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Fantaspoa · 2026

Fantaspoa 2026

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Programme

83 films · 30 reviews

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Adorable Humans

Review preview for Adorable Humans

For an anthology movie, Adorable Humans is pretty consistent both in the terms of style and substance.

Marko Stojiljkovic · 3.5 out of 5
Anthology re-imagining the tales of Hans Christian Andersen.

(Country: Denmark; Year: 2025; Director: Anders Jon, Michael Kunov, Kasper Jul, Michael Panduro; Writer: Anders Jon, Michael Kunov, Kasper Jul, Michael Panduro, based on tales by Hans Christian Andersen; Stars: Albert Rudbeck Lindhardt, Knud Klausen, Sus Wilkins, Mille Maria Dalsgaard, Marinus Refnov, Mie Gren, Adam Ild Rohweder, Peter Høgsbro, Iben Skau)

Full review

Animals Of The Land

A family at the beginning of time lives in perfect harmony with Mother Nature, until an act of rebellion unearths a violent force of evil.

(Country: US; Year: 2026; Director: Luke Jaden; Writer: Luke Jaden; Stars: Andrea Tivadar, Abel Lysenko, Jord Knotter, Roan Kyne)

Appofeniacs

Review preview for Appofeniacs

The characters are larger than life, each with a distinctive look, to make it easier to keep track. The effect is rather like being at a drunken fancy dress party.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
An ensemble tale with intersecting storylines that escalate into chaos as each portrays how easily deepfake technology can be weaponised to exploit society.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Chris Marrs Piliero; Stars: Sean Gunn, Jermaine Fowler, Aaron Holiday, Michael Abbott Jr)

Full review

The Arbiter

The city is a battlefield with gangs ruling the night, and with the bloodiest one of all making a murderous push, not stopping until every rival mob is erased. In a desperate bid to avoid being wiped out, the remaining gang leaders gather for an unprecedented summit.

(Country: UK; Year: 2025; Director: Marc Price; Stars: Craig Russell, Jon Xue Zhang, Georgina Leonidas, Jasmine Summer)

Armageddon Road

A hopeless romantic ex-con with big dreams is hired to chauffeur a mob boss' girlfriend for a night. He's blissfully unaware that his passenger has died and is now possessed by one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2026; Director: Karen Lam; Writer: Karen Lam; Stars: Brian McCaig, Natalie Grace, Willie Aames, Landon Liboiron, April Telek, Valerie Tian, Simon Chin, Dejan Loyola, John Shaw)

Backstage Madness (Shermendelik karnavaly)

A 70-year-young director still invents various vivid and bizarre characters on an old-fashioned typewriter.… He has heard the word ‘stop’ far too many times while preparing an art house festival gem.

(Country: Kyrgyzstan; Year: 2025; Director: Amanbek Azhymat)

Bagworm

Carroll’s worldview is dominated by the threat of catastrophe and the decline of morality in the face of human extinction. Then he steps on a rusty nail.

(Country: US; Year: 2026; Director: Oliver Bernsen; Writer: Henry Bernsen; Stars: Peter Falls, Michelle Ortiz, Robbie Arnett, Corbin Bernsen, Stephen Borrello, Jessy Morner-Ritt, Sydney Winbush, Francesca Galassi)

Barrio Triste

Teenagers steal a camera to record their lives.

(Country: Colombia, US; Year: 2025; Director: Stillz; Writer: Stillz; Stars: Juan Pablo Baena, Samuel Velázquez, Tomás Tinoco Higuita, Samuel Andrés Celis, Brahian Acevedo, Estiven Salazar,Brayan Erlín García, José Arley Marín González, Samuel Ruiz)

The Bearded Girl

Review preview for The Bearded Girl

A marvellous piece of storytelling.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
Cleo is ready to spread her wings and, tired of tradition and feeling like an oddball, she leaves her sheltered carnival life to find love and adventure.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Jody Wilson; Writer: Blake Barrie, Thiago Gadelha, Jody Wilson; Stars: Anwen O'Driscoll, Jessica Paré, Skylar Radzion, Ava Anton, Jude Wilson)

Full review See: Interview with Jody Wilson and Anwen O’Driscoll about The Bearded Girl

Beyond The Nest (Covil)

A young woman inherits a house marked by family disputes and discovers a room concealing a terrifying secret, which triggers a journey into a dark and mysterious legacy.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2026; Director: Rodrigo Lages; Writer: Rodrigo Lages; Stars: Daniel Rocha, Vitória Strada, James Turpin, Darlan Júnior, Juliana Lourenção, Carolina Watts)

Bluebird

A near-future love story about Charles and Chloe, who meet and fall in love. When Chloe disappears, Charles sets out to find her in a bizarre world that seems intent on keeping them apart.

