BACKCOUNTRY
In Connecticut, where I grew up, we bungee cord our trash cans closed. In truth, it does not do a damn thing when Black Bears come into the yard and rip those suckers open like they’re peeling back foil on a yogurt cup. I once had a very close encounter when I almost hit a baby bear while pulling into the driveway. And we all know what baby bears mean, right? Mama is not far behind. Although I now live in Manhattan, I have not fully left behind the days of hiking and camping in a tent. None of this fancy RV business for my family. We had a tent, built legit fires, and funded the new wing of the L.L. Bean flagship store as any respectable New Englander should. By no means do I consider myself any sort of expert on the outdoors, but damnit, I was a campfire girl. I earned badges. Watching Adam MacDonald‘s new film BACKCOUNTRY kinda ruined all those blissful memories for me. To be clear, I mean that in the best way possible. 
Jenn and Alex take a few days off from their city life to go hiking in a state park where Alex had spent time as a youngster. Insistent that he knows where they are heading sans map, Jenn musters up the confidence to trust her boyfriend’s experience, although she’s no dummy. Jenn is armed with bear spray and a flare, just for comfort. Along the way, they encounter an odd fellow named Brad. Brad is a backcountry tour guide who instantly challenges Alex’s manhood. It’s not long before the audience senses the dread on Alex’s face. We know as soon as he does, they are lost. In the middle of the woods, no map, no other people anywhere is screaming distance, can these two survive long enough to make it back to civilization? Certain doom.
Missy Peregrym is a force as Jenn. Her vulnerability is only matched by her wit and strength, as she claws her way through this nightmare. Jeff Roop plays Alex. He’s a well-meaning guy, if not a tad emasculated via circumstance. You completely buy that these two are a couple. Their chemistry is palpable and wholeheartedly relatable. You feel for them as you fear for them. Eric Balfour plays creepy man, Brad. He is great in every role. There is something just off enough about his demeanor to keep you on your toes. Balfour is that guy you never want to meet in this scenario. The uncomfortable factor hits a high note once he steps onto the screen. Massive high five to Adam MacDonald for injecting elements of truth into the script. Even if you aren’t an avid outdoors person, this film will still freak you out. Nature is not something to be trifled with. You need to respect it. you’re in its house out there. 
The film has a fantastic sense of peril from the get-go. A cute couple, venturing off in the wilderness, unaccompanied, already equals “bad shit is most definitely going down”, all attributed to MacDonald‘s brilliant sense of realism. The sound editing is exquisite and the handheld camera work makes you feel like you’re right with Jenn and Alex, even if you wish you weren’t. With a 15-day shooting schedule, the quality of practical effects in Backcountry is huge. These guys should teach a masterclass based solely on one scene in the film. Combined with the genius use of soft focus probably saves the audience from actually vomiting while watching. (Again, a total compliment.) 
I got to have an awesome conversation with Adam. I’m pretty sure we’re friends now in some weird, fellow camper, bear scare induced, land. The following is our chat. We delve into some pretty spoilery questions about the film, talk about the subway, women in film, and pretty much everything in between. And, don’t worry, that moment of silence in there is when Adam was pulling up a picture that Missy sent him on his phone, so hang in there. It continues to be pretty great.
BACKCOUNTRY will be available in theaters and on VOD on Friday, March 20th.
CLOSE TO YOU
CLOSE TO YOU
CLOSE TO YOU
Augmented color choices in STRANGE DARLING give the film a devilish and addicting quality. The score is grating and decidedly ominous- A genuine compliment. The lighting is simply delicious. The soundtrack is fire, as the kids say. 
Fitzgerald and Gallner’s chemistry is sick. There is an undeniable electricity between them, and it’s like watching a a sexy car crash happen in real time. The plot is spectacularly unpredictable. Don’t bother guessing from moment to moment, even though Mollner’s script hypes you up to do so. The sheer number of “Oh Shit” moments! Slow clap, sir.
DETAINED
Laz Alonzo does a fine job as the hypermasculine group leader, doing his best to keep up with Cornish. Speaking of, Abbie Cornish owns this role. It’s a tour de force. From the moment we see her, it’s already over.
Mucci and Palmer give Cornish the time to work her magic. We know her gears are turning throughout. Watching the dominoes fall is delightful. While I worked out a key plot point relatively early- I watch hundreds of films each year, it never lessened the elaborate twists. I still wondered precisely how we’d get from point A to B. Audiences get a lot to chew on in just over ninety minutes. DETAINED is devilishly satisfying.
CUCKOO
Abandonment and unresolved trauma collide with a monster movie and mad scientist in Tilman Singer‘s (
For all things Fantasia 2024, 
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Eddie Izzard owns the titular role of Nina Jekyll. Delivering two fully fleshed-out personalities, one can only imagine the personal stake in Izzard’s performance. She is utterly mesmerizing, devouring Kelly-MulhernIt’s versions of Nina and Rachel. It is one hell of a turn. 
DOCTOR JEKYLL is endlessly intriguing, playing on the raw emotions and hitting every horror note, with precision. The finale is visually spectacular. DOCTOR JEKYLL is a prime example of keen manipulation.
