Dread Central is excited to be covering the 2024 Fantasia International Film Festival this year. Last year’s festival was chock full of the latest and greatest in genre filmmaking. #Manhole, which premiered at last year’s festival, was one of my favorites of the entire year, and Where the Devil Roams, now available to stream on Tubi, shouldn’t be missed. This year’s festival includes a bonafide slate of must-see movies, and here, we’ll be spotlighting the five we’re most excited to see.
Ghost Cat Anzu
Animator Yoko Kuno directs this supernatural riff on bucolic, Japanese anime. A young girl and her ghost cat embark upon a visit to her mother’s grave, only to end up detoured to Hell by means of an, I kid you not, out-of-service toilet. There, they must contend with a legion of demons. My bias is showing here, but Ghost Cat Anzu hits all the marks for me. Anime? Cats? Demons? Sign me up.
The Soul Eater
After a remarkable run these past few years with Kandisha and The Deep House, French filmmakers Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo return with The Soul Eater in its North American premiere. Opting for more of a procedural vibe than a straight horror one, I’m thrilled to see what the pair do in a different genre space. We reviewed the film earlier this year, calling it a “disturbing feast,” and my FOMO will finally be satisfied when I get to catch The Soul Eater for myself.
Shelby Oaks
YouTuber Christ Stuckmann’s Shelby Oaks will be having its World Premiere at this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival. After a successful Kickstarter campaign, the Mike Flanagan-produced thriller will finally be making its debut. A young woman follows in her missing sister’s footsteps, embarking down a path of ghost-hunting and scares I can’t wait to see.
The Killers
It’s not Fantasia with some of the best South Korean genre cinema out there. And with The Killers, hopefully, four prove stronger than one. Directors Kim Jong-kwan, Roh Deaok, Chang Hang-jun, and Lee Myung-Se contribute to this anthology of hitmen, bar owners, and “loads of style and passion.” I love a good anthology, and The Killers looks to seamlessly blend genres with four vignettes worth seeking out. It will be having its Canadian premiere at this year’s festival.
Chainsaws Were Singing
An Estonian horror musical about a chainsaw-wielding serial killer? I don’t know what to make of Sander Maran’s genre hybrid, reportedly more than a decade in the making, but it has shot to the top of my must-see list at this year’s festival. It looks zany, bloody, and like a ton of fun. Chainsaws Were Singing will be having its International Premiere at this year’s festival.
While those are the five I’m most excited about, there’s plenty else worth checking out. Elric Kane’s dating horror story The Dead Thing will be having its World Premiere, and Alice Maio Mackay’s Carnage for Christmas will be debuting in Montreal. E.L. Katz’s Azrael, one of my most-anticipated, will be making its Canadian Premiere, and Calvin Reeder’s The A-Frame will be debuting on the international stage. And J-horror fans won’t want to miss House of Sayuri from Noroi director Koji Shiraishi. You can check out the full genre program here.
What do you think? What’s your most anticipated movie from this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival? Be certain to let me know over on Twitter @Chadiscollins.
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