A former boxer turned schoolteacher rediscovers the strength to fight back when faced with unchallenged bullies in Park Jin-pyo’s cathartic dramedy.
Aug 16, 2024 • Subscribe
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The Childe (귀공자, Park Hoon-jung, 2023) [Fantasia 2023]
A boxer finds himself in a precarious position after travelling to Korea in search of the father who abandoned him in Park Hoon-jung’s bloody thriller.
Chorokbam (초록밤, Yoon Seo-jin, 2021) [Fantasia 2022]
A small family contend with the persistent unfairness of the contemporary society in Yoon Seo-jin’s slow burn indie drama.
Seire (세이레, Park Kang, 2021) [Fantasia 2022]
A new father finds himself haunted by paternal anxiety and old transgressions in Park Kang’s eerie folk horror.
Mother Land (엄마의 땅: 그리샤와 숲의 주인, Park Jae-beom, 2022) [Fantasia 2023]
A little girl becomes the spiritual defender of her traditional culture in her quest to cure her mother’s mysterious illness in Park Jae-beom’s stop motion fairytale.
Our recommendations: Fantasia 2023
Any cinephile should watch these 5 Japanese movies at the Fantasia Film Festival.
Space Monster Wangmagwi (우주괴인 왕마귀, Gwon Hyeok-jin, 1967) [Fantasia 2022]
Shiny-suited aliens attempt to colonise the Earth by releasing an alien kaiju in this strangely comic Korean take on the monster movie.
Star Citizen Final Review – The Citizen Kane of Gaming
I’ve never claimed to not be an arrogant man; in fact in the grand scheme of things I may be one of the most arrogant people in the…
Mad Cats (Reiki Tsuno, 2023) [Fantasia 2023]
The captive felines of Japan are mad as hell and they aren’t going to take it anymore in Reiki Tsuno’s absurd action comedy.
River (2023) review [Fantasia Film Fest 2023]
If you like low-key humour and some time-twisting fun, you should not miss Yamaguchi’s latest.
Mash Ville (매쉬빌, Hwang Wook, 2024) [Fantasia 2024]
Life in a small rural backwater is forever changed when strange cultists suddenly arrive in Hwang Wook’s quirky drama.
Winter 2024 Taste Test: Brave Bang Bravern!
You’ll have to forgive my late review on this because we have Crunchyroll to blame for the late release; they waited until the second episode had aired to…
Devils (악마들, Kim Jae-hoon, 2023) [Fantasia 2023]
A detective consumed by thoughts of vengeance suddenly wakes up in the body of the serial killer he’s hunting in Kim Jae-hoon’s twisty thriller.
Shin Kamer Rider (2023) review [Fantasia Fest 2023]
Anno delivers an action-hero experience that is both incredibly fun and emotionally touching.
Victory (빅토리, Park Beom-su, 2024)
At the end of Park Beom-su’s millennial coming-of-age drama Victory (빅토리) there’s a title card quoting scientific data that people perform better with encouragement. In order to get…
House of Sayuri (サユリ, Koji Shiraishi, 2024) [Fantasia 2024]
An excited family discover the perils of buying a “used” home in Koji Shiraishi anarchic haunted house horror House of Sayuri
Kizumonogatari – Koyomi Vamp – (2024) review [Fantasia Film Festival 2024]
An evocative experience that succeeds in giving the vampire and the well-explored themes a fresh coat of drama and sexiness.
FAQ (막걸리가 알려줄거야, Kim Da-min 2024) [Fantasia 2024]
The sad thing is that Dong-chun, the heroine of Kim Da-min’s charming if also searingly bleak exploration of a Korean education FAQ (막걸리가 알려줄거야), is full of questions…
Citizen Kitano (2020) [Documentary Review]
Citizen Kitano; or, A Tribute to the Auteur! I intentionally shoot action to make the audience feel real pain. I have never and I will ...
Drive (드라이브, Park Dong-hee, 2023)
Forced to livestream her own kidnapping, an influencer must confront her authentic self in Park Dong-hee’s tense kidnap thriller.
