NIFFF 2008 Program Announced - Substitute, Ashes of Time Redux, Tokyo!, Sparrow and More!
Thrills, action, dragons, space aliens, frights, zombies, laughing windows, martial arts delights, time travel, vampires, killer rednecks and nuns, comedy and more, awaits you at the 8th edition of the Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival (NIFFF). The festival northwest of the swiss alps, kicks off on July 1st with the opening night film, The Substitute from Ole Bornedal. The festival runs through the 6th, with the latest from Hideo Nakata closing it out, L Change The World. The lineup this year boasts a strong and diverse selection of fantastic and genre feature and short films from around the world and an impressive retrospective section that features a look back at Italian horror/gialli, films of Nobuo Nakagawa and the works of Jess Franco & Erwin C. Dietrich. With this type of exciting lineup with several world and regional premieres, the most hard pressed question will be how to see them all with each time slot packed to the brim with exciting choices of what to see (a PDF program guide is available here). Perhaps Nacho Vigalondo, whose film Timecrimes plays, can provide festival guests a time machine to go back and see what they missed.
Highlights include: The Substitute by Ole Bornedal, Ashes of Time Redux by Wong Kar Wai, Chasseurs de Dragons by Guillaume Ivernel & Arthur Qwarck, Tokyo! by Bong Joon Ho & Léos Carax & Michel Gondry, Adrift in Tokyo by Miki Satoshi, Doomsday by Neil Marshall, Sparrow by Johnnie To, Timecrimes by Nacho Vigalondo, and many more...
International Competition
* Astropia by Gunnar B. Gudmundsson
* Dance of the Dead by Gregg Bishop
* Diary of the Dead by George A. Romero
* Eskalofrio by Isidro Ortiz
* Let the Right One in by Tomas Alfredson
* Manhunt (Rovdyr) by Patrik Syversen
* Shadows by Milcho Manchevski
* Sleep Dealer by Alex Rivera
* Sukiyaki Western Django by Takashi Miike
* The Cottage by Paul Andrew Williams
* The Devil's Game by In-Ho Yun
* Tokyo! by Bong Joon Ho & Léos Carax & Michel Gondry France
Continue reading for full festival lineup.
Opening Night Film
* The Substitute by Ole Bornedal
Closing Night Film
* L Change The World by Hideo Nakata
Open Air
* Ashes of Time Redux by Wong Kar Wai
* Blade Runner - The Final Cut by Ridley Scott
* Chasseurs de Dragons by Guillaume Ivernel & Arthur Qwarck
* Doomsday by Neil Marshall
* Get Smart by Peter Segal
* The Eye by David Moreau & Xavier Palud
New Cinema from Asia
* 13 Beloved by Chukiat Sakveerakul
* Adrift in Tokyo by Miki Satoshi
* An Empress and the Warriors by Tony Ching Siu-tung
* CJ7 by Stephen Chow
* Kala: Dead Time by Joko Anwar
* Om Shantiby by Om Farah Khan
* Sick Nurses by Sirivivat Thospol & Piraphan Laoyont
* Sparrow by Johnnie To
* Zombie from Banana Village by Mamat Khalid
Spain: Land of Fright
* El Rey de la montaña (King of the Hill) by Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego
* Los Cronocrimenes by Nacho Vigalondo
* Nocturna by Adria Garcia & Victor Maldonado
* [Rec] by Jaume Balagueró & Paco Plaza
Retro Italian Horror and Thrillers
- Italia Bizzarra (Night)
- Italia Cannibale (Night)
* What Have They Done to Solange? by Massimo Dallamano
* Demons 2 by Lamberto Bava
* Torso by Sergio Martino
* The Sweet Body of Deborah by Romolo Guerrieri
* The Perfume of the Lady in Black by Francesco Barilli
* The Antichrist by Alberto De Martino
* The Frightening Secret of Dr. Hichcock by Riccardo Freda
* The Bird with the Crystal Plumage by Dario Argento
* The House with Laughing Windows by Pupi Avati
* Autopsy by Armando Crispino
* Orgasmo by Umberto Lenzi
* The Killer Nun by Giulio Berruti
* Planet of the Vampires by Mario Bava
Homage to Nobuo Nakagawa
* A Wicked Woman
* Black Cat Mansion
* Hell
* The Ghost of Yotsuya
* The Lady Vampire
Jess Franco & Erwin C. Dietrich
* Blue Rita / Le cabaret des filles perverses
* Downtown
* Jack the Ripper
***
I'm highly curious to finally see The Substitute from Denmark. It's a film that seems an unlikely candidate for being a box office darling there, but it seems to be quite a popular film. I can assume there is a lot more to this film than the plot synopsis would have you believe. Finally seeing Ashes of Time in this new version, regardless of what is actually different will be a treat to finally see on the big screen. Seeing a Wong Kar Wai on home video just never does one of his works justice.
I think this will be the 6th or 7th time now that I see Timecrimes and look forward to seeing it again with a different audience.
