As Fantastic Fest progresses in Austin, Texas, we’re rounding up our favorite movies at the eight-day celebration of all things genre. And we’ve just added reviews of The Creator, Saltburn, and Dream Scenario.
Fantastic Fest is a celebration of all things weird and wonderful in the world of film, featuring everything from horror and sci-fi, to comedy and tragedy. As well as stuff that defies categorization.
Dexerto is on the ground in Austin, reviewing what’s playing, interviewing directors and producers in attendance, and rounding up the best of what we have seen and heard below.
So expect write-ups of everything from Totally Killer and the new Pet Sematary movie, to more independent fare like Your Lucky Day, Suitable Flesh, and Jackdaw. But we’re starting with big-budget sci-fi that features big ideas and themes…
The Creator
The Creator is the new film from Gareth Edwards, whose previous credits include Monsters, Godzilla, and Rogue One. And it’s a masterful tale of AI’s future that considers how a war between man and machines might play out.
Here’s what we said in our 5-star review: “The Creator is bold, passionate, hard sci-fi that grips from intriguing start to devastating finish. It asks tough questions at a time when the dangers of AI are on everyone’s minds. And doesn’t offer any easy answers, the movie journeying to some pretty dark places.”
Saltburn
Writer-director Emerald Fennell burst onto the movie scene with Promising Young Woman. Saltburn is her follow-up, and a film that similarly revolves around power dynamics. But here’s she’s examining class and status, in the most blackly comic way imaginable.
Here’s what we had to say about the movie in the Dexerto review: “Saltburn is about secrets and lies. Desire and deception. With violence, and sexual depravity thrown in for good measure… It’s bravura stuff, which proves Promising Young Woman was no fluke, and that Emerald Fennell is one of the most exciting filmmaking talents to emerge in recent years. Here doing amazing things with one of our brightest stars.”
Dream Scenario
What if one man started appearing in everyone’s dreams? And what if that man was played by Nicolas Cage? That’s the set-up for Dream Scenario, a dark comedy-drama from writer-director Kristoffer Borgli.
Some thoughts from the Dexerto review: “Dream Scenario is a sharp satire that straddles genres, starting funny, veering into drama, briefly turning scary, then ending with a fair amount of tragedy. But if you like movies that defy both categorization – and convention – it’s a wild ride; one that’s elevated by a fearless Nic Cage performance.”
The Toxic Avenger
Here’s the brand-new synopsis for Macon Blair’s star-studded reboot of Troma’s Toxic Avenger: The film follows the story of struggling everyman-janitor Winston Gooze, who is transformed by a horrible toxic accident into a new evolution of hero: The Toxic Avenger! Now with super-human strength and wielding a glowing mop for his unconventional weapon, he must race against time to save his son and stop a ruthless and power-hungry corporate tyrant bent on harnessing toxic superpowers to strengthen his polluted empire.
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While this is what we said about the movie in the Dexerto review: “Macon Blair and the Toxie team are walking a tightrope with this new movie, introducing the character to an all-new audience, while needing to keep longtime fans happy. And they’ve succeeded in spectacular style, maintaining the broad humor of the original, but lending the story layers and depth. The result isn’t just a good Toxic Avenger movie, but a great superhero movie.”
The Fall of the House of Usher
Fantastic Fest screened the first two episodes of The Fall of the House of Usher, which is Mike Flanagan’s adaptation of the Edgar Allan Poe short story. And they went down a storm. But we were also sent the rest of the series for review purposes, and we loved them just as much.
You can read out spoiler-free review here. Where we said: “The Fall of the House of Usher is a minor miracle. The show takes old stories and gives them a smartly satirical modern spin. Plays out over five decades, but effortlessly segues between generations through clever cuts and transitions. And features a huge ensemble, yet – a couple of characters aside – gives pretty much everyone a satisfying arc.”
Crumb Catcher
Written and directed by Chris Skotchdopole – and produced by Larry Fessenden – Crumb Catcher is a black comedy that will have you laughing, but also get your anxiety rising, as a broadly comic set-up turns scary and then violent.
Shane and Leah are newlyweds who receive a late-night visit from John and Rose, desperate to pitch their new invention. Which is the Crumb Catcher of the title, something these interlopers claim will “revolutionise the dining experience.” They seem funny at first, if a little deranged. But as their ulterior motives becomes clear, the couple realise this is a home invasion, and they are in very real – and very present – danger.
The script goes to unexpected places that are impossible to predict, while Skotchdopole deftly ratchets up the tension as proceedings turn progressively dark, and build towards a deeply unpleasant – but utterly gripping – conclusion.
Suitable Flesh
Suitable Flesh is the horniest film we’ve seen at the festival thus far, starring Heather Graham and Barbara Crampton in a pervy adaptation of HP Lovecraft story ‘The Thing on the Doorstep.’
Here’s what we wrote in the Dexerto review: “With Suitable Flesh, director Joe Lynch has crafted a fun-filled horror that’s worthy of Stuart Gordon, and demands to be played alongside Re-Animator and From Beyond as part of the ultimate HP Lovecraft trilogy.”
That’s what we’ve seen thus far, but check back for more reviews as-and-when movies screen, while for all our Fantastic Fest coverage, head here.