(Country: US; Year: 2026; Director: Jay Arden Black; Writer: Jay Arden Black; Stars: Alexandre Chen, Lisa Cole, Ama Konadu, Brandon N Nieczpiel, Christanna Rowader)

Body Blow

Review preview for Body Blow

Immersive and intense, the more so because of its roots in a brutal history of gaybashing by Sydney cops.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
An undercover cop finds his commitment to the force tested when he falls for a young twink deep in debt to a vicious drug lord in this kinky neon-noir.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2025; Director: Dean Francis; Writer: Dean Francis; Stars: Georgina Haig, Tim Pocock, Chris Haywood, Sacha Horler, Paul Francis, Vincent Andriano, Barbara Hastings)

Full review See: Interview with Dean Francis about Body Blow

Buffet Libre

A couple try to save their failing business and hold onto their relationship. There is also cannibalism.

(Country: Spain; Year: 2025; Director: Zoe Berriatúa; Stars: Yan Huang, Carlos Wu, Antonio Dechent, Lucía Díez, Ismael Fritschi, Macarena Gómez)

Bulk

Review preview for Bulk

It's not a map, it's a blueprint, a means of telling fortunes and a handsome puzzle to boot.

Andrew Robertson · 4 out of 5
Sci-fi nightmare fusing head scrambling multiverse and a conspiracy of global proportions that might mean the end of the world as we know it.

(Country: UK; Year: 2025; Director: Ben Wheatley; Stars: Alexandra Maria Lara, Sam Riley, Noah Taylor, Mark Monero)

Full review

Camp

Review preview for Camp

A thoughtful, subtly dangerous film which denies viewers the reassurance of a conventional ending.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
Emily takes a job as a counselor at a summer camp and finds a coven of witches ready to show her a path to healing.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Avalon Fast; Writer: Avalon Fast; Stars: Zola Grimmer, Alice Wordsworth, Cherry Moore, Lea Rose Sebastianis, Austyn Van de Kamp, Ella Reeca, Izzy Jarvis)

Full review

Captivity (Cautiverio)

A young boy suffers the torment of a secret as he escapes through the jungle with his older brother. Both must confront the horrors of their upbringing before they are devoured by the spectre that haunts them.

(Country: Panama; Year: 2026; Director: Omar Calvo, Sebastián Jiménez Franco; Stars: Ecuador García)

Carrie

Review preview for Carrie

The irreverent score, the gothic art direction, and Mario Tosi’s kaleidoscopic, slithering cinematography coalesce into something mesmeric.

Antoni Konieczny · 5 out of 5
A bullied teenager, pushed to breaking point, discovers something unexpected about herself.

(Country: US; Year: 1976; Director: Brian De Palma; Writer: Lawrence D Cohen, based on the novel by Stephen King; Stars: Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, John Travolta, William Katt)

Full review

Cielo

Review preview for Cielo

A stunningly realised piece of magical realism quite different from anything that writer/director Alberto Sciamma has created before.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
How far would you go to reach heaven? Santa, a young indigenous girl, embarks on a rollercoaster journey to take her mother out of a life of hardship and into eternal paradise.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Alberto Sciamma; Writer: Alberto Sciamma; Stars: Fernando Arze Echalar, Juan Carlos Aduviri, Fernanda Gutiérrez Aranda, Cristian Mercado)

Full review

Compliance

Review preview for Compliance

Mangione-Smith...is particularly successful at telling the story dynamically without compromising the found footage approach.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A found footage horror film about the modern surveillance state, dark web crime, and political conspiracy.

(Country: US; Year: 2026; Director: Kyle Mangione Smith; Writer: Kyle Mangione Smith; Stars: Megan Wilcox, Lindsey Normington, Charlie Wood, Neil Wachs)

Full review

Corporate Retreat

Corporate executives on a team-building retreat face a deadly struggle when their leader turns violently against them.

(Country: US; Year: 2026; Director: Aaron Fisher; Writer: Aaron Fisher, Kerri Lee Romeo; Stars: Rosanna Arquette, Odeya Rush, Alan Ruck, Sasha Lane, Benjamin Norris, Ashton Sanders)

The Cramps: A Period Piece

Review preview for The Cramps: A Period Piece

The film’s general campiness does not diminish the points it’s making.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A vibrant collision of horror, comedy, and aching personal truth as seen through the eyes of a young woman dealing with the pain of her menstrual cramps.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Brooke H Cellars; Writer: Brooke H Cellars; Stars: Lauren Kitchen, Martini Bear, Jared Bankens, Wicken Taylor, Michelle Malentina, Jude Douces, Halie Madison, Sylvia Grace Crim)

Full review See: Interview with Brooke H Cellars about The Cramps: A Period Piece

The Curse

Review preview for The Curse

Bright, white-painted spaces give way to slowly deepening blues as the story progresses, so that when we see the colour red, it leaps out at us.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A Japanese girl travels to Taiwan to track down the motive behind a friend's bizarre death, which seems to be linked to strange social media posts.

