I’ve been fortunate enough to attend Toronto After Dark Film Festival for all nine years of its existence. Witnessing its evolution from the very start has been an absolute treat. This year was no exception. There were a whopping 13 sell outs at the 550-plus seated Scotiabank Theatre venue. While Toronto After Dark has undoubtedly grown in stature, it still remains intimate in its atmosphere. A festival run by fans for the fans. Pub After Dark is a fine example of that. It offers the viewer the opportunity to chat it up with fellow fans, programmers and filmmakers. The Toronto After Dark experience just keeps getting better and better.

Here’s a list of my top 5 from this year’s line-up (in no particular order):

Housebound
After a botched bank robbery, Kylie Bucknell (Morgana O’Reilly) is sentenced to nine months of home arrest. It’s made all the worse that she is cooped up with her mother who believes the house is haunted. Housebound is one of the most entertaining genre films to come around this year. I like that it doesn’t settle in on any particular subgenre. It giddily smashes a bunch of them together. Writer/Director Gerard Johnstone shows a real knack for writing well-developed, relatable characters which gives her the leeway to take the story wherever he likes. That rings especially true in Housebound’s absolutely bonkers, twisty third act. Scares and laughs are handled effectively in equal measures. The less you know about it, the better so I recommend you go into it blindly. Housebound is as fun as they come.

Dead Snow 2
Like many I wasn’t expecting a whole lot from this sequel. The first film entertained but never really warranted a follow-up. Well here it is and guess what; believe the hype. Dead Snow 2 is a blast of the highest order. The story picks up where the original left off and giddily takes its Nazi Zombie premise to delightfully absurd new heights. Co-Writer/Director Tommy Wirkola’s imagination is unfettered this time around. Political correctness and plausibility is out the window. Showmanship is the name of the game and Dead Snow 2 delivers much of the same manic cartoon thrills found in Evil Dead 2. The action sequences are gory, creative and gleeful in its political incorrectness. The laughs are big and frequent throughout especially the Zombie Squad angle lead by a memorable performance by Martin Starr (Freaks and Geeks). Dead Snow 2 is destined to become a cult classic — the rare sequel that improves on the original in every way.

Predestination
The Spierig Brothers have only made three films in the past eleven years. While I wasn’t much a fan of their debut Undead, one couldn’t deny what they were able to accomplish with just a million dollars (they were their own visual effects artists). I really dug their sophomore project Daybreakers in which they took an estimated twenty million budget and made one of the most impressive-looking genre pictures in recent memory. With Predestination, the Spierig Brothers take another leap forward but not in an area I was expecting them to. An adaptation of Robert A. Heinlein’s (Starship Troopers) short story All You Zombies, the film is about a Temporal Agent (Ethan Hawke) who’s final mission entails him to track a bomber that is destined to kill 10,000 New Yorkers. As expected, the filmmaking is exceptional. These guys have mastered their craft to a tee. The growth is in the form of their first-rate screenplay which exudes a maturity in their work. This is an intricate, mind-bending thriller laced with three-dimensional characters. The film also showcases captivating performances from the always good Hawke and a bonafide star-making turn courtesy of Sarah Snook. Like any good science fiction yarn, Predestination will have you thinking about it long after it’s over. This is not only the Spierig Brothers’ best to date but one of the smartest sci-fi flicks around. Hopefully we won’t have to wait nearly as long for the next project by this very talented duo.

The Town That Dreaded Sundown
Just when you’ve written off remakes comes Director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon’s (American Horror Story) riveting take on The Town That Dreaded Sundown. 68 years after the original murder spree, The Phantom Killer has seemingly returned to terrorize the town of Texarkana. One thing this film will never be accused of is phoning it in. This 2014 edition isn’t a remake in the traditional sense since we’re in a world in which the original cult film exists. Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa’s (Carrie remake) screenplay is overstuffed yet the incredible ambition on display is so admirable that I excused some of the more murkier plot contrivances. The real star here is Gomez-Rjon’s virtuoso direction. Fans of stylized cinema à la Brian De Palma and Dario Argento will totally eat this up. From the spectacular one-take opener to the very last frame, fans will be feasted to one inspired, mind-blowing shot after another. The Town That Dreaded Sundown is far better than it has any right to be. I’m just blown away by the amount of effort put into this entire production. It’s without a doubt the finest slasher film I’ve seen in ages.

