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Fantasia 2011: Week Three Wrap Up – 14 Reviews To Chew On

Fantasia 2011: Week Three Wrap Up – 14 Reviews To Chew On

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Well we are officially through the third and final week of the Fantasia Film Festival, so I figured we should do a quick look back at all the reviews we have posted in the past seven days. In seven days our crew has managed to post over another fourteen reviews, bringing the total to forty eight. Keep coming back to the site in the next week for last post coverage, and don’t forget to also check out our podcast. Lately we’ve recorded several episodes dedicated to the movies playing at the festival.

Absentia

Absentia is an instant independent horror gem and one that will leave many audiences scratching their heads. A must-see for those who like their horror to be both intelligent and frequently terrifying. Absentia announces the arrival of a major new talent in director Mike Flanagan… (read the full review)

Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark

In short, writer-director Troy Nixey has assembled a thriller that’s highly engrossing led by newcomer Bailee Madison, who delivers an intense, masterfully performance, drawing comparisons to a once young Drew Barrymore… (read the full review)

The Innkeepers (review #1)

The Innkeepers is yet another prime example that no other director today does horror quite like Ti West. Truly an original, West, who works on miniscule budgets, avoids the need to cram his features with grand ideas, and instead maximizes every opportunity that his resources allow… (read the full review)

The Innkeepers (review #2)

For those with the patience for his slow-build cinematic magic, Ti West is a singular genius, and The Innkeepers is his best film to date… (read the full review)

Rabies

It is always a pleasure to find a new and disnctive voice in the world of cinema. It is especially rewarding when two new writers and directors like Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado survey the road that we are on, realize that we are hurtling towards a dead end and strike off in a completely new direction. We can only look forward to following them on the cinematic path less travelled by…(read the full review)

Morituris

Rape and torture is bad enough. Forced silence just makes it impossible for the rape and torture to reveal character. That makes it pointless and renders this film unnecessary… (read the full review)

Kidnapped

Kidnapped is simply an uneventful waiting game, during which the audience has little to do but wait for the family’s inevitable doom. But perhaps that is the point; to hold the audience hostage along with the victims… (read the full review)

The Woman

The Woman is both shocking and challenging, revealing a pattern ingrained social misogyny. What is left unsaid about The Woman’s origins reveals a long list of questions we’d prefer not to ask about our preferred social ignorance in regards to abuse… (read the full review)

Beyond The Black Rainbow

In a year that’s already had no shortage of confident debuts, Rainbow might not be the most fully-formed, but it’s almost certainly the most audacious. A neon nightmare that demands repeat viewings to fully grasp (if not comprehend), it announces Cosmatos as one of the most unique cinematic voices in recent Canadian history. Here’s hoping he gets to inflict even greater cinematic oddities in the near future… (read the full review)

The Whisperer in Darkness

The Whisperer in Darkness is an extraordinarily well-crafted film and it completely achieves its objectives. Oddly, the film’s greatest strength is also its greatest weakness… (read the full review)

Brawler

Just as a good fighter’s base is built on footwork, breathing, maneuvers and exercises that are common to all fighters, Brawler is built on stories and themes common to all fighting movies, but like a great fighter who finds an angle of attack that no one ever saw before, Brawler combines its story elements together into something wonderful and completely original… (read the full review)

The Dungeon Master

The Dungeon Master is an affectionate spoof, a love letter to role playing and an cheeky romp with knights, elves, half-links, swords, daggers and one badass stone giant. The end result of it all however is somewhat disappointing, only because it is so entertaining, it leaves you longing for more.. (read the full review)

Haunters

Like many Korean films, Haunters mood-swings from comedy to tragedy with whip-lash speed. This film confrontation between a man who can’t stop killing and a man who refuses to die is funny, heart-breaking, action-packed and more satisfying than any super-hero movie released this year… (read the full review)

BKO: Bangkok Knockout

Despite its weaknesses, Bangog Knockout is the best Kung Fu flick of this year’s Fantasia line-up and one of the best Thai martial arts films to date… (read the full review)

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