One of the best ways to end the summer is with Fantasia Fest 2024. Running from July 18^th to August 4th, this almost three-week-long genre festival is the perfect way to spend the remaining days before the school semester starts again. Taking place in Montreal, Canada, Fantasia offers an amazing selection of horror, fantasy, and sci-fi, with everything from this year’s upcoming blockbusters to the absolutely bizarre and should-not-be missed hidden gems.

With a hundred feature films (and even more shorts), it might be difficult to figure out where to start. So, after perusing the lengthy list of goodies Fantasia has to offer, I’ve created a small sample platter to get you started.

THE A-FRAME

directed by Calvin Reeder

The young pianist Donna discovers she suffers from a rare form of bone cancer that requires the amputation of her hand in order to save her life. Facing the loss of her musical passion and her limb, she meets with a black-market scientist who might have an alternative solution. However, this supposedly miracle advancement comes with some serious costs.

HAZE

directed by Matthew Fifer

A young journalist returns to his hometown to investigate the supposed suicides of eight gay men at an abandoned psychiatric center. As Jospeh’s story unfolds, this queer-themed slow burn melds together small-town secrets, family trauma, and a mysterious new man.

ME AND MY VICTIM

directed by Maurane and Billy Pedlow

Supposedly Gen-Z relies so much on the use of social media and the digital world that physical contact (specifically sex) becomes an outrageous concept. This ultra-micro-budget film, (made for less than $1,000) delves into this complex, label-defying generation as it blends poetry, video art, and a meme-inspired collage aesthetic. With brutal honesty, this film captures the paradoxes of modern intimacy and leaves viewers both cringing and captivated.

PÁRVULOS

Directed by Isaac Ezban

The filmmakers are keeping quite hush-hush with the specifics about this movie, but what I can tell you is that the story combines horror and a coming-of-age tale involving three young brothers. After a worldwide pandemic kills a significant percentage of the population, the siblings retreat to an isolated cabin, but something monstrous lives in the basement that threatens their already-shattered existence.

CHAINSAWS WERE SINGING

directed by Sander Maran

I promised this festival offered the bizarre, and I don’t think it gets more bizarre than this Estonian fever dream. A chainsaw-wielding maniac disrupts the lives of two lovers, and a blood-soaked gore-fest ensues. Definitely over-the-top, this film pulls no punches with the violence (or the slapstick), making it one of the loving oddities of the fest. Did I also mention it’s a musical?

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Amylou Ahava

Amylou Ahava is a PhD student and resident punk rocker. She has studied, taught, and annoyed landlords on three continents and hopes to add a fourth in the future. The childhood dream of being a horror host stemmed into a lifetime love of everything scary and now has led to a focus on disability studies in American horror literature and film. She has been teaching since 2009 and shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. She is a pet parent of 7 and hobbies include horror movies, waffles, and books.

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Tags: Action Film, Brian J. Smith, Calvin Reeder, Canada, Carla Adell, Cole Doman, comedy, Dana Namerode, Estonia, Fantasia 2024, Fantasia Film Festival, Fantasy, Felix Farid Escalante, Horacio Lazo, Horror, IFC Films, Isaac Ezban, Janno Puusepp, Johnny Whitworth, Karl-Joosep Ilves, Laketa Caston, Laura Niils, Leonardo Cervantes, Martin Ruus, Mateo Ortega, Matthew Fifer, Montreal, musical, Nik Dodani, Noe Hernandez, Norma Flores, Rita Rätsepp, RLJE Films, Sander Maran, science fiction, Shudder, Thriller