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The 2024 Fantasia International Film Festival descends on Montreal July 18 for 3 weeks of wild, and wondrous cinema. Included among the official selections in the 2024 program are some of the years most anticipated horror releases, hidden gems from around the world, and even free events with acclaimed filmmakers, including Mike Flanagan! This year’s program includes E.L. Katz’s action-packed dialog-free post-apocalyptic nightmare Azrael, as well as In Our Blood a found footage shocker from documentarian-turned-horror-maestro Pedro Kos, and Rita from Jayro Bustamante who’s 2019 sleeper hit La Llorona grabbed the indie horror scene by the throat.

Needless to say, there are hundreds of movies at Fantasia that we can’t wait to sink our teeth into (including something called Chainsaws Are Singing which the fest has described as “Monty Python meets Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets Les Misérables!?!). Below are the 10 horror movies we’re most excited to see and review for...

Director Joe Wright and writers Jez and John-Henry Butterworth have all boarded the upcoming Paramount+ series “The Department.”

The Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios series, which was announced with a straight-to-series order in February 2023, is based on the French drama series “Le Bureau des Legendes” created by Eric Rochant. Wright will direct the first two episodes and executive produce, while the Butterworths will writer and executive produce all episodes. George Clooney was originally announced as directing the series. He and Grant Heslov remain onboard as executive producers via Smokehouse Pictures.

“Joe Wright is a visionary director with a gift of focusing on intricate details to craft immersive and visually striking stories,” said Chris McCarthy, President and CEO of Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios. “And, Jez and John-Henry are masterful writers whose witty and emotionally charged language dives deep into their characters’ moral complexities, while simultaneously creating a propulsive narrative. Bringing these powerhouse...

The career trajectory of Philippe Grandrieux has in some respects come full circle in the last ten years. International acclaim came to the director with his signature narrative film Sombre (1998) in part due to its loose association with the so-called French New Extremity movement of the late-1990s and early 2000s, and he has cultivated a devoted following among certain audiences, critics, and critical theorists with the features A New Life (2002), Un Lac (2008), and Despite the Night (2015). His work originates, however, in video installation, photography, and documentaries—media that he has worked in consistently from the mid-1970s through today. While their subject matter is diverse, a “thesis” of sorts running through nearly all of his works can be distilled into a statement by Grandrieux himself: “Le cinéma est l’art de la sensation” (“cinema is the art of sensation”). Grandrieux’s approach to the film subject has been distinguished...

Following yesterday’s announcement of more than 60 new titles, AFI Fest has named the 30-plus films in its World Cinema section. Cristian Mungiu’s “Graduation,” Betrand Bonello’s “Nocturama” and Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or–winning “I, Daniel Blake” are among the more notable selections, most of them culled from Cannes, Venice and other festivals.

The weeklong event, which begins in Hollywood with the world premiere of Warren Beatty’s “Rules Don’t Apply” on November 10, also announced that Raoul Peck and Lav Diaz will present their films “I Am Not Your Negro” and “The Woman Who Left,” respectively, as part of the Masters in Conversation program.

Read More: AFI Fest Announces New Auteurs, American Independents, Midnight and Shorts Sections

“After Love” (dir. Joachim Lafosse)

“Albüm” (dir. Mehmet Can Mertoğlu)

“Boris Without Beatrice” (dir. Denis Côté)

“The Commune” (dir. Thomas Vinterberg)

“Crosscurrent” (dir. Yang Chao)

“Death in Sarajevo” (dir.

When the Night Has Come: Grandrieux Laments Lost Love

Seven years have passed since provocateur Philippe Grandrieux’s 2008 film Un Lac, and he remains somewhat of an acquired taste, though considering the subject matter, Malgré la nuit (Despite the Night) is surprisingly less galvanizing than his early features. The narrative, should we indeed call it thus, couldn’t be more simple, roughly concerning a British bloke returning to Paris to reconnect with his lost love. His reasons for leaving or returning aren’t apparently of importance once he disappears into a sort of Parisian ether, where passionate memories are pierced by a current state of abject degradation upon reconnecting with his troubled object of affection. The take away is more of a cerebral, extrasensory experience, existing as a diluted nightmare where pleasure and punishment are doled out in equal measure, which is hardly a surprise for those accustomed to Grandrieux’s filmography.

Gazing into the crystal ball, Screen rounds up its Cannes predictions.

With the unveiling of Cannes Film Festival’s Official Selection now exactly three weeks away buzz over the titles that Thierry Fremaux and his team will select for the 68th edition is hitting fever pitch.

Official teaser announcements have started to roll this week, led by the confirmation on Wednesday that George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road would premiere in an Out of Competition screening on May 14.

Earlier the week, Cannes unveiled its poster featuring Ingrid Bergman to mark the centenary of the late big screen’s birth and it was announced that Stig Bjorkman’s documentary Ingrid Bergman – In Her Own Words would show in Cannes Classics as part of the commemorations.

For the rest of the Official Selection, except perhaps the opening film which is traditionally revealed in advance, Cannes watchers will have to wait for the announcement press conference in Paris on April...

Malgré la nuit

Director: Philippe Grandrieux // Writer: Philippe Grandrieux

French provocateur Philippe Grandrieux may not be an auteur to everyone’s liking, but since debuting with 1998’s visceral Somber, his cinema has always been a point of contention, and he’s since cultivated a growing cult following that includes names like Marilyn Manson. His most infamous work is the Anna Mougalalis headlined A New Life (2002), which is difficult to find copies of. Since then, titles like 2008’s Un Lac (which is available streaming via boutique site Vyer Films) and 2012’s White Epilepsy have waned in peripheral conversations following their limited festival play. But we are excited to see that Grandrieux wrapped a new project in November, Malgré la nuit (Despite the Night), which should receive a more renowned reception as it’s headlined by Ariane Labed, one of the prominent faces from the Greek Weird Wave (Attenberg; Alps), and one...