Film
We’re living in some perilous times with a great deal of uncertainty. As we all curl up into tight little balls and recite T.S. Elliot—“This is the way the world ends. This is the way the world ends. This is the way the world ends.”—let’s take a look at some post-apocalyptic films with unique visions of what happens after everything goes to shit.
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Struggling musician Holly (Kika Magalhães) can’t seem to catch a break. Money troubles, a relationship on the rocks, a sister with whom she cannot connect, and a broken-down car all weigh on her. But when a life-altering obstacle comes her way, Holly is faced with tough decisions about how proceed, particularly when she most likely will have to go it alone. Her emotional trials are brought to life in the poignant and touching short film Leslie by writer/director Alejandro Montoya Marin.
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The Eyes of My Mother, a first-time effort from writer/director Nicolas Pesce, haunts and horrifies with its stark black-and-white beauty (thanks to the cinematography by Zach Kuperstein). When the film begins, young Francisca (Olivia Bond) is living on a farm with her parents. Her mother (Diana Agostini) was once a surgeon when she lived in Portugal and now imparts all of her knowledge to her daughter. Tragedy strikes when a stranger (Will Brill) approaches the family’s home, asking to their bathroom. He horrifically murders Francisca’s mother, but that’s only the beginning of the shocks as you witness what Francisca and her father (Paul Nazak) do to the stranger instead of calling the police. What follows is a startling look into the mind of Francisca as she grows up (now played by Kika Magalhães) as she does whatever is necessary to hold together some semblance of a family, even by the most extreme and startling means. It has all the makings of a Jack Ketchum novel, but infused with class and sophistication that’ll leave viewers chilled.
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The Eyes of My Mother was the very last film we watched at this year’s Fantastic Fest, and it also happened to leave one of the greatest impressions. The debut feature from writer/director Nicolas Pesce is a gorgeously shot work of horror with a career-launching performance by Kika Magalhães as Francisca, a young woman shaped by tragedy and isolation. Borrowing from our mini-review: To call the performance cold and detached would be an understatement. Every expression and movement is practically inhuman, as though her character truly never had a point of reference for how people act. Ms. Magalhães is simultaneously frightening and heartbreaking as the ethereal Francisca. With the film’s official release just days away, we sat down with Ms. Magalhães for an informative and fun conversation. World, meet Kika Magalhães…
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Recently released from prison, Ashley Douglas (Andre Royo) is ready to restart his life. With little more than a toolbox full of his belongings–buried in his mother’s backyard–he aims to win back his ex Linda (Ashley Wilkerson), refusing to accept that she’s moved on. After a chance run-in, Ashley befriends Jeremy (George Sample III), a lonely young man who earns money through experimental medical trials and lives with his bedridden grandfather in a nursing home. Now with a partner, Ashley sets out to start a business disposing of unwanted refrigerators for $75 at a time, an enterprises that stalls immediately when Jeremy’s truck breaks down. Neither man has much going for them other than a strong sense of optimism and a desire to carve out some semblance of happiness in spite of all the obstacles thrown their way. Their lives and trials are brought to vivid and heartrending life in Hunter Gatherer, the debut feature film by Josh Locy.
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White Coffin
For the last of my New York City Horror Film Festival posts for 2016, I wanted to discuss three of the feature films from the line-up. The festival offered something for every kind of film fan. Not every film worked for me, but the variety impressive and well-curated. I would definitely return next year to see what else they choose to showcase. And now onto the films…
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Under the Apple Tree
The New York City Horror Festival has come to an end and I’m pleased to say it was a great deal of fun to attend for the first time. One of my favorite parts was the showing of shorts before each feature film. All of the shorts were impressive, but I want to focus on the three stand-outs that really made an impression on me.
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Photo by Raven Adams
Over the weekend, Adrienne Barbeau was honored by the New York City Horror Film Festival with their Lifetime Achievement Award. Though horror fiends will know her from Swamp Thing, The Fog, or Creepshow, her impressive career transcends genre and medium. She’s been on stage and screen–both TV and film–and, in later years, turned to writing novels. It was an honor and a privilege to see her come out to receive the award and offer up a charming Q&A with a multi-generational audience who admired her decades-long, multifaceted career.
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One of the few downsides of Fantastic Fest is that there’s just too many films and sometimes we wind up missing something to which we were looking forward. Dawn of the Deaf was one of those films, and we’ve been lucky enough to finally get a chance to watch. A 12-minute short from the UK, Dawn of the Deaf is a new and clever take on the zombie genre. When a mysterious sonic pulse kills the entire hearing population, only the Deaf are left behind, forced to confront a frightening new reality where the pulse was only the start of their trouble.
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The film pitch for Valentina is undeniably intriguing:
It’s the summer of 2025, and global warming has caused temperatures to skyrocket. Valentina is a middle-aged Latina, obsessed with her own personal hygiene. She channels this fastidiousness into her job as a cleaning lady, making her the maid of choice for affluent New Yorkers.
Valentina reports for duty at a sparkling, all-glass skyscraper on the hottest day ever recorded in the city. As she eagerly polishes and disinfects, the power goes out and the blistering sunlight turns the apartment into an oven. Sweat, heat, and moisture build up so much that Valentina’s vagina screams for mercy.
What starts as a simple cry for fresh air turns into an intervention as her vagina asks after her wages and demands better working conditions. The heat will force Valentina to come face-to-face with a part of her anatomy she’s always ignored, and it will embolden her in the process. Though Valentina initially finds her abhorrent, her vagina is truly an ally who will help her value herself and be proud of who she is.
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