The Fantastic Pavilion presents a weekly recap with the most relevant news about the world of genre cinema.
News
The 2024 Fangoria Chainsaw Awards were celebrated last Sunday, October 13. The great Japanese period piece Godzilla Minus One (Gojira -1.0, 2023) was named Best Wide Release Movie, while Lee Cronin’s Evil Dead Rise (2023) was the most awarded movie of the night with four wins: Best Supporting Performance (Alyssa Sutherland), Best Creature FX (Adam Johansen, Damian Martin), Best Make-Up Effects (Luke Polti), and Best Director (Cronin). Other winners include Late Night with the Devil (Best Screenplay, Best Lead Performance), Poor Things (Best Costume Design, Best Cinematography), In a Violent Nature (Best Kill), and When Evil Lurks (Best International Movie). Find here the complete list.
Based on Stephen King’s short story of the same name, The Monkey (2025) is “a new trip from Osgood Perkins, writer and director of Longlegs (2024).” Neon has released a new teaser, which shows some of the unsettling imagery that will be unleashed in theaters on February 21, 2025.
Another fantasy movie set for release in early 2025 is A24’s The Legend of Ochi (2025), which follows a young girl (Helena Zengel) as she gets to know more about the ochi, the local creatures on a small island. Judging from its official trailer, The Legend of Ochi looks like a heartfelt adventure picture in the vein of E.T. the Extra-Terrestial (1982). Also starring Finn Wolfhard and Willem Dafoe, The Legend of Ochi opens theatrically in the U.S. on February 28.
The Finnish cult heavy metal comedy Heavy Trip (Hevi reissu, 2018) has now a sequel titled Heavier Trip (Hevimpi reissu, 2024). The official longline says that “death metal band Impaled Rektum escapes prison to perform at Wacken, Germany’s iconic music festival. Their wild and perilous adventure into the metal music scene challenges the band’s integrity.”
It’s worth noting that, as shown in its official trailer, Heavier Trip features a cameo by the famous Japanese band BABYMETAL. Heavier Trip hits U.S. theaters and digital platforms on November 29, via Doppelgänger Releasing.
Festivals
Mórbido Fest has shared the details for its 2024 edition, to be celebrated in Mexico City from October 29 to November 10. These are just a few of the genre films that are part of the festival’s program: Damien Leone’s popular slasher Terrifier 3 (2024), Veronica Franz and Severin Fiala’s period piece The Devil’s Bath (Des Teufels Bad, 2024) – which just won big at the 2024 Sitges Film Festival –, Alexandre O. Philippe’s Venice award-winning documentary Chain Reactions (2024), Steven Kostanski’s Ghoulies inspired comedy Frankie Freako (2024), Edgar Nito’s folk horror effort A Fishermen’s Tale (Un cuento de pescadores, 2024), Tommy Wirkola and Rasmus A. Sivertsen’s adult animation Spermageddon (2024), Can Evrenol’s Revengeamatic Sayara (2024), the French drug-fuelled horror movie MadS (2024), Mubi’s doc Grand Theft Hamlet (2024), and Damian Mc Carthy’s Oddity (2024).
This year’s winners of the Méliès d’or were announced at the Sitges Film Festival. The Méliès International Festivals Federation (MIFF) recognized Handling the Undead (Håndtering av udøde, 2024) as Best European Fantastic Feature Film. Directed by Thea Hvistendahl, Handling the Undead is an adaptation of the zombie novel of the same name, which was written by John Ajvide Lindqvist (best known for Let the Right One In).
Pola Kazak’s animation Weeds (Plevel, 2024) won the Méliès d’or for Best European Fantastic Short Film, while director Christophe Gans (Brotherhood of the Wolf, Silent Hill) received the Career Méliès award.
In other news regarding the Méliès International Festivals Federation, the Bilbao Fantasy Film Festival (FANT Bilbao) is the latest fest to join the Federation as a competitive member. In 2025, FANT Bilbao will “run the short film competition for the Méliès d’argent for Best European Short Film.”
The Devil’s Bath was named Best Feature Film in the Official Fantastic Competition at the Sitges Film Festival. It got both the Critics’ Award and the Carnet Jove Jury Award as well.
Sitges’ list of award winners also includes Soi Cheang’s Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (Best Direction in the SOFC), Aaron Schimberg’s A Different Man (Best Screenplay in the SOFC), Adam Elliot’s Memoir of a Snail (Best Animated Film in the Anima’t Section), Camila Beltrán’s Mi bestia (Blood Window Award for Best Film), and JT Mollner’s Strange Darling (Grand People’s Choice Award for Best Film in the SOFC). Find out the full list of winners here.