Fantasia 2015 Film Review- Scherzo Diabolico

Aram is a good worker and team player. Despite working significant overtime and solving all of the major problems in the office he does not receive a promotion, raise, or extra pay for the overtime. He is fiercely loyal to his boss although both know that he is the key to the success of the office and his wife is giving him grief at home for not standing up for himself at work. His only true pleasure is a CD of All Time Piano's Greatest Hits that he plays in his car and the office when he works late. Even his boss likes the CD pledging to pick up a copy for himself.

But Aram has a dark side as well. He spends many an afternoon as a regular client of a call girl. He also hatched a private project methodically making a list of needed items followed by detailed scouting for timing and execution. Aram then kidnaps a high school girl, holding her hostage in an abandoned building. He administers electric shocks plus several forms of psychological torture on his victim before suddenly releasing her.

Writer/director Adrian Garcia Bogliano based the story on an idea he had contemplated for a while on the male psyche and societal standards of measuring success. He also wanted to touch on the fact that hard work alone will not get you ahead. One needs to play politics, have someone champion your position or abuse someone to move towards the next level. The fantasy plays out through an extreme lens featuring a quick rise to success followed by an even a greater fall due to the protagonists own bad actions.

Francisco Barriero carries the film in the role of Aram. He plays meek and agreeable with his boss and wife. As opposed to a planner, plotter, ruthless and cruel monster in his exchanges with the victim. Then he balances attentive and carnal with his extra marital female dalliances. Daniela Soto Vell is very convincing as Anabella. She starts out as a confident high school student with the school principal amongst her admires. Next projects a timid schoolgirl when kidnapped and restrained but soon adapts to a strong vicious women bent on revenge for her extended suffering.

Scherzo Diabolico is a darkly written fantasy sporting a very strong narrative. The lead and supporting characters all yield strong performances that give weight to the story. Director Adrian Garcia Bogliano continues his run of strong storytelling in a genre that is rarely supported in Central and South America. It's a film that I highly recommend.

***1/2  Out of 4.

Scherzo Diabolico | Adrian Garcia Bogliano | Mexico / U.S.A. | 2015 | 91 Minutes.

Tags; Office Politics, Kidnapping, Psychological Torture, Taser, Mexico City, School Uniform, Classical Music, Mozart, Rats.

Fantasia 2015 Film Review - Bite

Casey (Elma Begovic) is a couple of weeks away from getting married and away at her bachelorette party in Costa Rica with best friends Kristen (Denise Yeun) and Jill (Annette Wozinak). You would except that this would be a happy occasion but it's not for Casey. She loves her fiancé Jared (Jordan Gray) but is not ready for marriage. While on vacation she gets carried away partying and makes some poor decisions. The girls also find of a hidden natural swimming hole where Casey is bit by an unseen insect.

Upon returning home our protagonist begins to feel sick plus she has to deal with all of the final  wedding plans and being belittled by her future mother-in-law (Laurene Denkers). She develops a large blistering infected bite on her right hip and puncture marks on the right side of her neck. Casey also becomes turned off by food unable to keep anything down. The transformation really begins to take place shortly after she discovers that she's pregnant. After coming too in the bathtub following a disturbing dream she survey's the apartment to find piles of small gel like dripping eggs. A quick look in the mirror reveals sores on both temples and a change in the texture of her skin.

The film is the vision of the director Chad Archibald who also shares a writing credit with Jayme Laforest. The spark originated from a conversation with a friend that had recent returned from a trip covered in bites of different shapes and sizes not likely knowing what caused each bite.  The director also knew how he wanted Casey to move physically after the transformation and how he wanted her gooey, sticky apartment turned nest to look on screen.

Elma Begovic plays a physically engrossing character in her feature film debut. Her performance picks up steam when she attempts to treat the bite herself by pressing on it causing it to rip and ooze then frantically trying to scratch at it. As her transformation continues she moves on to white liquid and eggs dripping from her mouth ending as a crouched neck twitching human reptilian hybrid.

The set design and make up teams both contribute greatly to the production. The dripping slime filled nest is so realistic that the viewer can almost smell the oder that illicit's a gag reflex for anyone who enters the apartment. Amanda Wood and Jason Derushie make up effects work to transform Casey into a frightening presence especially their work on her eyes, skin tone and facial prosthetics.

Bite is a film that takes a different angle on the horror transformation formula. The process stops at an early enough point to allow the protagonist to keep a humanoid form and mental abilities. Allowing the story to explore how she reacts differently to friends as opposed to foes and betrayers. The narrative has more meat that expected for films of this ilk making it a film that I can recommend.

