FANTASIA 2018: Remi's Top 3 Picks

With the summer heatwave in full blast, I can’t wait to beat the heat and see some films at this year’s Fantasia Film Festival. 

Under The Silver Lake

My first pick comes from the Cinema Lucida section of the festival, a section that caters to the experimental and audacious films. I have been a big fan of David Robert Mitchell ever since his last film It Follows. His new film Under The Silver Lake sees Andrew Garfield playing a man obsessed with the strange circumstances of a billionaire mogul's murder and the kidnapping of a girl. This film, like It Follows, is bound to stay with you long after the credits roll.

Mandy 

Next up is from this year’s festival lineup (and closing the festival) is Mandy, from director Panos Cosmatos. It can only be described as some sort of horror, demonic nightmare from the trailer. However, this film had me at the eye candy given by the red and blue hues, as well as Nicolas Cage. How far on the Cage scale will he deliver? Early reviews are praising his performance.

Searching 

Final pick of the three would be Searching, from director Aneesh Chaganty. In this film, we see a father (John Cho), trying to find his daughter who disappeared, while getting a real-time account of his web investigative process. With all of the found footage film in this day in age, and the microcosm of the internet being linked to these films, Searching adds some thriller aspect to this subgenre with the clicks of the keyboard providing this pulse.

A big highlight of the festival is always Documentaries from the Edge. There are only three this year, as compared to other years, which offered more. Nevertheless, I hope to catch them when they are screened. 

As always, have a good festival experience, and bon cinéma!

Follow all of Remi’s  film viewings on Letterboxd.