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REVIEW: ARRIVAL

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Is there other intelligent life in the universe? And if so, how will we communicate with them? This is the basis of the new Sci-Fi film ARRIVAL. Not just how first contact will happen, but how we can actually make contact with potential visitors.

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The plot revolves around several hyper-advanced extraterrestrial ships landing at major points all around the world causing an international panic. Linguist specialist Louise Banks (Played by Amy Adams) is recruited by Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker) align with other specialists such as mathematician Ian Donelly (Jeremy Renner) to try and reach out to the alien visitors. Louise trying to figure out if the visitors’ intentions are benevolent or if they have sinister intentions for our planet…

A truly modern day science fiction film from Prisoners and Sicario director Denis Villeneuve that brings a truly optimistic edge to the genre that has been weighted in cynicism. It definitely helps that at the time of seeing this particular movie, I had just also rewatched 2001: A Space Odyssey at an earlier screening at BeyondFest. It invoked a sense of wonder. That science, logic, and our humanity can be our greatest assets. That’s the kind of feeling I got while watching Arrival

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This is no over the top sci-fi thriller. With the timeline of events starting with the landing of the alien’s ships and humanity’s reactions feeling rather grounded and plausible. An almost optimistic caution and fear washes over our characters and humanity as a whole. Hope that the extraterrestrials will prove friendly. Can offer us something. While others fear The Other. The strange. That they are a threat.  And on the aliens themselves, much compliments to the design and FX teams behind them. I don’t want to spoil, but they are some of the most unique I’ve seen some time. With some clear Lovecraft style squid-like inspiration. As well as just how these visitors are capable of communication.

As can be imagined, the cast is spot on. The main focus being Amy Adam’s character and her struggle to make a clear line of communication with the aliens before humanity’s own paranoia and fear overwhelms us and causes disaster. This is a slow burn but optimistic science fiction movie, evoking older inspirations such as 2001 and the ilk from the 60′ and 70’s. One with a deeper focus that reflects off our own fractured world: that communication can be the most powerful tool of all.

Arrival arrives in theaters 11/11/2016 with preview screenings tonight.

Here’s the trailer below. And for more BeyondFest goodness, here are some previous articles!

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News

Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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