FANTASTIC FEST: September 25, Day 2

-Kayley Viteo

Ah, reality sunk in a little today. And it kind of hurt.

This morning I woke up with a pounding migraine, completely eliminating possibility of going to my first two screenings. I eventually forced myself out, completely unwilling to miss Antichrist and Trick r Treat (which I’ve been waiting two years for). Sadly, Doghouse will be seen later this week.

One of my favorite things about Fantastic Fest is having the experience of being routinely part of great audiences. You know the kind – where everyone is vocal in all the right places and silent for all the rest, and afterward there’s such a flurry of intelligent conversation that you wish you knew every film nerd in the place so you could sit down outside and have one giant debate about what the hell that ending meant. At Fantastic Fest … as lame as it sounds, you really do feel like part of a big film-loving city, but at the same time, part of one with a small-town feel where you can talk to the person sitting next to you about the merits of Motel Hell. I definitely had that experience tonight at both screenings I made it to, despite the extreme difference between the two.

Antichrist: Well. I hesitate to say much about this one, because it’s so easy to give something away, and I feel like I need some space before I can form coherent sentences about it. Whatever you imagine it to be – if you’re staying away from full reviews, which you should – is nothing like what the actual viewing experience will be. The film is alternately intriguing, horrifying, and disgusting, but also has moments where you feel all three at the same time. I can’t say I liked it, because it’s an impossible film to like, but it is certainly something I will remember for a long time. And there are certain images I would like out of my head immediately.

Trick r Treat: Bringing the horror anthology back with style, I must say. I thoroughly enjoyed myself during this screening. It is a fun romp in the spirit of Creepshow (a personal favorite), but this one creates its own, unique take by tinkering with the format. After the film, I especially liked it when the director, Michael Dougherty, called the semi-official mascot of the picture (that creepy masked midget Sam) the result from when “Satan fucked a pumpkin.” If that doesn’t make you want to see this, then I don’t know what will.

Tomorrow’s plans include Morphine, serial killer documentary Cropsey, The Vampire’s Assistant (John C. Reilly in attendance), Survival of the Dead (George Romero in attendance!), and ending with The Human Centipede, which I am absolutely psyched for. I’ve heard it is absolutely sick, which of course makes me disturbingly excited.

MOVIE OF THE DAY: Antichrist sucked my soul out, and Trick r Treat gave it back, so Trick r Treat for sure.