*** 1/2 Out of 4

Bite | Chad Archibald | Canada | 2015 | 90 Minutes.

Tags: Wedding, Bachelorette Party, Costa Rica, Cold Feet, Insect, Bite, Infected, Transformation, Pregnancy, Nest.

Fantasia 2015 Film Review - Fatal Frame

The settling is a rural all girls school in a Victorian style mansion. The Reverend mother and sisters run the school. They are devoted to Ophelia from Hamlet with a picture of her floating down a river to her death displayed prominently behind the Reverend Mother's desk. The star pupil is Aya (Ayama Nakjo) she is the tallest and prettiest girl in school and sings the Ophelia song like an angel. Just about all of her class mates carry a secret crush.  Suddenly Aya locks herself in her room and refuses to come out. Her actions stir up old rumors of a curse that has once again resurfaced at the school. Stories began to spread about a kissing game where you kiss a picture of the person you love at the strike of midnight. Then a picture of Aya appears that seems to put those who possess it into a trance with some of the girls vanishing altogether. Aya still will not come out of her room, the dorms are put on lockdown and everyone wonders in hushed tones if the past rumours are true.

Director Mari Asato delivers all of the main elements one would expect to find in a Japanese horror film. There are no shock moments but instead a steady increase of a ghostly presence that approaches  transfixed subjects to whisper three hushed words LIFT MY CURSE.  Another staple is also present the use of muffled sound rising in volume in unison with the level of terror felt by the actors. Asato's screenplay based on the novel Eiji Ohtukha gives the narrative its needed time to unfurl. The main players are given their just time to develop and divide the supporting from the lead characters in the piece.

The Victorian school and dormitory are a major element in the film.  Footsteps echo through the halls, the dorms are old shaped with awkward beams and drawstring attack entrance. Plus the most memorable ghostly apparition in the piece takes place in the grand hall well the girls gather to hear important announcements.

The casting department assembled a strong cast. Aoi Morikawa emerges from the group in the lead role of Michi. Morikawa plays several different emotional states in the film. Early on she is a secondary supporting character then one of the main spellbound students  and finally the one that has the best chance of breaking the curse. Ayama Nakjo has the most to do in the film as Aya. She is worshipped as the prized student at the outset then absent except for a ghostly presence for the middle of the film before she partners with Michi in the attempt to end the curse.

Fatal Frame is a classic telling of a Japanese Ghost story. The narrative is strong and the setting, acting and subtle special effects strike the right mix. The film has a deliberate stride that winds its way to a satisfying conclusion.

*** 1/2 Out of 4

Fatal Frame | Mari Asato | Japan | 2014 | 104 Minutes.

Tags: Ghost, Catholic Boarding School, Suicide, Pact, Curse, Picture, Possessed, Reservoir, Drowning.

Fantasia 2015 Film Review - Cop Car

Two 10-year-old boys Travis (James Freeson-Jackson) and Harrison (Hayes Welford) are walking though farmland on the outskirts of town having decided to run away from home. They are armed with walking sticks and believe that they must have gotten 10 miles away by now as they maneuver through a barbed wire fence between properties.  After listening to their conversation for a short period of time it's obvious that Travis is the instigator and Harrison the more reserved thinker of the pair.  As they continue their walk they come across a Cop Car sitting parked on a dirt road. Immediately they drop to the ground and hide, then take turns running up and touching it. When they realize that the car appears to be abandoned they try all the doors finding the driver's side open and the keys under the visor. The boys start the car and gingerly roll away.

A short time earlier Sheriff Kretzer (Kevin Bacon) drives to a remote area outside of town and parks his cop car. He finishes his beer and puts it on the hood. Next he takes off his gun belt, strips down to his undershirt, removes a tarp and goes to the trunk. Kretzer removes a body then drags it through the trees to an abandon well. When he heads back to his vehicle he finds it gone.

Director and co-writer Jon Watts builds an imaginative tale from a simple premise along with his writing partner Christopher Ford.  Two curious kids find an abandoned police car, take it for a joy ride and explore with fresh young eyes and minds all that the car can offer.  The flip side, the car belongs to someone, they will want it back and what are the potential consequences of the boys actions. The  expansive and flat Colorado shooting location allowed the crew to employ several long and wide shots that are used very effectively to gradually build suspense the moment anything of interest entered the frame.

