The
Best of Cinequest -- Genre Films
As
always, Cinequest swallowed me up for almost two weeks. I
love Cinequest, and while I wasn’t able to be there
as much as I’ve been in past years, but I managed to
see a bunch of films, and some of them were fantastic genre
films that you might wanna seek out.
And away we go-
Best
Action Film- The Action Hero’s Guide
to Saving Lives
Patrick Warburton is the greatest actor in the world. The
man who could have played Captain Marvel and played the
voice of Brock Sampson on The Venture Brothers, plays Ace
Mulligan, who is basically Brock Sampson. The film is a
ton of fun, and though it’s less than 20 minutes,
it allows Warburton to do some great comedy and play an
action hero. You
can find out more here.
Best Science Fiction Comedy Short- Ducked
and Covered: A Survival Guide to the Post Apocalypse.
Look
for the film itself. It’s really freakin’
funny. It’s a fake film strip that tells you how to
survive after the bombs are dropped. It’s absolutely
hilarious and it might even teach you a thing or two.
Best
Short Date Film / Fantasy - Out of the Blue
An Irish short about a guy who finds a TV in the ocean.
OK, that sounds a bit strange, but it’s an adorable
short that features a mermaid and a bunch of strangeness
that has a fun little twist ending. This was one of the
best films I’ve ever managed to discover in my years
as a shorts viewer. Sadly, I’ve not been able to find
a website for it.
Best
Crime Feature Film- Babnik
Alejandro Adams is a filmmaker who likes his close-ups.
His avant garde science fiction film Canary was
in last year’s fest, and while it messed with my head,
I’m still not sure how I felt about it. Walking out
of Babnik after it was all over, I was convinced
that this was what a crime film should be. Almost entirely
in Russian, it’s a tough, mind-tugging near-masterpiece
that tells a story. It reminded me that the crime genre
is alive and well, and with Alejandro’s visual sense,
it becomes an even more paranoid and intense tale. You can
find more at http://www.babnikmovie.com/.
Best
Detective Film- The Boneman
I love the Hard Case Crime books. They’re some great
detective stories. This is a wonderful Austrian film about
a former Police Detective who has become a Repo Man. While
on a trip to repossess a car, he ends up stumbling on a
trio of mysteries and goes about solving them. This is a
complex film that rolls through the various stories and
just when you think you’ve lost something, they pick
it up. It’s certainly the kind of thing that should
be a Hard Case Crime book.
Best
Music Video - "Her Morning Elegance"
If you like music or stop-motion, go to YouTube and search
for "Her Morning Elegance." It’ll bring
up a lovely short music video where the animation elements
are sheets, clothing and a lovely young Israeli woman. The
song is by Oren Lavie and it’s a cute little piece.
The
best version is here.
Best
animated Short - Fard
It’s the kind of science fiction that I love: subtle,
strange and meaningful. It’s the story of a world
where everything is line, black and white, and very French.
The discovery of a very strange flashlight leads to some
strong adventure and good deal of meaning. There’s
some crazy technical stuff in there too. I really hope this
gets released on some DVD compilation.
Best
Weirdness - Night Mayor
Guy Maddin’s classic film The Saddest Music in
the World is one of my faves, and Night Mayor
is his film about turning the sound of the Aurora Borealis
into a series of images. It’s so very Canadian and
strange and nutty and it’s a great view. National
Film Board of Canada scores again.
Best
Short - Two Theories, One Stone
This is a great Canadian short that is an homage to Tarantino.
Actually, it’s much more, and it’s a hilarious
short! These two guys, in one continuous shot, manage to
work amazing dialogue and hilarious delivery. I laughed
all the way through. There are also an amazing pair of thighs
featured in the thing. I mean, they are amazing! Check
out their Facebook page for more info.
Best Gross-Out Comedy- Puck Hogs
If you like Mockumentaries, this one is for you. If you
thought There’s Something About Mary was
too subtle, this one might be for you too. There’s
butthole jokes, there’s peeing, there’s urinal
cake eating, there’s puking and there are other tender
moments of romance. It’s hilarious and almost never
lets up with the comedy. Every year there’s a film
like this and this is the best one I’ve seen. The
biggest laughs of the fest were at the screening I was in.
A great Canadian film.
Best Comedy Feature- Cummings Farm
The tagline ‘A funny thing happened on the way to
the orgy’ is appropriate, but the film is really funny.
There’s also the guy who played Warren on Buffy
as one of the main characters. It’s bizarre and hilarious
and I’d say that it was the funniest film I’ve
seen since The Hangover. http://www.cummingsfarm.com/
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