(Country: Japan, Taiwan; Year: 2025; Director: Kenichi Ugana; Writer: Kenichi Ugana; Stars: Yukino Kaizu, Yu, Reika Oozeki)

Full review See: Interview with Kenichi Ugana about The Curse

Dead Eyes

Accompanied by his fiancée, a man enters a remote forest in search of his missing father, and encounters the cannibalistic creatures his father has made while endeavouring to resurrect his little sister.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2025; Director: Richard E Williams; Writer: Richard E Williams; Stars: Ana Thu-Nguyen, Mischa Heywood, Rijen Laine, Charles Cottier, Alea O'Shea, Stephen Phillips, Freya Callaghan)

Deathgasm 2: Goremageddon

Review preview for Deathgasm 2: Goremageddon

The original film was derided by critics for being crude, exploitative and immature. Fans will be pleased to know that this one delivers more of the same.

Jennie Kermode · 2.5 out of 5
Brodie resurrects his bandmates to win the battle-of-the-bands and reacquire his girlfriend. His uncontrollable undead bandmate raises an army of costumed corpses. Brodie must stop the zombie horde before it ruins his musical dreams and love life.

(Country: New Zealand/Aotearoa, Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Jason Howden; Writer: Jason Howden; Stars: Milo Cawthorne, Kimberley Crossman, James Joshua Blake, Sam Berkley, Daniel Cresswell, Kieran Charnock)

Full review

Deathstalker

Review preview for Deathstalker

Cinema in its most metal form.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
When a ruthless warrior named Deathstalker steals a mysterious amulet from a dying man, he’s unwillingly thrust into a quest to stop the dark sorcerer Necromemnon and save the world from destruction.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Steven Kostanski; Writer: Steven Kostanski; Stars: Daniel Bernhardt, Christina Orjalo, Nina Bergman, Paul Lazenby, John Ambrose, Conor Sweeney, Laurie Field, John Clifford Talbot)

Full review See: Interview with Daniel Bernhardt about Deathstalker

The Dollmaker (Encantador)

In a quiet village, a charming young man named Tomás leads a simple life: caring for his mother, working at the video store and town clinic, and collecting dolls. As women start disappearing, newly arrived Inspector Porter investigates.

(Country: Argentina; Year: 2025; Director: José María Cicala; Writer: José María Cicala, Griselda Sanchez; Stars: Rodrigo Noya, Mario Alarcón, Alejandra Baldoni, Eduardo Calvo, Santiago Domínguez)

Exile

After a deadly factory explosion leaves him injured and his friend dead, a steel worker discovers dark secrets behind the incident and sets out on a dangerous path of vengeance.

(Country: Luxembourg, Qatar, France, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia; Year: 2025; Director: Mehdi Hmili; Writer: Mehdi Hmili; Stars: Slim Baccar, Maram Ben Aziza, Younes Ferhim, Mourad Gharsalli, Mohamed Kolsi, Ghanem Zrelli)

Fabula

A 55-year-old small-time criminal, scorned by family and mocked by friends, tries to fix a failed drug deal while wondering who or what is punishing him for his misdeeds.

(Country: Netherlands, Belgium, Germany; Year: 2025; Director: Michiel ten Horn; Writer: Michiel ten Horn; Stars: Fedja van Huêt, Sezgin Güleç, Michiel Kerbosch, David Kross, Georg Friedrich, Anniek Pheifer)

Faust (Faust - Eine Deutsche Volkssage)

Review preview for Faust

This is essentially a modern film, indicative of changing times, which makes its story all the more potent and provides it with a lasting emotional charge.

Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
A silent classic in which Faust makes a pact with the demon Mephistopheles, offering his soul in exchange for knowledge.

(Country: Germany; Year: 1926; Director: FW Murnau; Writer: Gerhart Hauptmann, based on the play by Johann Wolfgang Goethe.; Stars: Gösta Ekman, Emil Jannings, Camilla Horn, Frida Richard, William Dieterle, Yvette Guilbert, Eric Barclay, Hanna Ralph, Werner Fuetterer)

Full review

The Fence (Granitsa)

Father and daughter are fitting out their house away from civilisation. Shots are heard in the forest and the father is surprised to learn that his daughter has killed an unexpected animal for dinner.

(Country: Russia; Year: 2025; Director: Dmitry Davydov; Writer: Dmitry Davydov; Stars: Eva Kuzmenko, Liliana Petrova, Vyacheslav Shatnenko)

Fifteen

Review preview for Fifteen

Ricardo Álvarez Canales and Andrzej Rattinger’s dialogue is wonderfully observed and the two leads give lively, fresh performances which make them feel like real 14-year-old girls, looking at the world in a way most adults forget.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
A reimagining of the quinceañera as a chaotic mix of comedy and creature horror.