Deep Sea (深海, Tian Xiaopeng, 2023) [Fantasia 2023]
A young girl finds herself in a whimsical fantasy world of colour and light in TIan Xiaopeng’s stupendous animation.
Insomniacs After School (2023) review [Fantasia Film Fest 2023]
Ikeda’s narrative contains all the right ingredients, but the final mixture is not able to give the narrative the emotional impact it looks for.
Abang Adik (富都青年, Jin Ong, 2023)
Displaced brothers find themselves trapped on the margins of a prosperous city in Jin Ong’s gritty drama.
A Normal Family (보통의 가족, Hur Jin-ho, 2023)
Two brothers experience a moral crisis when their kids become the subject of a viral video in Hur Jin-ho’s steely drama.
Killing Romance (킬링 로맨스, Lee Won-suk, 2023) [Fantasia 2023]
A once famous actress sets out to reclaim her autonomy from an abusive, controlling, billionaire husband in Lee Won-suk’s hilariously off the wall comedy.
Jin-Roh (Jinrō)
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Brave 10
Brave 10 (2012) Brave 10* was definitely fun but maybe not super-memorable. Or at least, it never got a chance to become too memorable for me – since…
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Title: Brave 10Genre: Action, ComedyRating: 6.7/10 Summary: The story reimagines the legendary adventures of the 10 brave warriors assembled by the warlord Sanada Yukimura in the year 1600, in the middle of…
Small Fry (잔챙이, Park Joong-ha, 2023)
A dejected actor begins to feel like a fish caught on a hook only to be cast back in Park Joong-ha’s tense chamber drama.
Bear Man (웅남이, Park Sung-kwang, 2023)
A pair of bare cubs decide to become human with entirely different results in Park Sung-kwang’s zany comedy.
The Fifth Thoracic Vertebra (다섯 번째 흉추, Park Sye-young, 2022) [Fantasia 2022]
A mouldy mattress gradually becomes sentient while traversing vistas of human loneliness in Park Sye-young’s experimental feature.
A Samurai in Time (侍タイムスリッパー, Junichi Yasuda, 2024) [Fantasia 2024]
A lone samurai struggles to adjust after being unceremoniously transported to our times in Junichi Yasuda’s time slip dramedy.
The Umbrella Fairy (伞少女, Shen Jie, 2024) [Fantasia 2024]
Should you be bound by the past or try to forge your own destiny? It might be an odd question seeing as the central thesis of Shen Jie’s…
House of Sayuri (2024) review [Fantasia Film Festival]
The thoughtful manipulation of this atmospheric field is integral to create an effective and engaging genre-blend.
Fantasia International Film Festival Confirms Complete 2024 Programme
In Montreal July 18 to Aug, 4.
Kizumonogatari -Koyomi Vamp- (傷物語 -こよみヴァンプ-, Tatsuya Oishi, 2023) [Fantasia 2024]
A young man walks into an empty subway station already ominously strewn with blood and finds there the corpse of a woman shorn of her limbs. The corpse…
Fantasia Confirms Second Wave of Titles for 2023
In Montreal July 20 to Aug. 9
Fantasia Confirms First Wave of Titles for 2023
Runs in Montreal July 20 to Aug. 9
Fantasia International Film Festival Confirms Complete 2023 Programme
In Montreal July 20 to Aug. 9.
Fantasia 2024: 6 Japanese films you should not miss.
n this short article, we want to introduce two of our recommendations and four films we look forward to and you should do.
Baby Assassins: Good Days (2024) review [Fantasia Film Festival]
Yugo Sakamoto successfully mixes up the formula that structured his previous two action narratives. Highly Recommended.
Fly Me To The Saitama: From Biwa Lake with Love (2023) review [Fantasia Film Festival 2024]
A fun romp that works well as an introduction to the cultural diversity that enriches the Japanese archipelago.
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An over-the-top and highly powerful romance narrative.
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