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NWFEARFest Slashes Into Edmonton This October With ‘Suitable Flesh’, ‘Late Night with the Devil’ and More!
Launched in 2022, NorthwestFEARFest (“NWFEARFest”) is back this year with a full line up of 2023’s hottest new horror & thriller fare (along with some retro classics!).
Launched with a 2-night “sneak peek” last October, this year’s edition expands to 5 blood-curdling days & nights of gooey mayhem, with a lineup of over 20 feature and short films that includes some of 2023’s most BUZZ-worthy new genre films, and some beloved classics.
Festival Programmer Guy Lavallee says audiences are in for five days of non-stop chills. “From the moment we decided to start this festival, our number one focus was to bring the best new & retro horror and genre films to Edmonton audiences. There’s a huge appetite for horror here – including from our programming team – and we feel like we’ve got something incredibly special lined up for NWFEARFest audiences. I hope everyone is as stoked about this lineup as we are!”
Running exclusively at Metro Cinema at the Garneau from October 18 – 22, this year’s blood-soaked film lineup includes…
Kicking off on October 18th with the latest deranged masterpiece from Joe Lynch (“Mayhem”, “Wrong Turn 2: Dead End”), SUITABLE FLESH is an outrageously over the top tribute to both H.P. Lovecraft AND the late, great Stuart Gordon.
Riding a wave of deafening buzz ever since it wowed audiences at this year’s SXSW, and featuring a brilliant performance from David Dastmalchain, LATE NIGHT WITH THE DEVIL “unearths” a lost 1977 live talk show broadcast that goes terribly awry.
Five years ago, filmmaker Jenn Wexler was a festival fixture with her throwback slasher, THE RANGER, and now she’s back with what’s sure to be a future holiday classic, THE SACRIFICE GAME.
Playing like “Assault on Precinct 13” as made by Dead Alive-era Peter Jackson, and never stopping once to take a breath over 85 gloriously gory minutes, Stewart Sparke’s Lovecraft-inspired crowd-pleaser HOW TO KILL MONSTERS simply has to be experienced to be believed!
From director Demián Rugna (the man who caused nightmares the world over with his previous shocker, “Terrified”), WHEN EVIL LURKS is a terrifying new vision of demonic horror that’s bound to cause more than a few sleepless nights.
And, closing out the festival on October 22, NWFEARFest presents the “hometown” premiere of Tim Rutherford & Cody Kennedy’s highly-anticipated THE LAST VIDEO STORE. With a hilarious performance by Kevin Martin (owner of Edmonton’s “actual” last video store, The Lobby), this outrageously entertaining genre mashup is an affectionate love letter to VHS culture, and the genre cinema that shaped us.
Also coming to NWFF 2023:
It’s ‘Scream’ meets ‘The Eyes of Laura Mars’, as the witty and whipsmart DEPARTING SENIORS sees a masked killer stalking the high school halls. After an old woman suddenly commits suicide, all Hell breaks loose, in the endlessly unsettling THE ELDERLY. Non-stop, white-knuckle, nail-biting action is on the menu in the knockout siege thriller, JERICHO RIDGE, and the outrageously unstoppable MAYHEM (FARANG). And, straight from its rapturous TIFF World Premiere, HUMANIST VAMPIRE SEEKING CONSENTING SUICIDAL PERSON is, hands-down, the most unique and refreshing take on the vampire AND coming-of-age genres in years!
For fans of RETRO fare, NWFEARFest has a tremendous lineup of classic scares. On Friday, October 20th,they’re pulling out the retro cardboard 3D glasses (for real), for a rare screening of FRIDAY THE 13TH PART III IN 3D! They’re also celebrating some major milestones, with a 30th Anniversary screening of Henry Selick’s holiday classic, THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS (part of the Gateway To Horror “family-friendly” scary movie series that also includes a screening of THE MONSTER SQUAD); a 40th Anniversary screening of the absolutely bonkers, cult slasher movie classic, SLEEPAWAY CAMP, and a 50th Anniversary screening of the granddaddy of them all, THE EXORCIST: Director’s Cut.