DIRECTOR Joe Stephenson 
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Synopsis
The production design by Lauren Kelly delivers visuals that are startling and sneaky. Creepy art pieces, like the anatomical drawing behind Ted’s desk to the Rorschach paintings, hung in the house subconsciously keep you off kilter. Darcy’s shop even houses director Damian McCarthy‘s disquieting rabbit from his 2020 terrifier CAVEAT.
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After the success of 
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It’s been 21 long years since Scooter McCrae (SHATTER DEAD) released a new feature, and he’s lost none of his smart, transgressive bite. Desperate for work, Derek (Damian Maffei, THE STRANGERS: PREY AT NIGHT) accepts a job at a shady tech start-up, working intimately with Susan (Yvonne Emilie Thälker in a powerful debut role), a bleeding-edge BDSM sex doll meant to receive and appreciate sexual punishment as an integral part of her evolving AI. Shot on Super 16, BLACK EYED SUSAN counterbalances its dark, vulgar core with a surprisingly tender vulnerability, creating a lo-fi science-fiction landscape infused with surprising fragility, as legendary Italian composer Fabio Frizzi (THE BEYOND, ZOMBIE) lends the picture a lush, atmospheric backdrop. Not for the faint of heart, BLACK EYED SUSAN delves into themes and questions that will only become more pertinent with the continued evolution of artificial intelligence. World Premiere.
A true DIY passion project from Estonian filmmaker Sander Maran, CHAINSAWS WERE SINGING is a zany, blood-soaked musical about lovers split up by a chainsaw-wielding killer. Over a decade in the making, Saran not only directed but wrote, scored, shot, and edited this colorful murder-fest that’s part gory horror movie and part ridiculous musical. The camerawork is inventive, the editing slapstick, and the tone truly absurdist. Most importantly, though, the songs are incredibly catchy, with Sander clearly deeply indebted to Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s CANNIBAL! THE MUSICAL and Frank Oz’s LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS. Underground Section. International Premiere.
The stunning sophomore feature from award-winning director Carlota Pereda (
My favorite shorts collection of the year, this wildly eclectic and insanely talented group of female filmmakers aims to please, shock, and gag audiences. You never know what you’ll get with each passing year and I get giddy in anticipation. Fantasia 2024’s Born Of Woman lineup includes the following films:
THE BLEACHER
WILDFLOWER
DEAD TOOTH
Filmmaker Patrick Dickinson brings audiences a nuanced tale of loss and love in COTTONTAIL. Following the death of his wife, Kenzaburo travels with his son and his young family to fulfill his late wife’s last wish, to scatter her ashes at Lake Windemere in England. The film flashes back in time, giving us intimate details of the love story between Kenzaburo and Akiko. 
Tae Kimura gives an award-worthy performance as Akiko. The depth is mesmerizing. You will remember it. Lily Franky delivers a stunning complexity in Kenzaburo. Dickinson skillfully draws out the rift between him and his son Toshi (a fantastic Ryo Nishikido). The built-up guilt and regret flow off the screen as Franky moves from scene to scene. So, too, does the fierce adoration for his wife. 
Dickinson places the audience in a precarious emotional state once we witness the hardships of Akiko’s progressing condition and Kenzaburo’s increasing frustrations with losing the wife he vowed to love through thick and thin. The discussion of the impact of acting as a primary caregiver hangs above the film like a dark cloud, allowing the redemption narrative to hold your heart. COTTONTAIL is about the individuality of grief, keeping secrets, and human connection. It is an undeniably beautiful and affecting film.
Starring Academy Award® Nominee 
Shane Dax Taylor‘s WWII drama imagines the never-before-told story of a secret mission. While all the elements of greatness are there, MURDER COMPANY delivers a rather average film. I never found myself emotionally invested in the characters, which is unfortunate because performances from the entire ensemble deliver solid work. I found myself drifting. The battle scenes felt noticeably repetitive as if a few days had been spent in the same wooded location and shot from only a few different angles. The dialogue suffered the same fate. I couldn’t repeat a single line after watching. The FX were similarly subpar. Bullet holes were glaringly CG, and it was frankly distracting. War films are immense undertakings. Tackling an untold story adds extra scrutiny. Filmmakers should have taken more advantage of Kelsey Grammer‘s abilities. Ultimately, Murder Company waves the white flag.
It stars William Moseley (The Chronicles of Narnia trilogy, “The Royals”), Pooch Hall (“Ray Donovan,” “The Game”), Gilles Marini (Sex and the City, “Switched at Birth”), Joe Anderson (Across the Universe, The Crazies), and Kelsey Grammer (“Cheers,” “Frasier”).
The heightened sound editing by Andrew Siedenburg and Nikolay Antonov is a character in the film. There is no better way to articulate its effect. The camera work from Lidia Nikonova swings from following closeups to static long takes, and it is nothing short of magnificent.
There is a theatrical delivery of much of the dialogue. Deragh Campbell is marvelous playing Katy. She delivers a compelling performance, reminding us how much we rely on the family matriarch to set our boundaries. Campbell’s pervasive anxiety flows on the screen.
