A vampire comedy, a sophisticated sci-fi psychological thriller, a black comedy, a bloody massacre and, of course, a zombie apocalypse – all this and more awaits audiences at Art Film Fest, starting on 19 June and lasting till 26 June in Trenčianske Teplice and Trenčín. As usual, the Late Night Show section will serve as the festival nightcap, concluding each day with one of seven films, varied in genre, but tied together this year by a prevailing retro style.
Hankering for everything that made 80s and 90s genre films great? Two titles will do the trick: The Guest from renowned US director Adam Wingard and Turbo Kid, the debut of a Canadian filmmaker trio known as the RKSS Collective. Seen it all 1000 times before? No matter. That’s precisely what makes these pictures so irresistible: a lone hero/heroine, mysterious strangers, love, building suspense, unexpected twists, and, last but not least, brilliant soundtracks. Hungarian festival hit Liza, the Fox-Fairy from director Károly Ujj-Mészáros will take you back even further, in dazzling retro style, to a fictional 1970s Hungary, where protagonist Liza searches for the love of her life.
What We Do in the Shadows is a film you can’t miss under any circumstances. The uproariously funny docu-comedy looks at the modern existence of vampires in Wellington, New Zealand, their struggles with everyday reality and the “dark” lives they live. The film has already been a huge hit with audiences around the world.
When Mad Max meets Dawn of the Dead in a post-apocalyptic epic, the result is one of the most original, entertaining zombie flicks in recent memory. Wyrmwood, from the Australian fraternal filmmaking duo Kiah and Tristan Roache-Turner, completely reinvents the zombie film. For devotees of the genre, it’s quite simply the crème de la crème, made with talent, innovation, enthusiasm and love for the art form.
This year’s Late Night Show will also include a BMX comic book, post-apocalyptic gore-fest comedy and love story all in one: the RKSS Collective’s Turbo Kid. In their Sundance-premiered debut, the trio of young Canadian filmmakers take you through a devastated place called the Wasteland, a barbaric world where the film’s hero must fight for his own life, as well as that of the girl of his dreams.
The thriller Goodnight Mommy was created by Austrian directors Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz – Ulrich Seidl’s long-time collaborator and co-writer – and produced by Ulrich Seidl Film. The intimate story of 10-year-old twins and their mother pulls us into the stifling atmosphere of a sweltering summer in the countryside. Chilling suspense and everyday routine combine to form an utterly unique cinematic experience.
And one more sci-fi film for good measure: William Eubank’s small, unassuming film The Signal tells the story of three tech students who decide to decode a mysterious signal and trace its origin. But nothing can possibly prepare them for what awaits at the source. The film’s cast includes Laurence Fishburne in a leading role.
