Arrow Video FrightFest Glasgow serves up its 16th edition online from March 5–7, 2021, with a half-dozen films from the United States, Canada, and France. From the high-octane thriller American Badger to the film noir elegance of The Woman with Leopard Shoes (La Femme Aux Chaussures Leopard) to the throwback horror of Vicious Fun and beyond, the fest has booked an incredible selection of jaw-dropping cinema. Following is the festival’s official press announcement.
Welcome to the 16th edition of Arrow Video FrightFest Glasgow, which, despite continuing COVID-19 restrictions, is back to present a virtual six-pack of tasty titles; an extravaganza of the dark arts that will leave you stirred, shaken and shocked.
There will be six online presentations, including the UK premiere of Kyle Rankin’s controversial high school siege drama RUN HIDE FIGHT, starring Isabel May as a fiercely independent student taking on a quartet of invading shooters, and the UK premiere of OUT OF THIS WORLD (HORS DU MONDE), a disturbing, compelling study of obsession from brilliant new French director Marc Fouchard. It boasts a stunning performance by Kevin Mischel as a mentally-challenged musician turned Uber driver.
A few years back Here Comes Hell, a Black & White mystery thriller, was a FrightFest Glasgow sensation, and THE WOMAN WITH LEOPARD SHOES (LA FEMME AUX CHAUSSURES LEOPARD) is another satisfying retro fix from first timer Alexis Bruchon. Expect an impressively old school yet ultra-modern noir thriller that twists, turns and twists again.
There are also two outstanding Canadian entries in the line-up – the European premiere of AMERICAN BADGER, Kirk Caouette’s gritty and turbo-driven hard action thriller and the UK premiere of Cody Calahan’s nostalgia-fest VICIOUS FUN, a skewering of 1980s fashions which slashes its way through the current era of genre filmmaking.
Finally, from director Christopher Alender, producer of the Glasgow FrightFest past selections Southbound and The Mortuary Collection, is the UK premiere of THE OLD WAYS, a terror tale taken from sinister Latin American folklore
The six films, which will be geo-locked to the UK and limited to 500 tickets, will be available on-demand between the 5th & 7th of March, so can be viewed over those three days
Tickets will go on sale on Monday 18 January, priced £9.99. Please note that passes are not available. For more information: www.glasgowfilm.org/festival
Alan Jones, co-director of FrightFest commentated: “FrightFest might be presenting a more boutique line-up than usual, but our determined response has still been to showcase the bold and vital work artists have felt compelled to make under such unique conditions. We stay resolute in our continual mission to bring those must-see genre titles to their first UK audiences, especially our devoted Scottish community”.
Film details
RUN HIDE FIGHT (UK Premiere)
Director: Kyle Rankin. Cast: Isabel May, Thomas Jane, Treat Williams. US 2020. 109 mins. 18. Contains Body hatred, fat phobia, violence, death or dying, blood, sexism and misogyny, hateful language.
Synopsis: A normal school day is brought to a brutal halt when invaded by armed students on a murderous mission. As the shooting starts and the blood starts to flow, Zoe is lucky to get out alive. But then she heads back inside the building to rescue as many staff and pupils as she can. It’s High School DIE HARD as Zoe uses her survival skills to outsmart the killers.
OUT OF THE WORLD / HORS DU MONDE (UK Premiere)
Director: Marc Fouchard. Cast: Kevin Mischel, Aurélia Poirier, June Assal. France 2020. 97 mins. French with English subtitles. 18. Contains sexual assault, violence, death or dying, blood, mental illness.
Synopsis: The very private Leo has issues communicating with others due to past trauma and only lives for his music. For now, not able to have a career as a composer, he works as an Uber driver and lives in his car. When Leo picks up Amélie, a deaf dancer, he sees a like-minded spirit, connected to the same remote sound universe yet cut off from the world, just like him. But Leo is hiding a dark and dangerous secret.
VICIOUS FUN (UK Premiere)
Director: Cody Calahan. Cast: Evan Marsh, Amber Goldfarb, Ari Millen. Canada 2020. 96 mins. 18. Contains abuse, violence, death or dying, blood.
Synopsis: Joel, a caustic 1980s film critic for a national horror magazine, accidentally stumbles into a secret underground self-help group for serial killers. Can he match wits with five exterminators and make it through the night alive? Kill or be killed, Joel will have to find his inner assassin and muster hidden strengths to defeat the maniacs in his midst.
THE OLD WAYS (UK Premiere)
Director: Christopher Alender. Cast: Brigitte Kali Canales, Andrea Cortés, Julia Vera. USA 2020. 90 mins. 18. Contains abuse, violence, kidnapping, death or dying, blood.
Synopsis: Cristina, a journalist of Mexican origins, travels to the home of her ancestors in Veracruz to investigate a story involving sorcery, witchcraft and healers. Once there, she is
kidnapped by a group of mysterious locals who claim that she’s possessed by the devil and that she needs to undergo an exorcism. But as she tries to escape her nightmarish situation, Cristina starts to believe that her secretive captors may actually be right…
AMERICAN BADGER (European Premiere)
Director: Kirk Caouette. Cast: Kirk Caouette, Andrea Stefancikova, Michael Kopsa. Canada 2020. 82 mins. 18. Contains abuse, kidnapping, death or dying, blood.
Synopsis: Meet Badger, because his real name is Dean, and that’s the lamest ever for a hitman. Like all American Badgers, he prefers to be alone, and has hardly spoken a word to anyone except his Handler. But all that is about to change with his latest assignment – make friends with call girl Velvet, extract information about the criminal Albanian gang she works for, and then kill her. What he doesn’t know is that Velvet is like a daughter to the mob boss and all hell is about to break loose.
THE WOMAN WITH LEOPARD SHOES/LA FEMME AUX CHAUSSURES LEOPARD (Scottish Premiere)
Director: Alexis Bruchon. Cast: Paul Bruchon. France 2020. 80 mins. French with English subtitles. 18. Contains death or dying, blood.
A thief is engaged by a mysterious woman to steal a box in a house. The job goes well but, as he’s escaping, dozens of people arrive for a party. The thief just has time to hide in a study. Confined in this little room, he tries to flee but things turn for the worse when he makes a shocking discovery…
For full programme details: https://www.frightfest.co.uk/
The full programme will be launched on 14 January at www.glasgowfilm.org/festival.
