console for themselves in the process. But when they get home to play, they encounter one big problem: Mom’s set an airtight password on the TV. Thus begins an epic quest to discover the password, with the kids finding themselves on an odyssey more exciting than anything they could have found onscreen.
These are just SOME of the titles that are interesting to us before the festival unfolds. Who knows what will be discovered once it all kicks off? Be sure to join us for our Fantastic Fest coverage over the next two weeks to see how these met/failed/exceeded our expectations and what other genre movies you should seek out.
(And if you’re attending, come say hi to us!)
Poster design by Chris Bilheimer