The two young leads James Freeson-Jackson and Hayes Welford turn in veteran level performances. When a decision is needed they discuss each give an opinion then they proceed on a united front.  The pair are genuinely wide eyed as investigate all of the equipment in the car and are thankfully aided by great sense of timing in the script when fiddling with dangerous ones. Kevin Bacon physical nuanced performance is impressive. He has only a handful of words for first 20 minutes he's on screen. Bacon uses his eyes, gestures, grunts, moans and curse words to get Sheriff Kertzer across to the audience.

Cop Car is an uncomplicated story that brings the viewer to the spot where three people intersect on a  particular day. Refreshingly there is no obligatory flashback to explain why the boys had run away or why Sheriff Kertzer is out in a remote area off the grid using his cruiser to do things that he ought not to be doing. It's a well acted and written film that I can recommend.

*** Out of 4

Cop Car | John Watts |  U.S.A. | 2015 | 86 Minutes.

Tags: 10-year-olds, Joy Ride, Rural, Police, Runaway, Guns, Shootout, Cocaine, Body.

Fantasia 2015 Film Review- Love & Peace

Two things are needed when viewing a Sion Sono a film. The first be willing to suspend belief. The second, no matter how wacky things are going on screen remember Sono has a plan that will yield a satisfying result in the end.  This principal is never truer than for his current feature Love & Peace where the co-lead character is a Godzilla sized turtle.

Ryochi Suziki (Haroki Hasgawa) is a failed musician who had a glimmer of fame in his early twenties. He's now confined to a dead end job making parts for musical instruments. Suziki is constantly ridiculed by his co-workers for his clumsiness and awkwardness but has one friendly face at work Yuru Tarajimi (Kumiko Aso). One day on his lunch break he buys a miniature turtle that he takes home and names Pikadon. The turtle becomes Ryo's muse singing out song melodies and inspiring lyrics in a very unusual manner. However when his colleagues tease him about the pet Ryo flushes Pikadon down the toilet temporarily separating them and beginning an adventure in the sewers for the tortoise.

Writer/Director Sino Sono presents a fantastical story whose narrative is split above and below Terra Ferma.  Below ground Pikadon arrives at an underground workshop of Pa (Tokiyuski Yashida) who takes in abandon toys and animals that make their way to his door. Then through magical glowing gumball sized potions he gives them the ability to speak. The fixed and repaired orphans stay with Pa battling their desire to return home. Meanwhile above ground Ryo's popularity continue to grow and a mistaken dose of a wish potion fed to Pikadon gives the tortoise the ability to fulfill his owner's dreams. The side effect being that as Ryo's career advances so does the size of his pet.

Haroki Hasgawa delivers an exaggerated manic physical performance as Ryochi Suzuki. He is meek hunched and paranoid at the start of the film. But with the aid of his muse progresses to leather clad rock star then on to a David Bowiesque solo performer. Kumiko Aso is strong as Yuru Tarajimi she is often dressed in two many layers sporting her horn rimmed glasses with her awkwardness going mostly unnoticed due to the presence of Ryochi in the office. Tokiyuski Yashida is superb as the mysterious sewer dwelling Pa.

Love & Peace is a magical fairytale set on the streets and in the sewers of Toyko. The screenplay finds Sino Sono at his creative best supported by strong performances by the cast and a melodic theme song that will make you smile as you hum it for days after leaving the theatre. It's a film that I can definitely recommend.

*** 1/2 Out of 4.

Love & Peace | Sino Sono | Japan | 2015 | 117 Minutes.

Tags: Turtle, Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Nippon Stadium, Punk Rock, Musical Muse, Rock Star, Toys, Christmas.

Fantasia 2015 Film Review - Traders

A financial business goes bust with 14 billion defect on the books. The satellite offices in London and Singapore label staff from that branch toxic. The employees were making very good money having expenses to match their expected monthly income. Now that a regular paycheck is gone their respective collars begin to tighten. Into this space steps Vernon Stynes (John  Bradley) from Game of Thrones who has a new business plan to cash in on econoside (the theory that for every point the unemployment rate goes up the suicide rate increases in lock step).

The plan is a contract between consenting adults to liquefy all of their assist, put the cash into a green bag, meet the other agreeable party and fight to the death for the cash in both bags. The options are death or double your money a better option to someone desperate for funds than a low decent into financial ruin. Stynes calls this new venture Trading. Participants can go to the website find a match meet their opponent in a pub, check for guns (which are not allowed), exchange and disable cell phones then head out to a remote area using multiple busses to avoid tails to Trade.