(Country: Argentina, Mexico; Year: 2026; Director: Jack Zagha, Yossy Zagha; Writer: Andrzej Rattinger, Ricardo Álvarez Canales; Stars: Greta Marti, Macarena Oz, Aminta Ireta, Martha Claudia Moreno, Enrique Arreola, Mercedes Hernández, Malena Sandy, Cloe Juresa Furgan, Andre Fajardo, Silvia Villazur)

Full review

The Forbidden City (La città proibita)

A woman leaves China for Rome in search of her missing sister.

(Country: Italy; Year: 2024; Director: Gabriele Mainetti; Writer: Stefano Bises, Gabriele Mainetti, Davide Serino; Stars: Yaxi Liu, Enrico Borello, Sabrina Ferilli, Marco Giallini, Shansan Chunyu)

Foreigner

Review preview for Foreigner

An astute portrait of an experience still underexplored onscreen.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
An Iranian-born teenager is desperate to fit in at her new high school in Canada, but the more she tries to absorb and understand the unfamiliar mindset, the more she becomes consumed by a dark entity.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Ava Maria Safai; Writer: Ava Maria Safai; Stars: Rose Dehgan, Chloe Macleod, Cassie Collis, Talisa Mae Stewart)

Full review See: Interview with Ava Maria Safai about Foreigner

The Ghost Game

A mystery horror film that depicts what happens when Ja-yeong, who has a secret from her past, and her school friends perform a necromancy ritual to summon ghosts.

(Country: South Korea; Year: 2025; Director: Son Dong-wan; Writer: Son Dong-wan; Stars: Kim Ye-rim, Lee Chan-Hyeong, Seo Dong-hyun, Kim Eun-bi, Park Seo-yeon, Oh So-hyun)

Godzilla En Santa Fe

Godzilla. In Santa Fe.

(Country: Argentina; Year: 2026; Director: Alexander Duré)

Gravity (Gravidade)

Four women, including a mother and daughter, are confined in a mansion during an apocalyptic endless night. As tensions rise and a missing maid returns, they must face their fears and buried truths before time runs out.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2025; Director: Leo Tabosa; Writer: Arthur Leite, Leo Tabosa; Stars: Clarisse Abujamra, Danny Barbosa, Marcélia Cartaxo, Hermila Guedes, Helena Ignez)

Heart Of Darkness

Marlon, a police officer in Rio de Janeiro, is assigned on a dangerous mission to search through the outskirts of the city to find Captain Kur, a famous policeman who went missing under mysterious circumstances.

(Country: France, Brazil; Year: 2025; Director: Rogério Andrade Nunes; Writer: Rogério Andrade Nunes, based on the work of Joseph Conrad; Stars: Tamara David, Breno de Filippo, Taís Feijó, Rogerio Freitas, Maria Lucas)

Iai

After losing her father, Kana returns to care for her sick mother. She starts having intense dreams and premonitions that hint at a family curse. A suspenseful blend of psychological horror and family drama.

(Country: Japan; Year: 2026; Director: Zenzo Sakai)

Imposters

After a couple’s baby boy is taken, the desperate mother learns of a way to bring him back. However, her husband begins to suspect that what she has returned with isn't their son.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Caleb Phillips; Writer: Caleb Phillips; Stars: Jessica Rothe, Charlie Barnett, Yul Vazquez, Bates Wilder, Luisina Quarleri, Thomas Parobek, Ian Lyons, Taylor Karin, Lee Bennett, Declan Bennett)

Interior

Psychological thriller about a burglar who uses a couch with a secret compartment to break into people’s homes and covertly film them.

(Country: Germany; Year: 2025; Director: Pascal Schuh)

In The Mouth

A perpetual worrywart finds himself unable to leave his house after discovering a giant version of himself protruding from his front lawn.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Cory Santilli; Writer: Cory Santilli; Stars: Colin Burgess, Paul Rothery, Sage Francis, Earl Fechter, Caren Lioce, Jeffrey Alan Solomon)

The Journey To No End (Wu Jin Zhi Lü)

A genre film.

(Country: China; Year: 2025; Director: Xiang Chen; Writer: Xiang Chen; Stars: Haoming Hu, Yan Sanyuan, Fengyi Xing, Hui Zeng, Yitong Zhang)

Karmadonna (Karmadona)

Review preview for Karmadonna

It holds nothing back – it’s funny, violent, suspenseful and tense while still discussing our current cultural moment, both locally and globally, and being very incisive and dangerous about it.

Dimitrije Vojnov · 5 out of 5
A pregnant woman gets a call from a god who orders her to commit a series of murders.

