Started in 1996 as a showcase of primarily Asian martial arts, gore and fantasy films, the Fantasia International Film Festival has evolved to bring to the screen a mind-boggling array of films from around the globe that span the genre spectrum. This year, Fantasia stands as one of the premier — if not the pre-eminent — festival of genre films in North America. What’s more, despite important corporate and government sponsorship, 75 percent of the total funding still comes from ticket and T-shirt sales!
The festival officially opened with last night’s much-anticipated Canadian premiere of Takashi Miike’s film, Yatterman, a big-screen version of the wildly popular Japanese children’s television cartoon. Many may raise an eyebrow at the thought of a kids’ movie coming from a director better known for much more serious — and usually more disturbing — films such as Audition, Visitor Q and Graveyard of Honor.
Miike’s version of the zany cartoon, in which the boy/girl duo that forms ‘Yatterman’ weekly battles the hapless trio of the Doronbo Gang—led by the evil Lady Doronjo, goes far beyond the programmatic structure of the cartoon. He keeps kids entertained with excellent computer animation and a blistering pace that is sure to exhaust them, while the adults scream with laughter at its overall bawdiness as well as appreciate the more critical undertones that form a commentary on the genre itself. Yatterman is an absolutely thrilling ride that makes one want to drop everything, don a pink jumpsuit and start learning Japanese. At the very least, it compels one to throw down a few of the movie’s signature dance moves on the way out of the theatre.
The festival takes place at two venues — Théâtre Hall Concordia and Salle J.A. de Sève — both part of Concordia University’s downtown Montréal campus. Yesterday’s Miike feature filled the larger Théâtre Hall, and the long line of fans who lined up more than an hour before the scheduled start speaks of not only the festival’s popularity, but also the dedication of its supporters. Films at Fantasia tend to be events rather than mere ‘screenings’ as evidenced by the audience’s explosive reception of the festival’s opening remarks and introductions. Just before the curtain, Yatterman producer, Yoshinori Chiba’s appearance, and Miike’s own hilarious video-gram sent in lieu of his absence both drew loud applause. All in all, the evening set the tone for what the festival promises to bring over the next 20 days.
This year brings 110 films to the two screens at Concordia University, with an incredible number of not only Canadian, but North American and world, premieres as well. This year also marks a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Hong Kong film industry with the Canadian premiere of Ip Man — the story of the legendary Wing Chun kung fu master — as well as a retrospective of Japanese erotic films (‘Pink Films’, or pinku eiga) brought to Fantasia in partnership with the Cinémathèque Québécoise. In support of homegrown innovation, the weekend of July 24th-26th features films of the court métrage québécois — a selection of independent short films from Québec.
For those looking for something a little different, perhaps disturbing and maybe grim — or, for that matter, light and fluffy — Fantasia features an incredible selection of films that one may otherwise never hear of, let alone have access to on the big-screen. But don’t take this neophyte’s word for it and check out the Fantasia International Film Festival for yourselves. After all, three weeks can fly by rather quickly, especially when trying to juggle the many festival events to be had this July in the city.
For film and ticket information visit www.fantasiafest.com and choose your language. The festival runs through to July 29th 2009.
