FrightFest 2013: 13 Must-See Movies
We Are What We Are
The Plot: Faced with the death of their father, a group of young cannibals attempt to carry on the family tradition of killing and eating strangers. With hilarious results! Sorry, that was a typo. With horrifying results!
Why It's A Must-See: We really enjoyed the 2010 Mexican original, and we're happy to report that the American remake is even better.
If you're a fan of human-flesh - and, let's face it, who isn't? - you're going to love this.
Curse Of Chucky
The Plot: Picking up from the end of Child's Play 3 , Chucky returns to wreak havoc on a dysfunctional family who have gathered for a funeral. What a lovely young man (doll) he is.
Why It's A Must-See: If you need us to tell you, then you're probably reading the wrong feature.
The return of Chucky is cause for celebration at the best of times, but at FrightFest ? It'll be like a coming home party.
Now, all we have to do is hope they get the little guy to take part in a post-screening Q&A.
Rewind This
The Plot: Documentary following the rise and fall and rise again of the greatest entertainment format in all of human history, the VHS.
Why It's A Must-See: Exactly as referential and heart-warming as you'd hope, this is a loving tribute to the format most of us grew up on.
A nostalgic treat for all movie fans.
Big Bad Wolves
The Plot: When a child is found murdered in the woods, a grief-stricken father teams with a vigilante cop to take down the killer.
But all is not what it seems in this twisty Israeli thriller.
Why It's A Must-See: Despite the fact this year's FF has several incredible films showing throughout, you could make the claim that they've saved the best for last - Wolves arrives on a huge buzz-wave, and rightly so. It's incredible. If you only buy one ticket this year, buy a weekend pass so you can see everything. But especially this.
V/H/S/2
The Plot: Swift follow-up to the 2012 American anthology film featuring contributions from the likes of Jason Eisener, Gareth Evans, Timo Tjahjanto, Gregg Hale, Eduardo Sánchez, Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett.
Why It's A Must-See: V/H/S was a brave attempt to reinvigorate the found footage genre, but some audiences found it a bit patchy. However, everyone should give the sequel a chance - it's the same, except so much better.
With an insane extended sequence from The Raid 's Gareth Evans, and one of the most original alien invasion stories we've seen, you'll want to rewind this one as soon as it's finished and watch it all over again.
You're Next
The Plot: A home invasion story with a twist, we don't really want to say anything more about this one for feature of spoiling the surprises.
Why It's A Must-See: Trust us. Don't read anything more about You're Next , just buy a ticket. It'll be worth every penny.
R.I.P.D
The Plot: Basically Ghostbusters meets Hellboy with a dash of Men In Black , R.I.P.D follows recently diseased detective Nick Walker as he learns how to police the afterlife - with Jeff Bridges' grizzly sheriff Roy Pulsifer for company.
Why It's A Must-See: In a major coup for the Festival, this is the UK premiere of the latest Ryan Reynolds blockbuster, which means if you want to see it first, you've got to see it here.
The Dead 2
The Plot: Forget World War Z , The Dead franchise is tackling a worldwide zombie invasion one continent at a time.
Following on from The Dead 's African invasion, The Dead 2 sees India at the mercy of an army of post-life flesh-chewers; following British turbine engineer Nicholas Burton's attempts to move from one side of the country to the other, to reunite with his pregnant girlfriend.
Why It's A Must-See : The first film was astonishing - and early reports suggest that the sequel is every bit its equal. We'll be finding out at the same time as you - this is both the festival opener, and a world premiere.
Nosferatu
The Plot: Essentially Dracula with the names changed. So much so that a court order forced the filmmakers to burn every copy shortly after it was released. Luckily for us, one survived.
Why It's A Must-See: One of the most influential and darkly beautiful films ever made, on the big screen where it belongs.
You probably need an excuse not to see it.
Cheap Thrills
The Plot: When a couple of down-on-their-luck blue collar workers bump into a wealthy couple out for kicks, a simple game escalates into a night of dark violence.
Why It's A Must-See: Despite the above description, Thrills is - according to the director - a comedy. But you'll need a sense of humor blacker than death's cloak to find the chuckles. Original, surprising, and packed with biting satire, Thrills will be one of the major talking points of this year's fest.
Haunter
The Plot: Basically Groundhog Day if Bill Murray was a ghost. And that's all we're going to say about this one.
Why It's A Must-See: Vincenzo Natali’s reverse-ghost story follows in the twisty tradition of his previous flicks Cube and Splice .
And, like many great ghost movies, it's one you'll want to see more than once.
Odd Thomas
The Plot: Based on Dean Koontz' bestseller, Odd Thomas is a short-order cook with supernatural powers - he can see the dead.
But when Odd encounters a dark stranger, he finds himself in a race to prevent catastrophe.
Why It's A Must-See: When Koontz saw Stephen Sommers' adaptation of his popular book, he said: "It is so wonderful that I am whacked flat by happiness." Which is an experience we can recommend.
I Spit On Your Grave 2
The Plot: When an amateur model is brutalised during a photoshoot, her life changes forever. Left for dead, and severely injured, she embarks on a rampage of revenge.
Why It's A Must-See: Grave 2 will definitely be one of the most controversial films at this year's festival; everyone will have an opinion on it. But if you want to form your own, you'll have to experience it for yourself.