Fantasia XXIX: My Top Five Faves From The 2025 Edition
The 29th edition of Fantasia International Film Festival came to a close. There were dozens I wanted to watch or at least cover during this year’s run, but I only managed to cover eleven screenings, including ten films and four episodes of one series.
I’ll be writing this post on the film end of things, however, as I did want to narrow it down to a good top five of favorites that I otherwise enjoyed the most. I don’t typically make these kinds of listicles because of how tedious they usually are and I always end up overthinking my choices, but I figured I’d take an honest stab at it, as well as use my interest while updating things for my donors on this page considering how quiet it’s been. At any rate, here’s my top five favorites out of Fantasia:
THE FORBIDDEN CITY: Martial artist and actress Yaxi Liu steps up her game from stunt double to an absolute screen star alongside Enrico Borello for a touching story that blends gripping family drama with blistering martial arts action. Set against Italy’s picturesque backdrop, and with stunning setpieces and action sequences by Liang Yang, this film is easily one of the best films 2025 has to offer by year’s end, and will forever remain a reminder for me to catch Mainetti’s Freaks VS The Reich and his other works until otherwise.
I FELL IN LOVE WITH A Z-GRADE DIRECTOR IN BROOKLYN: New York indies are full of heart and soul. Maybe I’m biased because I’m born and raised here, but there’s something magical that even Kenichi Ugana taps into with his latest story: About a fallen film starlet who gets lost in a Brooklyn neighborhood only to find her bearings with an underground filmmaker and ultimately find not only her people and a new chance at love, but a new sense of purpose. I enjoyed this film a lot more than I figured, and from a director who I proudly sit among a cadre of directors who’ve shaped my tastes over the last 25 years.
REDUX REDUX: Kevin and Matthew McManus’s latest sci-fi is a peculiar little gem coming soon from Saban Films, dealing with the visceral, unending consequences of unhealed trauma through the perspective of a woman using an interdimensional pod to travel the multiverse to innumerably kill her daughter’s suspected murderer as many times as it takes until she finds closure. This film is brutal and heartwarming, lined with great performances by its cast and an authentic approach to sci-fi that should tickle your interest.
HI-FIVE: Kang Hyoung-chul has a knack for making you dance in your seat. You would expect as much from the guy who directed Swing Kids, but for a ragtag superhero adventure about a group of people who acquire superhuman abilities after receiving transplants, it was the best kind of Rick-Roll. Indeed the VFX can be janky at times, but it’s a fun film, and indeed carries a hearty message with a suprising twist – one that particularly extends to the character played by Yoo Ah-in who is unfortunately facing the music after a drug charge late last year. Beyond that, my hope is that the gang comes back for more.
HONEKO AKABANE’S BODYGUARDS: When I first covered this film, I thought it was singular, so seeing the film peeled the veil back even further for me. Junichi Ishikawa directs one of the most damn delightful manga adaptations I’ve ever seen, featuring charismatic performances from a great cast, including actress Tao Tsuchiya who is a total scene stealer amid some of the film’s more comedic twists. It’s also a great addition to the string of gangbuster actioners out of Japan in the last ten years, so if you ever stumbleupon this one in your streaming or rental queue, give it a watch. You’ll be glad you did.
This article was previously published with early access to contributors of my Buy Me A Coffee page.