(Country: Serbia; Year: 2025; Director: Aleksandar Radivojević; Writer: Aleksandar Radivojević; Stars: Jelena Djokic, Sergej Trifunovic, Milutin 'Mima' Karadzic, Milica Stefanovic, Branislav Jevtic, Milos Lolic)

Full review

The Kirlian Frequency (La Frecuencia Kirlian)

In the midnight hour, a lone DJ broadcasts the strangest - and scariest - tales from the outer edges of Kirlian, a lost city somewhere in Argentina.

(Country: Argentina; Year: 2025; Director: Cristian Ponce; Writer: Hernán Bengoa, Cristian Ponce; Stars: Nicolás Van de Moortele, Adriana Ferrer, Luciano Guglielmino, Lucía Arreche)

Labyrinth Of Lost Boys (Labirinto Dos Garotos Perdidos)

A small-town boy gets lost in the big city at night, experiencing increasingly strange sexual encounters while a killer lurks in the metropolitan shadows.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2025; Director: Matheus Marchetti; Writer: Matheus Marchetti; Stars: Lucas Bocalon, Gustavo Brait, Giuliano Garutti, Thiago Gelli, Tony Germano, Gabriela Gonzalez, Ana Kraut)

Levitating

In a town where pleasure equals being possessed by spiritual beings, Bayu aspires to be the shaman of a trance party so he can fundraise enough money to prevent an impending eviction.

(Country: Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, France; Year: 2026; Director: Wregas Bhanuteja; Writer: Wregas Bhanuteja, Alicia Angelina, Defi Mahendra; Stars: Angga Yunanda, Maudy Ayunda, Anggun, Chicco Kurniawan, Bryan Domani, Indra Birowo, Ganindra Bimo, Ivonne Dahler, Muhammad Asyrof Al-Ghifari, Buyung Ispramadi)

Life At Sandy's

No details as yet.

(Country: US, Norway; Year: 2026; Director: Aleksandra Hansen; Writer: Aleksandra Hansen; Stars: Heather Cunningham, Amy Biedel, Marianne Løge, Thea Green Lundberg)

Lucid

Review preview for Lucid

Lucid is surprisingly coherent once the pieces start to come together, and it’s among the more successful experiments in this sort of portraiture.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
Mia is a rebellious art student who struggles to create the ultimate project for a demanding professor. Desperate to find her artistic voice, she takes Lucid, a candy elixir, to access her creativity, but taps into something much darker.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Deanna Milligan, Ramsey Fendall; Writer: Ramsey Fendall, Deanna Milligan, Claire E Robertson; Stars: Caitlin Acken Taylor, Georgia Acken)

Full review See: Interview with Deanna Milligan, Ramsey Fendall and Caitlin Acken Taylor about Lucid.

Luger

Review preview for Luger

There is some excellent work here of the sort that gets under your skin without you noticing, so that when the film abruptly shifts gears in the final scene, it hits you all at once.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
Two desperate criminals navigate a dangerous industrial complex in real time, seeking redemption while facing mounting threats in this intense thriller.

(Country: Spain; Year: 2025; Director: Bruno Martín; Writer: Bruno Martín, Santiago Taboada; Stars: David Sainz, Mario Mayo, Ángel Acero, Ramiro Alonso, Ana Turpin)

Full review See: Interview with Bruno Martín and Santiago Taboada about Luger

Luna Rosa: The 7th Ascension Of Atabey (Luna Rosa: La 7ª Ascensión De Atabey)

In a future Puerto Rico, Zur'na's quest to rescue her kidnapped brother from US colonial forces unveils a system oppressing her people.

(Country: Puerto Rico, Mexico, Germany; Year: 2025; Director: Omar Rodriguez-Lopez; Writer: Omar Rodriguez-Lopez; Stars: Dunia Alexandra, Waldo Facco, Karent Hinestroza, Dorayma Mercado, Marc Nally, Flora Sylvestre, Jehu Sylvestre, Jean Wolf)

Mad Mask

A serial killer who cuts off his victims' faces and wears them like masks gets in too deep after murdering a member of a mysterious cult.

(Country: Japan; Year: 2025; Director: Nagano, Katsuya Arai)

Mag Mag

"If you see her, it's too late. If she falls in love with you, the only escape is death." After her beloved is killed by the Mag Mag ghost, Sanae vows revenge, but soon discovers the true identity of the person to whom she truly owes her retribution.

(Country: Japan; Year: 2025; Director: Yuriyan Retriever; Stars: Sara Minami, Takumi Saioto, Aoi Yamada)

Marama

Review preview for Marama

One of the most impressive films of the year to date.

Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
A young Māori woman travels to Victorian England after receiving a letter promising information about her birth parents. As she peels back the layers of colonial deceit, she is driven to avenge her shattered ancestry.

