The Samurai and the Prisoner shares a unique commonality with Rian Johnson‘s recent work. Like Knives Out, it shares themes with the overall story. The film directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa (Cure, Pulse) sees the prolific filmmaker lean into the charm of a detective mystery like an Agatha Christie novel, only here it’s through the lens of a period war drama set
Read MoreNo Rest for the Wicked is an unusually haunting title at Fantasia International Film Festival. One that speaks to the challenges of same-sex relationships through the lens of a supernatural story. The setting is far in the past, but its core themes remain true. The act of love can be treated like a curse by the family members of the LGBTQ+
Read MoreWhen You Open The Door is one of the more unconventional offerings at the 2026 Fantasia International Film Festival. The film brings a fresh approach to the mythology of werewolves. It takes one main character down a mysterious path as she tries to understand the changes inside her. Unlike previous werewolf interpretations, there is no big monster that attacks the central
Read MoreFantasia International Film Festival 2026 brought a familiar talent to the festival. You Are The Film sees playwright Makoto Ueda bring another playful sci-fi concept, only this time he takes a unique spin on the multiverse craze. Ueda, who previously scripted minimalist pieces in the genre such as Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes, River, and Rewrite, moves away from the theme of
Read MoreDuring the opening ceremony of the Fantasia International Film Festival, Her Private Hell director Nicolas Winding Refn was awarded a Cheval Noir Career Achievement Award for his contributions to cinema. He made an impassioned plea on the importance of a festival like Fantasia and genre cinema as a whole: “In the mid-90s, when I began, we really couldn’t make genre movies;
Read MoreFantasia International Film Festival 2026 kicks off this week, and we are back once again to cover the biggest movies from the lineup. Last year brought many great titles, such as Rewrite, Foreigner, and more. The event also featured Sundance darlings like Undertone and Lurker. This year is another stacked lineup with films like Her Private Hell, Corpus, and more Sundance
Read MoreOur Fantasia Film Festival 2025 coverage continues with two unique films that explore themes of isolation. The first is a haunting film about the struggles of assimilation faced by a child of migrants in a white suburban school. The other film centers on a 10 Cloverfield Lane-inspired narrative about a woman trapped inside a moving camper. Foreigner and Hellcat may differ
Read MoreAs has been the case for its previous horror movies, NEON has raked up interesting marketing campaigns for some of their more terrifying titles, such as Osgood Perkins’ Longlegs, The Monkey, and Tilman Singer’s Cuckoo. The studio wants as many people as possible watching in cinemas knowing as little as possible about the movie itself. That’s why you’ll see many ads
Read MoreOur Fantasia Film Festival coverage continues with two films that offer distinctive horror experiences in housing communities. The first is a horror-comedy called Hold the Fort, about an HOA fighting forces of evil in slapstick fashion. The second movie is called Noise, involving a woman with hearing loss attempting to find her missing sister, who disappeared after hearing supernatural noises above
Read MoreEach year, covering Fantasia Film Festival reminds me of how dull America’s writing has become. Rewrite exemplifies this idea, not just because it’s penned by one of Japan’s best sci-fi screenwriters. The film blends an earnest high school drama with a complex time travel story. It’s especially appealing because its source material is inspired by the brilliant anime, The Girl Who
Read MoreFantasia Fest 2025 kicked off over the weekend, and we are here with our first of many reviews. The first is a subversive dark comedy from Grosse Point Blank screenwriter Steve Pink about a group of friends reconnecting with their successful (and unstable) friend who has inherited wealth as a sci-fi novelist. Terrestrial mostly reveals the movie’s conflict inside a mansion.
Read MoreThe time has come for another Fantasia International Film Festival. The Canadian-based festival, which focuses on fantastical genre works, has been the home of numerous great titles over the years. For example, last year saw the premieres of high-profile offerings such as the Neon film Cuckoo and Chris Stuckmann’s debut feature film Shelby Oaks. Fantasia Fest has also welcomed up-and-comers such
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