MOTHER OF FLIES (U.S., 2025)
Official synopsis: When a young woman faces a deadly diagnosis, she seeks dark magic from a witch in the woods. But every cure has its cost.
The filmmaking Adams Family — John Adams, Zelda Adams, and Toby Poser — won Fantasia 2025’s top honor, its Cheval Noir Award for Best Film, for Mother of Flies — and it is well deserved. It is the first feature from the United States to win Fantasia’s Cheval Noir Award for Best Film in the fest’s 29-year history. It’s a gripping, harrowing work that tackles faith, both personal and spiritual.
University student Mickey (Zelda Adams) has been diagnosed with cancer, and seeks the help of legendary necromancer Solveig (Poser) at a remote sylvan location. Mickey’s father Jake (John Adams) is skeptical, to say the least, but supportive of his daughter and joins her for the journey.
The filmmaking trio blends tense family drama with dark occult horror, and the result is a nerve-racking, often nightmarish work of the macabre. The chemistry between the three leads is undeniable, as usual, and their skills both in front of and behind the cameras is stronger with every new film they make.
The occult thriller also captured the Sandro Forte Award for Best Motion Picture Score — H6LLB6ND6R, also an Adams Family project. I’m in full agreement with this, also, because the soundtrack rocks mightily.
INFLUENCERS (U.S., 2025)
Official synopsis: In the picturesque landscapes of southern France, a young woman’s chilling fascination withmurder and identity theft sends her life into a whirlwind of chaos
One of my absolute favorite horror movie villains of recent years is back — and she hasn’t lost a step. Cassandra Naud returns as the psychopathic CW in writer/director Kurtis David Harder’s fantastic Influencers, the sequel to his 2022 chiller Influencers. I don’t want to give away too much plotwise as the film holds a wealth of surprises, so suffice it to say that CW survived her island stay from the first film, and now lives in France with her girlfriend Diane (Lisa Delamar). Meanwhile, our heroine from the first film
Madison (Emily Tennant), though officially cleared of charges, is suspected by online amateur sleuths of the murders that CW actually committed. Seasoned fear-fare fanatics will assume that the paths of the two young women will cross again, and they would be right. And wow! Gonzo time! I’ll leave it at that to avoid spoilers.
Naud is outstanding as the murderous tech mastermind CW, and Tennant is right up there with her as the desperate Madison. The supporting cast members, led by Delamar along with Jonathan Whitesell as obnoxious misogynist influencer Jacob, all give solid performances.
Harder ramps up the insanity from the first film, and though you may have to willingly suspend some disbelief once in a while, you’ll be doing it for the sake of enjoying a full-throttle horror outing that has no shortage of kills and thrills. Influencers is full-on fun scare-fare entertainment that comes highly recommended from yours truly.
Mother of Flies and Influencers screen as part of Fantasia 2025, which takes place from July 16–August 3 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Both films are also scheduled for future release on Shudder.