(Country: New Zealand/Aotearoa; Year: 2025; Director: Taratoa Stappard; Writer: Taratoa Stappard; Stars: Ariana Osborne, Toby Stephens, Umi Myers, Evelyn Towersey, Errol Shand)

Full review See: Interview with Taratoa Stappard about Marama, part 2 , Interview with Taratoa Stappard about Marama

Matapanki

Review preview for Matapanki

The energy of it, combined with Gálvez’s endearing performance, means it’s likely to work well in any environment.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A punk kid gets superpowers from alcohol and tries to reshape society, but a violent error sparks global tensions with him at the centre.

(Country: Chile; Year: 2026; Director: Diego Fuentes; Writer: Diego Fuentes; Stars: Diego Bravo, Ramon Galvez, Rodrigo Lisboa, Antonia Mccarthy, Rosa Peñaloza)

Full review

Meat Kills

The night takes a dark turn when a group of activists break into a pig farm to free mistreated animals and find themselves face-to-face with an extremely angry farmer.

(Country: Netherlands; Year: 2025; Director: Martijn Smits; Writer: Paul de Vrijer; Stars: Caro Derkx, Sem Ben Yakar, Bart Oomen, Chardonnay Rillen)

Narcisa's Will (Herança De Narcisa)

A woman returns to her childhood mansion after her famous mother's death to sell it and split proceeds with her brother. While clearing the property, she uncovers unexpected family secrets.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2025; Director: Clarissa Appelt, Daniel Dias; Writer: Clarissa Appelt, Daniel Dias; Stars: Mariana Costa Pinto, Elvira Helena, Jorge Luiz Jeronymo, Carlos Eduardo Lassah)

Nesting (Peau À Peau)

A new mother grappling with sleep deprivation and postpartum depression, finds herself unable to separate dream from reality. After she witnesses a violent hold-up in a convenience store, her already fragile psyche begins to crack.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Chloé Cinq-Mars; Stars: Rose-Marie Perreault)

The Night (Gaua)

Kattalin enters a forest filled with mythical creatures, exploring nighttime folklore and 1600s superstitions.

(Country: Spain, US; Year: 2025; Director: Paul Urkijo Alijo; Writer: Paul Urkijo Alijo; Stars: Yune Nogueiras, Elena Irureta, Ane Gabarain, Iñake Irastorza, Xabi López, Erika Olaizola)

The Oliver Na Inu, (Gosh!!) Konoyarou Movie

Some kind of werewolf film.

(Country: Japan; Year: 2026; Director: Joe Odagiri; Writer: Joe Odagiri; Stars: Kumiko Asô, Tsubasa Honda, Sôsuke Ikematsu, Joe Odagiri, Amane Okayama)

Olivia & The Clouds

(Country: Dominican Republic; Year: 2024; Director: Tomás Pichardo-Espaillat; Writer: Tomás Pichardo-Espaillat; Stars: Olga Valdez, Héctor Aníbal, Elsa Núñez, Fery Cordero Bello, Dominique Goris, Fidia Peralta, María Rebecca Dalmasí, Lill Taveras, Cesar Calcagno, Ricardo Ariel Toribio)

Peeping Todd

When his peeping passions become compromised, Todd decides he'll do whatever it takes to continue stalking his beloved Claire.

(Country: Dominican Republic; Year: 2025; Director: Josh Munds; Writer: Chris Alan Evans, Josh Munds; Stars: Holt Boggs, JC Doler, Chris Alan Evans, Kemerton Hargrove, China Jones, Jamie Jones)

The Peril At Pincer Point

Review preview for The Peril At Pincer Point

Joseph Field Eccles and Nick Smyth’s sound design...is magnificent from start to finish, and full of playful touches.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A lazy sound designer is sent to the remote island where a film was shot to capture a sound powerful enough to elevate its finale. Once there, eerie local fables surface: for years, ambitious and headstrong youth have lost their souls to a ghostly sea captain for his spectral crew.

(Country: UK; Year: 2025; Director: Jake Kuhn, Noah Stratton-Twine; Writer: Jake Kuhn, Noah Stratton-Twine; Stars: Jack Redmayne, Alyth Ross, Os Leanse, Mike Mackenzie, Dashiell Upton, Jason Hogan, Mat Wright, Noah Stratton-Twine, Isobel Laidler, Oliver Woolf)

Full review

The Red Mask

Review preview for The Red Mask

There’s smart staging, structural and visual misdirection, and a number of sharp twists.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
When an outspoken queer screenwriter is chosen to pen the final instalment of the legendary slasher franchise The Red Mask, she and her girlfriend are harassed by die-hard fans. They escape to a secluded Airbnb, where she concocts a dangerous game to play to unlock her writer’s block. Then two uninvited guests crash the scene.

