[Fantasia ’21] Movies to watch out for at the Fantasia Film Festival

The Fantasia Film Festival is one day away from the start of its 25th anniversary. (For those who are there in person, it is technically starting tonight with a screening of The Suicide Squad.) This year, Fantasia will be honoring the part that Asian cinema has played in the festival’s history. There will be an enhanced focus on Asian films. Plenty of great looking films coming for genre fans; here are some of the ones we cannot wait to see.

Juli Cabot

The Feast

I had the pleasure of seeing The Feast make its United States premier at SXSW ‘21; now, the film premiers to Canadian audiences at Fantasia. A horror movie about an unexpected visitor, The Feast is a quietly brilliant Welsh film unlike anything I’ve ever seen.

Midnight

Midnight is a South Korean crime drama about a hearing impaired woman trying to escape from a dangerous murderer. Suspenseful chases and stressful escapes ensue; I can’t wait.

Regina Chavez Muir

The Beta Test

I loved The Wolf of Snow Hollow so I was super psyched to see that Jim Cummings’ new film The Beta Test was making the rounds at the festival circuit. This horror thriller has it all. Extortion, adultery, and most of all . . .murder!

Not Quite Dead Yet

Directed by Shinji Hamasaki, this comedy is an adventure in death and family bonding. A CEO at a pharmaceutical company is in a bind. To escape he takes a drug that puts him in more danger than his career troubles. The only one who can save him is his daughter. 

Nathaniel Muir

Hellbender

There are not enough coming of age occult movies out there. A lonely young girl finds guidance through her family’s suppressed supernatural lineage. Growing up is scary enough on its own, throwing in the supernatural makes things that much more interesting.

The Last Thing Mary Saw

It is the spring of 1840 and a family comes together to mourn the loss of their matriarch. Before long, a young woman is placed under investigation. Her recollection of events sheds new light on the tragedy.

The Fantasia Film Festival takes place in person and online from August 5 – August 25