Vernon's colleague from the bankrupted firm Harry Fox (Killan Scott) is appalled when Vernon first approaches him with the new business idea. But after he gets a full grasp of his new financial reality that includes a minimum wage data entry position and threatening calls from his bank he agrees to Trade. Unexpectedly Harry finds that he is very good at it and has videos from you tube military instructor Big John (Tom Davis) to help him deal with injuries especially knife wounds suffered out on the field of play.

Writer /Directors Rachel Moriarty and Peter Murphy bring an unbelievable but chillingly conceivable story to the screen.  In this current economic client with people seriously in debt, business, corporation and even countries threatening to fail a chance to double your money or end it all quickly could appeal to a very desperate person. The direction peaks when the fights are depicted on screen. The combatants are very cordial when they are going through the initial steps then all of a sudden the fight is on and despite several fight scenes the audience never is ready for that first violent strike.

Killian Scott is perfectly cast as the main trader Harry Fox. He is first unwilling then ready to give his opponent the chance to back out but as his successes pile up he turns into a cold-blooded quick strike assassin. John Bradley continues to build a career as a thinking sidekick.  His Vernon Stynes character is an encyclopaedia of mundane facts but strikes on the concept of Trading. Look for Barry Keoghan in the supporting role of Ken. He becomes involved in Trading as Vernon's proxy, is much younger and smaller than the other players but makes up for is youth with ultra violent knife proficiency.

Traders is a compelling study of an underground activity. The rules set the framework and the participants willingness for the most part to follow is reminiscent of David Fincher's Fight Club. Killian Scott even has that late 90's Brad Pitt look. The film has a very strong narrative that is eerily plausible making Traders a film that I can highly recommend.

**** Out of 4.

Traders | Rachel Moriarty / Peter Murphy | Ireland | 2015 | 90 Minutes.

Tags: Economic Collapse, Bankrupt, Financial Crisis, Suicide, Mortgage Payments, Desperation, Duel, Fight, Death, Knives, Bruises, Knife Wounds, Remote Location, Grave.

Fantasia 2015 Film Review - The Demolisher

Female Cop Down is the opening phrase of writer/director Gabriel Carrer's The Demolisher.  The Officer (Tianna Nori) attempted to stop a ritualistic sacrifice when the Cult members attacked her   leaving her paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair.  Her husband Bruce (Ry Barrett) a cable repair man feels the need to get revenge for what happened to his wife Samantha.  He takes to dressing up in full body armour roaming the cities back alleys at night looking for criminals of any stripe to dispense some citizenry vigilante justice. Bruce has a heightened sense of duty now that he has to care for his disabled wife.  He sets his watch alarm to know when he has to get home to next inject her medication and wears their wedding rings on a chain around his neck to remind him of his commitment.

Bruce starts out punishing wrongdoers but as his need for violence and bloodlust grows his fuse shortens. After an unfortunate incident on a repair call his focus shifts to a young female (Jessica Vano) who happened by accident to pick up Bruce's chain that he lost in a theatre. Thus begins the main part of the film a relentless pursuit of Marie by the Demolisher over a long dark night through the streets of Toronto.

Carrer's film tells the story of a man who's world and mind turn inside out after a violent attack on his wife. Bruce takes to the streets to exact revenge but the weight of his situation is too much for him to bear. He starts to hear things, becomes increasing violent until anyone and everyone becomes a target of his wrath. Career paces the film well. The narrative peaks during the late night foot pursuit through city streets, empty buildings and in and out of stairwells. The story puts the vigilante into robotic mode as he steadily tracks Marie around the city.

Ry Barrett turns in a top notch brooding, concise bordering on mute performance as the title character. Instead of speaking his anger is often portrayed by body language. Closing the distance to get into someones space, fists clenching, neck muscles bulging and beating on his chest plate for effect. Jessica Vano shows resourcefulness as Marie.  She is willing to face her pursuer head on, tries to use any advantage she may gain in the confrontation and shows dogged determination to keep on moving and fighting.

The Demolisher is a tense impactful thriller showing ones man's meltdown as his grip on reality slips away.  Bruce's rage steadily consumes him until his actions are not different from those that he took up the billy club to defeat. The film features a strong sparsely worded narrative and is one that I can recommend.

*** Out of 4.

The Demolisher | Gabriel Career | Canada | 2015 | 85 Minutes.

Tags: Vigilante, Trauma, Chase, Body Armour, Gang, Cult, Sacrifice, Paralyzed, Police Officer.