The film brilliantly captures the poetic chaos of family gatherings. A myriad of intimate vignettes are all swirling together in an authentic picture where time loses all meaning. FAMILY PORTRAIT is haunting in so many ways. It will leave you breathless and wanting more.
Danell Leyva does a great job of being entirely unlikeable. Victoria Vertuga gives Tasha a fierce presence. She is very watchable. It is Jamie Bernadette who steals the show playing Briar. Everything from her blunt haircut to her unsettling delivery is star quality. I want a prequel where she and Torrey Lawrence lead.
Filmmaker Eric Williford starts his new film off with a bang. The editing by Timothy Widmann is effective. Practical FX are solid and in your face. Cold Blows The Wind is a mysterious story of body-snatching possession on unholy ground. So much of the film feels inspired by the Evil Dead franchise, with a few other classic homages mixed in. Williford offers bits and pieces of backstory. Even though we are left to fill in the blanks, the potential is clear. There is enough meat on the bone (pun intended) to keep audiences hungry.
Performances from the entire cast are magnificent. Yoav Levi is Captain Hayim Amzalag, the prisonguard tasked with orchestrating the clandestine plans for the most valuable prisoner of war. Hayim’s anxiety manifests in a toothache, a burst blood vessel, and digestive issues as he dodges the press. Levi brings a dazzling physicality to the role. You will not soon forget him.
Noam Ovadia is David, a precocious, tenacious, Lybyan-Israeli who identifies as an Arab and Sephardic Jew learning perspective on the Nazis. Procuring an after-school job, David uses his quick-witted brain to solve problems. Ovadia is a star. It is an award-worthy turn. He outshines every other cast member.
Tom Shoval and Paltrow wrote the screenplay. In the third storyline, we explore Micah (Tom Hagi
Upon his upcoming release from a specialized mental hospital in Scandinavia, a man suddenly reveals his connection to a string of murders. His therapist and the police officer on the case go down the rabbit hole, putting all three of them in a precarious relationship. 
Gustaf Skarsgård is Mads a deep sadness. His gentle nature is at odds with his confessions, although his true motivations feel evident from the beginning. Nevertheless, Skarsgård delivers an emotionally wrought performance. 
Haunting takes in the gloomy natural light of a rainstorm or afternoon in an unlit room, capturing the dark essence of the narrative. The true story behind the film is one of the most unusual in criminal history. In the 1990s, Sture Ragnar Bergwall (later known as 
Goodnight Mommy filmmakers Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz‘s latest film, The Devil’s Bath, opens with a 
SYNOPSIS – In 1750 Austria, a deeply religious woman named Agnes has just married her beloved, but her mind and heart soon grow heavy as her life becomes a long list of chores and expectations. Day after day, she is increasingly trapped in a murky and lonely path leading to evil thoughts, until the possibility of committing a shocking act of violence seems like the only way out of her inner prison. Giving a voice to the invisible and unheard women of the rural past; THE DEVIL’S BATH is based on historical court records about a shocking, hitherto unexplored chapter of European history.
VERONICA FRANZ (Writer & Director) studied German and philosophy and worked as a journalist. She has also worked as an artistic collab-orator with Ulrich Seidl since 1997 and co-wrote the screenplays for all of his films including DOG DAYS (2001), IMPORT EXPORT (2007), the PARADISE trilogy (2012/13) and WICKED GAMES – RIMINI SPARTA (2023). In 2003 she also founded the Ulrich Seidl Filmproduktion GmbH with him.
Beth’s protective best friend Julia, played by Alex Essoe, balances Emma’s anxiety-ridden nature. Essoe’s level-headed portrayal feels authentically grounded. Juliette Kenn de Balinthazy as Lex is extra cool as writers David Blair and Vida give her character a rare disease, making her unable to sense physical pain. Juliette Kenn de Balinthazy is a star.
Jane Badler plays Mona with an eccentric personality, fully tapping into her career toolbox. Wise and mesmerizing, curious and terrifying, Badler delivers an intriguing villain like the pro she is. Beth Million is Emma. She is timid, paranoid, and desperate for cash. Million is relatable and quietly powerful.
A celebration of family-friendly indie filmmaking, Invaders From Proxima B has arrived to delight the budding cinephile. Ward Roberts brings audiences a whimsical story of intergalactic mayhem.
Bo Roberts is a natural as daughter Ruby. Her comic timing is a hoot. Samantha Sloyan is effortlessly charming as Mom, Jane. We get both sitcom motherly goodness and slackstick joy from Sloyan. She is a dynamo.
The inspiration from Disney’s Lilo and Stitch is unmistakable, but Invaders From Proxima B has an edgier narrative. I’m not exaggerating when I tell you Chuck’s first line of dialogue elicited a genuine guffaw from my mouth. Incredible Seusian animation acts as transition storytelling. The editing and use of GoPro add to the kid-centric perspective. This alien invader, body-swapping comedy is a laugh-out-loud, enchanting watch for the weekend. Check it out!
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