Fantastic Fest Coverage – Day 8
Fantastic Fest: Day 8
-Kayley Viteo
The final day of Fantastic Fest was a good day, even if I was only able to cram two screenings in. I’m already feeling a bit nostalgic for the random conversations with other film nerds and chocolate milkshakes at midnight screenings, but I also have to admit that I’m looking forward to a full night’s sleep and going to bed before 4 in the morning.
Secret Screening: This turned out to be Universal Soldier: A New Beginning, which I knew nothing about. It’s another movie in the Universal Soldier series, which are essentially action flicks about engineered humans programmed to carry out orders. I can’t say I loved this one, but it certainly was entertaining and I love the realistic fight sequences. Plus, you can’t really go wrong with Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren, can you? And there’s the interesting addition of real-life MMA fighter turned actor Andre “The Pitbull”Arlovski, who only has 6 lines (and that’s probably a good thing).
Daybreakers: Surprisingly smart and edgy, this one. Set in the year 2019, the population has been turned into vampires via plague and now faces a blood shortage crisis. During the Q&A, Harry Knowles of Ain’t It Cool News said it right when he commented that the film is much more sci-fi than fantasy, as the vampires in this universe are born of a plague rather than a mystical force. The film is weakest when it tries to be emotional and instead ends up trite, but the film is an intriguing take on a sub-genre that desperately needed something new (and NOT PG-13) to revitalize itself. What’s so great about this one is that it is a movie made outside the reach of Hollywood and therefore escapes some of the traps of working with a studio. The directors (the Spierig Brothers) did most of the visual effects work themselves on personal laptops, which is astonishing considering how amazing it looks. Additionally, the creatures aren’t digitally created, which is refreshing given the reliance on CGI nowadays. All in all, this is an intelligent and entertaining film.
Watch the site later this week for full reviews on horror movies I’ve seen this week, as well as a festival wrap-up where I’ll talk about what I loved (and hated) at this year’s Fantastic Fest. I’ll also have some photos from various Q&A’s to share and one or two videos.
See our Complete Coverage Below:
Day One: Macabre, Paranormal Activity
Day Two: Trick r Treat, Antichrist
Day Three: Morphine, Cirque Du Freak, Survival of the Dead
Day Four: Duress, The House of the Devil, The Children
Day Five: Mandrill, Mantopia, REC 2
Day Six: Rampage, A Serious Man, Dread
Fantastic Fest Award Winners Announced!
Day Seven: Sweet Karma, Fish Story, Doghouse
