Although we had to drag our tails to an 8:00 am showing after spending the entire prior day getting lost in the cinema, this wasn’t the worst choice for the workation. The Swallow, written & directed by Kevin Kölsch & Dennise Widmeyer, was a cute nod to “The Raft” segment from Creepshow 2 (1987). This
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Primetime was my last movie at Fantastic Fest, and I wasn’t mad I ended my time on a chaotic Chris Hansen note. To Catch a Predator is a core part of early aughts pop culture. So much so that even if you didn’t watch the show, you knew exactly how it went. I only caught
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Fantastic Fest may be over, but I’m still pulling up with thoughts on movies. I swiped a last-minute ticket to a showing of River (2026) after unsuccessfully refreshing the fest app for days, and personally, I felt like this movie didn’t disappoint. Written and directed by Joshua Giuliano, River was a steady-paced film, but a
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What starts off as a good old-fashioned procedural thriller, much like Mindhunter in its approach, transforms into something else along the way. Complete with father-daughter trauma and family secrets, you might find the plot points familiar—until they aren’t. Directed and co-written by Jordan Downey (ThanksKilling), The Cycle proves it’s possible to tell fresh stories in
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Fantastic Fest has been sneaking a little holiday cheer into the lineup. Last year, one of the secret screenings was Silent Night, Deadly Night (2025). I still have the bloody Santa hat! This year, a holiday horror flick was on the official schedule. I caught Red Snow on a hot Texas afternoon, and I have
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The Ones Who Grieve (Les âmes en Peine) includes a few of my favorite horror things. A period setting. A plague that turns the sick into flesh eaters. New French Extremity tendencies. Unfortunately, the end result was less engaging than the sum of its parts. Young Zélie (Zélie Rhixon) is trapped in the French countryside
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As an aspiring older woman, I love seeing older women be the problem in film. That is why Yerkezhan Baizhan’s Ürei was on my must-watch list for Fantastic Fest. I missed her short of the same name, which premiered at the fest in 2024, so I had no way of knowing this trip to grandma’s
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Anthony Cousins has become a force in the found-footage world with his instant cult classic hits, Frogman and Frogman Returns. Cousins introduced us to the iconic cryptid Frogman and the phrase that took over the online community, “Frogman Fucks.” Now he’s decided to expand the Frogman universe and bring forth a new cryptid found-footage film
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When you cover Fantastic Fest remotely as I did, you may not get to see showings of future box office hits like Resident Evil or Beware Boiúna. However, you get to see some amazing international titles like No Rest for the Wicked and The Ones Who Grieve. You may also end up watching an indie
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Every year at Fantastic Fest, I stumble into a movie I didn’t plan on seeing. This time, I was pleasantly surprised by Victorian Psycho, directed by Zachary Wigon. I don’t usually gravitate toward period pieces. Sometimes the dialogue is inaccessible, especially in a theater without subtitles. Also, the pacing can drag when the plot or
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