Cinema Scholars previews some of the most-anticipated films and events coming up at Fantastic Fest 2024. The “largest genre film festival in the U.S.” takes place in Austin, TX from September 19-26.
Introduction
It’s September, so that means Autumn and spooky season are nearly upon us. Despite the temps in Austin, Texas still hovering in the 90s, another harbinger of Fall will soon take shape. Fantastic Fest 2024! For Austinites and visitors alike, the annual celebration of genre film signals the shift from summer fun to fall gloom in the best way possible.
From September 19- 26, the “largest genre film festival in the U.S.” takes over the Alamo Drafthouse flagship location for a week of great film, good fun, and gobs of gore. Though horror is prevalent at the fest, the schedule is also always chock full of other genre goodies. Quirky comedies, offbeat documentaries, international crime thrillers, and stellar retrospectives also appear alongside their horror brethren.
Fantastic Fest also boasts a series of special events. Podcast tapings, a ghoulish book fair, a gaming arcade, and arts and crafts. Even a performance by the McDonald’s-themed Black Sabbath cover band, Mac Sabbath, for the opening night party. Signature happenings like the Fantastic Debates (film aficionados debate and then literally duke it out in a boxing ring) and The Fantastic Feud (a trivia game show to prove who has the biggest nerd cred) will return once again.
Here are some of our most-anticipated movies and events coming up at Fantastic Fest 2024!
The Rule of Jenny Pen
Every year Fantastic Fest hosts a high-profile opening night film that gives razzle dazzle without sacrificing the genre cred. From Frankenweenie to Smile and Tusk to 2018’s Halloween, the fest has seen its share of star-studded debuts.
This year the festival kicks off with another much-anticipated title, The Rule Of Jenny Pen. Who is Jenny Pen? What is her rule? Surely, a throng of eager festival-goers will be ready to find out on opening night.
Starring film legends John Lithgow and Geoffrey Rush, the film takes place in a remote assisted living center. When a stroke-paralyzed former judge discovers a puppet-welding elder terrorizing the home, he must take matters into his own decrepit hands.
New Zealand actor/director James Ashcroft is no stranger to genre work with past roles in horror/comedies like Black Sheep and Fresh Meat. Following his 2021 feature directorial debut, Coming Home In The Dark, the filmmaker continues his trek in the horror/thriller subgenre with The Rule Of Jenny Pen.
With the experience and the star power of two veteran actors, hopes are high for the Fantastic Fest opener where Ashcroft as well as start Geoffrey Rush will be in attendance.
The film will also screen again at the festival on 9/20 and 9/24.
The Birthday
Little did anyone know at the first Fantastic Fest in 2005, that fan fave The Birthday would fall into obscurity after being lauded at the event. Eugenio Mira’s debut feature tells the story of a young man who attends the birthday party of his girlfriend’s father, only to discover some peculiar happenings around the venue.
In addition to the outrageous story and top-notch storytelling, The Birthday also showcases what many have called a career-best performance by leading man Corey Feldman. As his character finds his way through the outlandish situation, we are reminded why Feldman remains a Gen X film legend.
Despite a great reception at Fantastic Fest (as well as Stiges and Fantasia) that year, The Birthday languished in indie film purgatory with no official release. Soon, however, a pirated copy made the rounds on YouTube, prompting a cult following for the forgotten gem. Famous fans like Jason Blum and Jordan Peele, who selected the film as the 2023 New York premiere at the Film Society of Lincoln Center, helped bring attention to the overlooked “cinematic marvel.”
This year Fantastic Fest is coming full circle with a 20th Anniversary screening of the 4K restoration of The Birthday. Both Mira and Feldman will be in attendance at the special event. Unlike the past post-festival go-around, this time The Birthday will hit twenty Alamo Drafthouse locations nationwide for a one-night-only event on October 1st. After that, the film will open in select cities on October 11. Here’s to resurrecting lost treasure!
The Spiel
Hot off their popular podcast series The Kingcast, hosts Eric Vespe and Scott Wampler set their sights on yet another titan of the entertainment world. Steven Spielberg. Employing a format similar to their “favorite King adaptation,” The Spiel invites its guests to nerd out about their most beloved Spielberg project.
And by project, that means any endeavor The Beard had a hand in making. The impresario has a golden directorial catalog, but he has also taken many turns as a writer, producer, and overall champion of film and prestige television over the past five decades. With a simple concept and a roster of industry types ready to talk to Spielberg, the pod was picked up by Elijah Wood and Daniel Noah’s Spectrevision Radio.
