Fantasia Film Fest: The Shorts

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Crimson Dance: When the Assholes were recently in Las Vegas, we took in a burlesque show because how could we not? T&A are as much a part of Vegas as craps and CRIMSON_DANCE_TonyaKay_toes_by_JosephWirth.jpgcosmopolitans, and we’d already had plenty of those. We snuck upstairs at Harrah’s, where cowgirls get x-rated. They writhe on the hoods of pickup trucks, pop out of plaid blouses, and strip right down to their cowboy boots. It was fun, but it wasn’t burlesque. There’s more to burlesque than dancing and getting naked (not that I’m complaining). We’d done burlesque before, at a birthday party for Sean. There the ladies tantalized and teased – and even got Matt up on the stage to shake what his Moma gave him. Recently, Patricia Chica has shown me another side to burlesque. Let’s call it burlesque for a cause.

In her 3.5 minute short inspired by her mother’s leukemia, Chica reminds us of the importance blood plays in our lives. Sensual burlesque dancer Tonya Kay puts a twist on her stage show by being both very vital and alive in her performance while also reminding us of the very stuff that keeps us that way. It’s a provocative and thoughtful short that will no doubt burn memorable, and in its way, it serves as bold tribute to Chica’s mother.

 

Never Tear Us Apart: Holy shit. Sorry, I had a super fantabulous opening statement prepared but then all the thoughts fell out of my mind exactly like lost marbles while watching this short. It’s intended as ‘proof-of-concept’ which means it’s an example of the work they hope to do someday as a feature. It’s a great visual way to show prospective NTUA_head cut off.pngfinance people that they don’t just have a script on paper but the ideas and know-how to make a real movie. I don’t have $20 million dollars in my back pocket, or even in the front one, but director Sid Zanforlin’s got me convinced. First off, this is maybe the freshest idea for a horror movie that I’ve ever come across. The premise: What if a journey of self-discovery goes really wrong? A young man tracks down his long-lost grand-parents only to find they’re…murderous cannibals? There are elements of both horror and comedy even in a 6 minute short. The effects are top-notch and the cinematography is (sorry to say it) surprisingly good. This may be proof of concept, but it looks and feels like an expensive production. Nice work here. Won’t be surprised at all to see this movie in theatres one day.

14 thoughts on “Fantasia Film Fest: The Shorts”

  3. John Charet

    Great post 🙂 Speaking of Crimson Dance, I remember when you wrote a review of Showgirls and I left a reply in which I gave a strong defense of the film 🙂 Nevertheless that first short sounds touching in that it is based on a burlesque dancer who has a mother with cancer. Never Tear Us Apart sounds like an awesome horror short. That image you have of it looks scary and funny at the same time. Shaun of the Dead like 🙂 Anyway, keep up the great work as always 🙂

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  4. Bun Karyudo

    The second one reminded me slightly of my summer visits to see my grandparents when I was a boy. Admittedly, they weren’t murderous cannibals as far as I know, so there’s that difference…

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  5. sweetarchive

    woah, awesome post there, Jay! Love burlesque and love horror. That second one looks mighty creepy. I remember my last burlesque show in NYC had 4 girls wearing nurses uniforms and rubber gloves and syringes dancing to Animotion’s 80’s song Obsession. It was amazing. Very Rocky Horror.

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