The Babadook
Since its Sundance premiere, Jennifer Kent’s The Babadook has gotten the kind of acclaim rarely stowed upon a horror movie. While it isn’t the scarefest the trailer seems to suggest, Kent has crafted one of the most meticulously-constructed, nuanced genre pictures I’ve seen in some time. The story is deceptively simple: with the looming memory of her husband’s violent death, a single mom struggles to keep her sanity while raising her troubled child who insists there is a monster lurking within their home. While watching The Babadook, I was reminded of Nicolas Roeg’s masterpiece Don’t Look Now especially considering that the narrative is driven by its complex characters. The fact this is Kent’s debut makes this all the more incredible. She’s supported by the tremendous performances from Essie Davis and Noah Wiseman, the strongest you’ll likely find in the genre this year. Only gripe I have with The Babadook is that its devotion to its construct makes the third act play fairly predictably. Once you know what the central conflict is, the tension takes a bit of a dip. Folks expecting a supernatural horror film will surely be disappointed. However The Babadook should be judged by what it truly is; a damn fine psychological horror drama — one that’s as good as they come.

Time Lapse
In Time Lapse three friends find a mysterious camera that shoot 24 hours into the future. What starts off as a cool even prosperous discovery soon has deadly repercussions that threaten their bond along with their lives. Making his directorial debut, Bradley King has put together an understated yet unnerving time travel thriller by way of Shallow Grave. The story and characterizations unravel beautifully. The three leads Danielle Panabaker, George Finn and in particular Matt O’Leary deliver vivid portrayals. As the story progresses into darker and darker territory, they’re arch is developed convincingly. The chemistry between the three is at the heart of this sci-fi piece, keeping it grounded. Time Lapse is top notch indie cinema. A must-see hidden gem.

Wyrmwood
Mad Max and the zombie genre collide in the adrenaline-fueled Wyrmwood. This Aussie action/horror flick follows a down-in-his-luck working class mechanic (Jay Gallagher) and his struggle to survive a merciless apocalyptic landscape. Co-Writer/Director Kiah Roache-Turner injects energy, style and fresh life into a tired sub-genre that’ll satisfy hardcore fans. Wyrmwood never takes its foot off the pedal yet never at the expense of character. The strong performances by Gallagher, Bianca Bradey, Leon Burchill and Keith Agius immensely help in anchoring the film’s zaniest of concepts. Wyrmwood is pure comic book mayhem with a dash of heart that sets it apart from the pack. I wholeheartedly welcome a sequel.

ABCs of Death 2
This is a massive improvement over the mostly terrible first installment. While it does have some weak spots here and there (P is for P-P-P-P SCARY! is painfully unwatchable even by the original’s low standards), for the most part, the filmmakers rise to the occasion. You get two hours of highly diverse takes on the macabre. The standouts are:

-E.L. Katz’s (Cheap Thrills) A is for Amateur tells the tale of a hitman’s job gone horribly wrong. It’s as well put-together as they come. The downfall of a lot of the segments is their struggle to tell a complete, concise story in such a short amount of time. Katz’s nails it out of the part with style, energy and a killer payoff to boot.

-If you’ve seen Robert Morgan’s stop-motion classic Bobby Yeah, you’ll know exactly what to expect from D is for Deloused. While there’s nothing new here, his wonderfully weird and distinct creations continue to dazzle.

-Much like D Is for Deloused, Steven Kostanksi, the man behind the immensely entertaining Manborg gives fans more of the same. What this segment does showcase is Kostanski’s continuously blossoming craftsmanship. W is for Wish is about two kids who get transported into an 80’s style fantastical universe of the toys that they’re hooked on. He-Man on steroids. This is up and away the most visually impressive, imaginatively-conceived of the bunch. The narrative is pretty thin but man does the eye candy and nostalgia sweep you away. Scares me to think what this guy can do with an actual budget.

-The best is saved for last with Chris Nash’s (Skinfections Trilogy) unusual yet oddly beautiful Z is for Zygote. This fable deals with themes of abandonment and pregnancy in a unique and honest way. Nash pays it all off with a finale that features some of the most show-stopping make-up effects (which took him two months to create) you’ll likely see this year.

Shorts After Dark
Senior Programmer Peter Kuplowsky has assembled yet another strong, eclectic collection of international genre shorts. Here are a few of the standouts among the nine-film program:

-The sharply-directed Invaders (Gold winner of the Audience Choice Award) is a humorous look at a home invasion gone horrible awry. Fans of bloodshed will definitely be satisfied.

–He Took Off His Skin For Me (Bronze Winner) is an exquisitely-crafted piece dealing with a guy’s rather big sacrifice for the girl that he loves. Likely the most moving film you’ll ever see about skin removal.

–Dynamic Venus is an unflinching satire about a super-heroine who when off-duty is a victim of spousal abuse. Director Kaichi Sato’s use of iconic Japanese pop culture cliches is utilized much in the manner in which Oliver Stone presented Mallory’s disturbing domestic life (as a sitcom, laugh track and all) in Natural Born Killers. While it can easily be dismissed as an insensitive way of dealing with a very serious issue, I personally found the violence all the more uncomfortable when being juxtaposed against such a familiar, bubbly aesthetic. The drawn out, disturbing display of extreme violence in the finale executes its point to chilling effect. This is easily the most provocative short I’ve seen at TAD to date and will no doubt polarize audiences.