The Fantastic Pavilion presents a weekly recap with the most relevant news about the world of genre cinema.
News
The Devil’s Bath (Des Teufels Bad, 2024) is returning to theaters across the U.S., from November 13. Directed by Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala (Goodnight Mommy, The Lodge), this period piece was recently named Best Feature Film in the Official Fantastic Competition at the Sitges Film Festival. It’s also Austria’s official Oscar entry.
Here’s the official synopsis: “In 1750 Austria, a deeply religious woman named Agnes has just married her beloved, but her mind and heart soon grow heavy as her life becomes a long list of chores and expectations. Day after day, she is increasingly trapped in a murky and lonely path leading to evil thoughts, until the possibility of committing a shocking act of violence seems like the only way out of her inner prison. Giving a voice to the invisible and unheard women of the rural past, The Devil’s Bath is based on historical court records about a shocking, hitherto unexplored chapter of European history.”
The cult horror comedy Street Trash (1987) has been reimagined by Cape Town-based director Ryan Kruger, who became well known in the genre scene for Fried Barry (2020). Street Trash (2024) is set in dystopian South Africa where “the homeless crisis has reached such a critical level that the government has decided to liquidate the problem (literally). It’s up to a ragtag group of homeless individuals to fight back before the entire population of homeless people is rounded up and liquefied.” Kruger’s Street Trash will be available on digital and on Screambox from November 19. Watch here its trailer.
Isaac Ezban’s post-apocalyptic zombie movie Párvulos (2024) is now playing in theaters in Mexico. Two versions are available: the uncut one and another version with less gore designed for teenagers. Currently, Párvulos is seeking distribution in other territories through Raven Banner.
Film critic Josh Hurtado revealed that the Indian horror flick Tumbbad (2018) is getting a U.S., Canada and UK theatrical release on November 14. Tumbbad screened at festivals like Fantastic Fest and Mórbido Fest way back in 2018. Fantastic Pavilion’s Eric Ortiz named it one of his favorite movies of that year, describing it as “an epic that covers different generations of a “cursed” family and periods of Indian history (from 1918 to 1947, when it became an independent nation from the British). It represents, in a great and original way, endless greed through a terrifying God and the descent into hell of the aforementioned family.”
Festivals
The 17th edition of the Mórbido Fest will continue in Mexico City over the weekend, with screenings of Spermageddon (2024), Sayara (2024), MadS (2024), Trizombie (2024), Oddity (2024), The Devil’s Bath, and much more. You can check out here the festival program.
Home video
Scream Factory will release on January 21 a collector’s edition 4K UHD and Blu-ray of The Last Voyage of the Demeter (2023), André Øvredal’s adaptation of the Log of the Demeter passage from Bram Stoker’s Dracula. The two-disc set includes such new extras as an audio commentary by David Dastmalchian and an interview with folklorist and author Dr. Karen Stollznow. In a conversation with the Fantastic Pavilion, author and journalist Chris Alexander praised The Last Voyage of the Demeter because it “plays like a Hammer horror movie.”
A physical edition of Pascal Plante’s acclaimed crime thriller Red Rooms (Les chambres rouges, 2023) is now available for pre-order, thanks to Utopia and OCN Distribution. The limited edition Blu-ray includes a commentary by Plante and a behind the scenes featurette, among other extras. Red Rooms follows a young woman (Juliette Gariépy) who’s obsessed with the trial of a man who supposedly committed a series of murders and recorded them for an online paying audience.