NorthwestFEARFest features more than 20 films, including Feature and Short Films, all screening exclusively at Metro Cinema. All-Access Passes are valid for admission to all screenings. All-Access Passes, Discovery Packs,, and Individual screening tickets are now on sale online at https://www.northwestfest.ca/nwfearfest
And just keep repeating…”It’s Only a Movie…It’s Only a Movie…”
A luxury team-building trip descends into a bloody fight for survival against a vengeful retreat leader in Corporate Retreat, out today in theaters. It’s the latest entry in a cathartic subgenre of workplace horror that examines every harrowing aspect of job employment.
No job is safe from horror, either, from babysitting to even the most white-collar gigs. But if you work an overnight shift? All bets are off. Vengeful co-workers and bosses aside, the night shift is likely to come armed with witches, creatures, demons, and all manner of things that go bump in the night. Even deadly outbreaks.
Corporate Retreat, along with these five horror movies centered around some of the worst night shifts, will make you glad the weekend has finally arrived.
The Autopsy of Jane Doe
Passenger director André Øvredal goes full throttle for the scares in this quiet little chiller that sees a father and son coroner team stumped over the bizarre mysteries contained within the body of an unidentified young woman during an unexpected night shift. Well-executed scares, clever twists, and earnest performances by Brian Cox and Emile Hirsch give this supernatural haunter serious heft. While the narrative bides its time unveiling the truth behind Jane Doe’s battered body, it’s heavily steeped in witchcraft. In other words, The Autopsy of Jane Doe presents a new take on the subgenre. More importantly, it’s seriously scary.
Cold Storage
COLD STORAGE, StudioCanal 2023
A lethal, mutated fungus breaks free from confinement deep within the bowels of a storage facility. At the frontlines of the madness are Teacake (Stranger Things’ Joe Keery) and Naomi (Barbarian‘s Georgina Campbell), two employees thrust into the middle of the chaos when they investigate an alarm beeping somewhere deep within the building. Director Jonny Campbell (Netflix’s Dracula), working from a script by David Koepp based on his novel, helms the goopy madness with workman efficiency. This lighthearted, goopy horror comedy romp makes the deadly night shift a bit more bearable.
Graveyard Shift
Graveyard Shift follows new hire Hall (David Andrews) tasked by his mean boss Warwick (Stephen Macht) to assist with the insane rat infestation beneath their mill. They find something much most monstrous as the cause. Though the film was panned, it’s a fun creature feature with an always welcome appearance by Brad Dourif as the intensely eccentric exterminator. The film also opts for a happier ending, whereas (spoiler), the story sees both Hall and Warwick getting devoured by the mutated rats, the crew in the upstairs mill none the wiser.
Last Shift
‘Last Shift’
Rookie Officer Jessica Loren (Juliana Harkavy) has been assigned to watch over a closing precinct on its final night of operation…alone. With nearly everything already moved over to the new station, including rerouted 911 calls, it should be a pretty quiet night as she waits for a Hazmat team to arrive to remove biohazardous waste. Instead, it becomes a waking nightmare as she’s forced to deal with unsettling visitors. Last Shift, co-written by Scott Poiley and director Anthony DiBlasi, brings the scares.
Intruder
The overnight stock crew of a local grocery store finds themselves falling victim to an unseen killer in this highly infectious late ‘80s slasher. The deaths are delightfully gruesome and inventive; look for this killer to make excellent use of grocery store items as weapons. Frequent Raimi collaborator Scott Spiegel directed this bloody slasher, which means a lot of overlap with the Evil Dead II. That means putting Sam Raimi in front of the camera for a change, along with Ted Raimi and Evil Dead II’s Dan Hicks. Look for a cameo by Bruce Campbell as well!
Corporate Retreat releases in theaters today; get tickets now.
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