(Country: UK, US; Year: 2025; Director: Ritesh Gupta; Writer: Samantha Gurash, Patrick Robert Young; Stars: Inanna Sarkis, Helena Howard, Kelli Garner, Jake Abel)

Full review

Remanence (Remanente: Voltagem)

Two paramedics in Novo Hamburgo stumble upon treasure in an old basement. They accidentally open a dimensional portal, unleashing a cosmic horror-a creature determined to reclaim its gold at any cost.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2026; Director: Kapel Furman; Writer: Kapel Furman; Stars: Ricardo Gelli, Ricardo Oliveira, Clarissa Kiste, Cecilia Guedes)

Sacrificios

After suffering a traumatic loss, Juan attempts to find solace in the vastness of the sea. There a miraculous event promises to reverse everything...but at what cost?

(Country: Mexico; Year: 2025; Director: Mauricio Chernovetzky; Writer: Mauricio Chernovetzky, Alexander Ioshpe; Stars: Jorge A Jimenez, Noé Hernández, Costanza Andrade, Moisés Arizmendi, Frida Astrid, Checo Rubio, Sidharta Tonelli)

The School Duel

Review preview for The School Duel

Wiseman Jr plays most of it very straight, without sentiment, easing viewers into a place where they can take all this for granted.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
When an opportunity for twisted notoriety arises, a tormented 13-year old enlists in a deadly competition.

(Country: US; Year: 2024; Director: Todd Wiseman Jr; Writer: Todd Wiseman Jr; Stars: Kue Lawrence, Christina Brucato, Oscar Nuñez, Jamad Mays, Michael Sean Tighe, Hudson Meek)

Full review See: Interview with Todd Wiseman Jr. and Jamad Mays about The School Duel , Interview with Oscar Nuñez about The School Duel

The Serpent's Skin

Review preview for The Serpent's Skin

Alice Maio Mackay’s...most accessible film to date.

Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
A young woman leaves her transphobic small-town, and develops a romance with tattoo artist Gen with whom she shares a paranormal connection. But their deep-rooted insecurities unknowingly release a demon, which possesses one of their ex-lovers and begins feeding on their friends by sucking out their lifeforce.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2025; Director: Alice Maio Mackay; Writer: Alice Maio Mackay, Benjamin Pahl Robinson; Stars: Alexandra McVicker, Avalon Fast, Jordan Dulieu, Charlotte Grimes)

Full review See: Interview with Alice Maio Mackay, Alexandra McVicker and Avalon Fast about The Serpent’s Skin

Sunshine Express

A group of passengers embark on a unique journey to Hermia, a mythical land of dreams, guided by a show director, symbolizing their struggles and aspirations, completing in a quest for redemption under the totalitarian show's strict rules.

(Country: Iran; Year: 2025; Director: Amirali Navaee; Writer: Amirali Navaee; Stars: Sam Nakhai, Babak Karimi, Azadeh Seifi, Shayesteh Sajadi, Mohammad Aghebati, Sajad Hamidian)

Theater Is Dead

Review preview for Theater Is Dead

The first half is packed with clues and double entendres. The second becomes more about action.

Jennie Kermode · 3 out of 5
Sheltered Willow auditions for mysterious director Matthew's play, a Greek tragedy adaptation. Enthralled, she ignores dangers and undergoes self-discovery as the lead under his tutelage.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Katherine Dudas; Writer: Olivia Blue, Katherine Dudas, Madison Lawlor; Stars: Shane West, Madison Lawlor, Colin McCalla, Stephanie Suganami, Decker Sadowski, Olivia Blue, Tammy Tavares)

Full review

Tony Odyssey (Antônio Odisseia)

Review preview for Tony Odyssey

A hugely ambitious first feature from director Thales Banzai, Tony Odyssey repeatedly bites off more than it can chew, but it has lots of great ideas, both conceptual and visual.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
Tony and his best friend, Ivy, decide to rob the bar where he works to steal a new drug that will take them on a journey to meet God.

(Country: Brazil, US; Year: 2025; Director: Thales Banzai; Writer: Kelson Succi, Thales Banzai; Stars: Kelson Succi, Iraci Estrela, Sandro Guerra, Antonio Pitanga, Leci Brandão, Teuda Bara, Luiz Bertazzo)

Full review See: Interview with Thales Banzai about Tony Odyssey

The Trail Of The Wolf (El Rastro Del Lobo)

A thriller, set in a futuristic dystopia.

(Country: Spain; Year: 2026; Director: Ángeles Hernández)

The Trek

Starvation, suspicion and madness plague a group of 1846 settlers as they journey across the Kalahari under the eyes of two desert spirits.

(Country: South Africa; Year: 2026; Director: Meekaaeel Adam; Writer: James C Williamson, J Hannah Massyn, Sandulela Asanda; Stars: Morné Visser, Maurice Carpede, Rob van Vuuren, Trix Vivier, Leah Lindeque)

The Turkish Coffee Table

A couple's argument over a coffee table spirals into chaos when a simple mistake turns into a desperate web of lies, panic, deception, and the terrifying consequences of trying to cover up the truth.