Tragically, just as the podcasting duo finished the first season of The Spiel, co-host Scott Wampler suddenly passed away. Despite the shock of this huge loss among the film critic community, these last episodes stand as a tribute to the hard work and love Wampler and Vespe have for film and one of its masters. The show must go on.
As one of its special events, Fantastic Fest 2024 is hosting a taping of The Spiel. Going it solo, Eric Vespe will welcome a TBD guest who will bring their love of a certain Spielberg film to the table for two hours of film lore and humorous commentary. The Spiel taping at Fantastic Fest will take place at The Highball on September 21 at 2:00.
Bookworm
Since the early days of Fantastic Fest, there has often been a familiar face milling around with his fellow attendees. Though most know him as Frodo Baggins, “Fantastic Fiends” know him for his genre turns in fest-faves like The Piano (directed by the aforementioned Eugenio Mira) or last year’s opening film The Toxic Avenger.
This year, Elijah Wood returns to the event with his new comedy/adventure, Bookworm. This quirky charmer finds the actor as a failed magician reconnecting with his estranged 11-year-old daughter. At the girl’s behest, her dad agrees on a camping quest to find the mythical Canterbury Panther. And perhaps also a quest to rekindle the bond they lost. Nell Fisher, Morgana O’Reilly, and Michael Smiley also star.
Bookworm is directed by New Zealand filmmaker Ant Timpson, another regular of Fantastic Fest and that other little springtime festival in Austin called SXSW. A prolific producer of offbeat gems such as Housebound, Deathgasm, ABC’s Of Death, Turbo Kid, and The Greasy Strangler (co-produced with Wood), Timpson has been a steady presence in the genre world as well as an industry leader in his native New Zealand.
Following his first Wood-starring feature, Come To Daddy, the duo team up once again for a more whimsical outing with Bookworm. It will interesting watching Wood flip from the estranged son in the former to the source of Daddy issues in the latter.
Bookworm will have its U.S. premiere at Fantastic Fest 2024 on Sunday, September 22, and Tuesday, September 24 with both Timpson and Wood in attendance.
Terrifier 3
Terrifier 3 will make its much-anticipated world premiere at Fantastic Fest 2024 and the gore hounds are here. For. It. This time writer/director Damien Leone brings Art The Clown’s sadistic antics to Christmastime for a different kind of holiday horror.
In this rampage, Art the Clown returns to the community of Miles County where he terrorizes the residents as they prepare to celebrate the holiest of Christian holidays. Will Art the Clown show mercy to the townspeople? Or will the new holiday provide fresh inspiration for his evil deeds?
Considering Leone’s penchant for upping the ante in the practical splatter department, the safe bet is on the latter. David Howard Thornton reprises his role as the killer clown. Lauren LeVera, Jason Patric, and Daniel Roebuck also star.
At Fantastic Fest 2022, Terrifier 2, the sequel to the 2016 micro-budget slasher Terrifier, delighted audiences with its over-the-top and innovative practical effects. With a modest budget of $250,000, the follow-up eventually grossed over $15 million worldwide. This not only cemented Art The Clown as a bonafide horror icon, but it also prompted a theatrical re-release of the first Terrifier in 700 theaters.
Coming in at 125 minutes, it looks like Leone heeded the call after critics decried the 2.5+ hour running time of number two. Assuming Leone is ramping up Art’s mayhem, Terrifier 3 is sure to be jammed with gory goodness.
Terrifier 3 celebrates its world premiere at Fantastic Fest 2024 on Thursday, September 19. The film also screens again on Tuesday 9/24. Cineverse will release Terrifier 3 in theaters nationwide on October 11.
Conclusion
And the list goes on and on! There’s A Different Man with Sebastian Stan and Adam Pearson starring in a story about a man whose drastic change in appearance doesn’t necessarily change his life for the better. Or Alexandre Aja’s horror/thriller, Never Let Go, about a family tormented by spirits that may or may not be real. And don’t forget Nick Frost’s return to horror/comedy with the harrowing family trip flick Get Away. So many great films and so little time!
So even when Mother Nature throws in a few “false fall” breaks from the heat to mess with us, ATX has its own unique cinematic signal to usher in the Autumn vibes. Fantastic Fest 2024 runs September 19-26 at the flagship Alamo Drafthouse location. Though badges are quickly disappearing, stand-by tickets are available for many screenings throughout the festival.
