The Fantastic Pavilion presents a weekly recap with the most relevant news about the world of genre cinema.
News
The documentary about the controversial A Serbian Film (Srpski film, 2010) is finally coming in 2025 from Unearthed Films, the company dedicated to the production and distribution of extreme horror. Stephen Biro’s A Serbian Documentary (2025) – which now has a new official trailer – promises to feature the “true story” behind A Serbian Film “as told by those who made it and lived it.”
Shudder presented the trailer for Grafted (2024), a body horror movie that screened at this year’s Sitges Film Festival. Directed by New Zealander Sasha Rainbow, Grafted will be available to stream on said platform from January 24. Official synopsis: “Chinese scholarship student Wei travels to New Zealand to study medical research at a prestigious university. Shy, introverted, and hiding a genetic facial birthmark, Wei is shunned by her social butterfly cousin Angela and her glamorous friends. Determined to change her fate, Wei immerses herself in her late father’s research, working on a revolutionary skin grafting procedure that could cure her deformity. As her experiments take a dark turn, she becomes more dangerous and unhinged, willing to eliminate anyone who threatens her secret.”
Speaking of Shudder, two movies that we’ve been covering – Invoking Yell (2023) and Get Away (2024) – will be added to their catalog in January. Patricio Valladares’ found footage flick about an all-female black metal band (Invoking Yell) lands on Shudder on New Year’s Day, while Steffen Haars’ Sweden-set horror comedy (Get Away) on January 10.
Dead Central debuted the official teaser for Bokshi (2025), a fantasy horror film from India. Directed by Bhargav Saikia, Bokshi is set to have its world premiere at the upcoming 54th International Film Festival Rotterdam (January 30-February 9). Here’s its official synopsis: “Anahita, traumatised by the brutal disappearance of her mother, finds comfort in Shalini, her history teacher. On an unconventional school excursion to a mysterious prehistoric site, she confronts her terrifying destiny.”
A video game based on Steven Kostanski’s Frankie Freako (2024) has been announced. The 8-bit side-scroller is set in Freak World and serves as a prequel to the fun puppet flick, which screened this year at Fantastic Fest and Mórbido Fest. The game will be available in the second quarter of 2025 “on Steam and major consoles.”
Home video
Arrow Video’s March releases were revealed last Friday. Highlights include 4K UHD editions of Brian De Palma’s Dressed to Kill (1980) and Lucio Fulci’s Don’t Torture a Duckling (Non si sevizia un paperino, 1972), as well as a limited edition set of Renny Harlin’s Deep Blue Sea (1999), a shark movie that was featured in the documentary Sharksploitation (2023) – check out here our interview about it –.