(Country: Turkey; Year: 2025; Director: Can Evrenol; Stars: Alper Kul, Algi Eke, Hatice Aslan, Asli Bankoglu, Ece Su Uckan, Elif Sevinç, Özgür Emre Yildirim)

Under The Burning Sun

In a barren, desolate land where abortion is outlawed, Mowanza struggles with her unwanted pregnancy. When she hears of a distant land with a lenient abortion policy, she embarks on a journey across the desert.

(Country: US; Year: 2025; Director: Yun Xie; Writer: Yun Xie; Stars: Stephanie Pardi, Stevie Kincheloe, Madeline Ma Sharrett, Martyna Frankow, Amy Copsey, Abel Lysenko)

The Vile (Hoba)

Review preview for The Vile

Heavy layered with meaning, the film shifts uncertainly underfoot, deliberately discomfiting viewers.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
Amani's peaceful life as a wife and mother shatters when her husband brings home a second wife, unleashing mysterious dark forces into their household.

(Country: US, UAE; Year: 2025; Director: Majid Al Ansari; Writer: Majid Al Ansari, Johnnie Alward; Stars: Bdoor Mohammad, Sarah Taibah, Iman Tarik, Jasem Alkharraz, Samira Al Wahaibi)

Full review See: Interview with Majid Al Ansari about The Vile

Violence

Review preview for Violence

There’s a “Warriors, come out to play!” vibe about it, but alas, like that film, it is better to remember than it is to watch.

Jennie Kermode · 2 out of 5
Henry Violence, an anti-hero in an alternate 1980s world, becomes entangled in a brutal drug war as rival cartels battle for supremacy, forcing him to make difficult choices to navigate the treacherous landscape.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Connor Marsden; Writer: Connor Marsden, Devin Myler, William Woods; Stars: Rohan Campbell, Maddie Hasson, Tomaso Sanelli, Sarah Grey, Jasmine Kar, Joris Jarsky, Greg Bryk)

Full review

Virtuous Women (Virtuosas)

What begins as a VIP retreat for women to achieve the best version of themselves, soon transforms into an absurd and dangerous journey.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2025; Director: Cíntia Domit Bittar; Writer: Cíntia Domit Bittar, Fernanda De Capua; Stars: Bruna Linzmeyer, Maria Galant, Juliana Lourenção, Sarah Motta, Brissa Marques)

The Voices Of Our Mother

When a family matriarch falls seriously ill, relatives gather and discover their shared ancestral ties bind them in unexpected ways.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2025; Director: Mark O'Brien; Writer: Mark O'Brien; Stars: Sheila McCarthy, Georgina Reilly, Mark O'Brien, Carolina Bartczak, Alex Ozerov-Meyer)

The Whistler

Reeling from their daughter's loss, Nicole and Sebastian come into possession of a secluded Venezuelan farm, unaware of the dark forces they're about to face.

(Country: Venezuela, US, Colombia; Year: 2026; Director: Diego Velasco; Writer: Esteban Orozco, Carolina Paiz, Nacho Palacios; Stars: Diane Guerrero, Juan Pablo Raba, Indhira Serrano, Laureano Olivarez, Ernesto Campos)

A Woman Called Mother

Vira and her family move to a new city for a fresh start after a difficult few years, but the demon following them will force them to confront their most primal fears.

(Country: Indonesia; Year: 2025; Director: Randolph Zaini)

Wrong Husband (Uiksaringitara)

Review preview for Wrong Husband

An atmospheric, beguiling piece of work.

Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
An Arctic fairy tale about a couple who, though promised to each other at birth, become separated.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2025; Director: Zacharias Kunuk; Writer: Samuel Cohn-Cousineau, Zacharias Kunuk; Stars: Theresia Kappianaq, Haiden Angutimarik, Mark Taqqaugaq, Emma Quassa, Leah Panimera)

Full review See: Interview with Zacharias Kunuk about Wrong Husband (Uiksaringitara)

You Are The Film

No details as yet.

(Country: Japan; Year: 2026; Director: Makoto Ueda; Writer: Makoto Ueda; Stars: Riko Fujitani, Takafumi Imai, Kai Inowaki, Gôta Ishida)

You Gotta Have Faith (Os Infiéis)

Faith, love, and irony collide when a priest's sacred duty is to marry the only woman he ever loved - to someone else.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2025; Director: Tomás Fleck; Writer: Lucas Abrahão, Tomás Fleck, Luciana Paes; Stars: Otávia Batista de Castro, Emilio Farias, Leandro Firmino, Rafael Lozano, Edu Mendas)