Fantastic Fest 2023 Diaries: Day One
Finally, the time has come, the most fantastic time of year has arrived yet again: Fantastic Fest is here at last!
Day one of the fest has an evening kickoff, and with tickets for The Toxic Avenger and Divinity already safely secured the day before, I could rest easy until 10 am when tickets for tomorrow become available.
Before the clock struck 10, I was logged into the festival app and ready to pounce on Friday’s preferred picks, but the ticketing system was slightly delayed — must not have had its morning coffee — and the minor hiccup got things off to a rocky start. I still got most of the things I wanted (Where The Devil Roams, Strange Darling, and The Last Video Store), but I was too slow on the draw for Jackdaw. Bummer. I’ll try to catch that one at a Press & Industry screening if I can swing it, or at its second showtime later in the week, so long as there’s no other scheduling conflicts. I go ahead and book a ticket for early morning screening of Animalia, which I know nothing about, but I figure since I’ll have an interview with Sam Fox, Desiree Staples, and Vincent Stalba for their short film Fck’n Nuts early Friday morning, I may as well hang out and see some movies.
With all that now out of the way, I could chill out and relax until the early evening and wait for chaos to reign once again in Austin, Texas at the South Lamar Drafthouse, the festival’s central hub.
Around 4:45 I make my way down to the theater, braving the rush hour traffic. I still needed to scooped up my press badge, which was a super easy in-and-out kinda thing. It even came with a neat tote bag, how ‘bout dat! Then I swung into the Highball lounge for early festival mixer to celebrate The Toxic Avenger. The space was decorated very cool; lots of neon glow-in-the-dark vibes and African posters that are bizarre interpretations of America films.
At the bar, the toxic fluids floweth freely. Literally. They were giving away a complementary Toxic Avenger alcoholic beverage. It’s green, naturally, and I avoid it like a barrel of chemical waste.
Hanging about in the Highball, I meet Michaela and Mikky of Second Rodeo Studios, who both just moved to town from Chicago and L.A. respectively. They both had taken the free toxic sludge and confirmed it was no bueno. Too green and gross and lime heavy. We conversed briefly and then parted ways so they could get something more satisfying to drink.
Outside, waiting for The Toxic Avenger world premiere to seat, I make more friends. I strike up a convo with Peter from Pennsylvania, a Fantastic Fest veteran doing his fifth tour as a cult member (that’s a badge status, btw). We talk about the wonky ticketing system, tattoos, and movies (of course). I also took the opportunity to pick his brain on some festival wisdom and tips since he was a seasoned pro. He told me: try to aim for tickets in smaller theaters since the larger ones will probably be targeted first (because that’s where the talent and filmmakers will be), and also to keep checking back on things that sell out (because you never know when someone might back out of ticket). Refresh is a friend, provided you have the the time (and a good connection).
Later I bump into more friendly faces: a press acquaintance, Mark, and some fellow FF fanatics, Alec and Justin. They introduce me to their friend Spencer from Utah, who does movie reviews and other stuff through his outlet, Film Update Time.
They finally call for my group to seat for The Toxic Avenger, so I shuffle into the building with the rest of the FF herd, like cattle lead to slaughter by cinema, and head down the long Kubrick-themed corridor, which was recently renovated and looks really stellar, with decorations that cover The Shining’s Overlook elevators and 2001’s Hal-9000.
Tim League comes out to introduce the film with some sermonizing improvisations that give way to a satanic spectacle of cult chanting and strobing lights. Festival director Lisa Dryer then tees up the film, and Macon Blair and Lloyd Kaufman come up for a few introductory words. Then, theyy dim the lights, and we’re off to the races.
Look, I actually like the original Toxic Avenger (and a handful of other Kaufman-fronted Troma flicks), so take my opinion for the bias it is: I thought Blair’s film was excellent and so much fun. It’s a real rip-roaring reboot that captures the spirit of Troma and the essence of the original. It not only nails the vibe, but it carries it into the future — into the mainstream. It’s more accessible and has the same kinda grindhouse grit and savory silliness of Robert Rodriguez’s Planet Terror, which is by no means a bad thing in my (very biased) opinion. The cast is great, and they fully commit to the camp. Peter Dinklage and Kevin Bacon are the two primary standouts, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t give a shout-out to Elijah Wood and his Penguin cosplay, David Yow in possibly the cameo of the year, and the whole dang crew of The Killer Nuts, a “Monster Core” Nu Metal band — part ICP, part Slipknot — that nearly takes the movie’s lunch.
After The Toxic Avenger screening Q&A, I head back over to the HIghball to scope a bit of The Octopus Project’s set for the fest’s opening night party. The neon glow is even more intense under the black lights, but it’s crowded as fuck, so I dip outside, which is also crowded as fuck, to get some “air” while I wait for the next screening, my first midnight screening of the fest, Eddie Alcazar’s Divinity.
Waiting for it to seat, I run into Mark again, and we talk about The Toxic Avenger (we both liked it), what we’re each seeing next, and what we’re keeping an eye (so long as tickets don’t dry up like a body of water in the hot Texas sun). They run us out of the teeny tiny lobby area in the crowded outside, and we both go our separate ways in the crowd.
The line-up’s seating schedule was delayed due to the spirited Q&A for Toxic Avenger, so I find myself with a bit more time to kill. I look up the Letrerboxd scores trickling in for Toxic Avenger, and they’re all low-to-mid. Clearly, these folks don’t like to have a good time. So it goes…
They finally call my group to seat, and I head in for some (hopefully) dystopian sci-fi fun.
Divinity is pretty much a textbook example of style over substance. It’s got style for days though, and it’s very easy on the eyes, but I couldn’t tell you what the hell it’s about. Stunning to stare at but narratively half-baked and totally incoherent, it’s basically just a really cool music video or a kinky perfume ad that’s been expanded out to feature length. When Stephen Dorff is tied down to a chair and pumped full of some strange fluids, high on his own supply, fully impregnated by its own self-importance, it starts to feel very symbolic, though not in the way Eddie Alcazar probably intended it to be. I really wish it applied the same amount of effort and care to the development of its story and ideas as it did its look and feel. Oh well, at least it was under 90 minutes. It would make for a killer background visual at a party though.
With day one done and dusted, it was time to drive back home for some sleep, so I could do it all over again tomorrow, bright and early.
Fiending for more Fantastic Fest?! Check out the links below:
Fantastic Fest reviews
Fantastic Fest podcasts
Fantastic Fest articles
Fantastic Fest lists
What do you think? We want to know. Share your thoughts and feelings in the comments section below, and as always, remember to viddy well!