MOICO and New Horizons have joined forces to present a collection of new films that deconstruct genre devices and play with conventions. In search of new forms of expression, these astonishing films know no limits. Below are the nine titles that we will see as part of the MOICO Midnight Madness section at the 18th New Horizons International Film Festival.
Nicolas Pesce's Piercing—a hit at the Sundance Festival and in Rotterdam—is a wild thriller based on a book by Ryū Murakami about bizarre desires, cruel fetishes and sadomasochistic passions. The film stars Mia Wasikowska and Christopher Abbott, whose characters have one bloody, unforgettable night.
Let the Corpses Tan (Laissez bronzer les cadavres), by Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani (Amer, 10th New Horizons), offers sensational, 1970s-style exploitation cinema. With its wild, frantic editing; naked, tanned bodies, blood, smoke and sweat; western meets bloody rebel cinema.
One of our guests in Wrocław will be Thai director Pen-Ek Ratanaruang (Nymph, 9th New Horizons; Headshot), who will present his latest film, Samui Song, which was screened at the festivals in Venice and Toronto. A soap opera star tries to get free of her husband, who is tangled up in a mysterious cult. Thriller? It's much more than that. Full of brutality, humor and perverse symbolism, it's also a fanciful play on genre cinema.
The Field Guide to Evil, a hit at the SXSW Festival, is a compilation of eight short films inspired by the folklore of the countries represented. These specimens of horror were directed by some of the great stylists of contemporary cinema, including Peter Strickland, Veronica Franz and Severin Fiala, as well as Agnieszka Smoczyńska (The Lure), who will be a festival guest.
F.J. Ossang (Dharma Guns, 11th New Horizons) is back with 9 Fingers (9 Doigts)—Best Director award winner in Locarno—a wonderfully made cyberpunk film noir reminiscent of a surreal remake of a masterpiece of poetic realism.
In his hit debut, The Night Eats the World (La nuit a dévoré le monde), Dominique Rocher combines minimalist cinema with the world of George A. Romero's films. Indiewire called the film, which features Norwegian star Anders Danielsen Lee and Denis Lavant (!), the most innovative zombie movie of the last decade.
The sensational Scary Mother (Sashishi Deda) won the award for best debut in Locarno and was a hit at a number of world festivals. This disturbing, surreal film by Georgian director Ana Urushadze is an eerie tale about the search for freedom and getting lost in your passions.
Shown at Sundance and Rotterdam, the bravura Time Share (Tiempo compartido) by Sebastián Hoffman (Halley, 13th NH) is a surreal journey to a holiday resort in paradise, where a couple has to share time and space with another family. The idyll turns into a nightmare, and paradise into hell.
Fassbinder meets Żuławski? In Tilman Singer's German film, Luz, screened at this year's Berlinale, anything is possible. A visually compelling (shot on 16 mm film) work that plays with viewers' senses, this mesmerizing thriller about obsession is one of the top discoveries in this year's section.
MOICO, the sponsor of Midnight Madness, is a Wrocław-based Internet, television and mobile phone provider and the organizer of the popular annual cycle of B movies, MOICO ENJOY MOVIES. In addition to sponsoring the Midnight Madness section, MOICO will provide festivalgoers and guests of New Horizons Cinema with free Wi-Fi access.
