The Last Sci-fi Blog: Science Fiction at Fantastic Fest 2014

Although the film lineup at Fantastic Fest 2014 was stronger than any I;ve seen since I started attending the fest five years ago, it was not an especially big year for science fiction. Horror, action and even dramas were well represented, but there were only a few science fiction movies on the schedule. Some, like Automata, only played once and were missed. Others, like Realiti and The Incident, flew under the radar.However, there was good sci-fi at the fest this year and the films that I did see were generally good (and wildly different from one another).Closer to GodTold with shades of early David Cronenberg, Closer to God follows a scientist who creates the first human clone and ignites a media firestorm. As the nation struggles with the morality of cloning, our hero is forced to take his creation into his own home to keep her/it safe from religious zealots who mean her harm. Meanwhile, his top-secret first and, uh,less successfulcreation starts to get violent.There are two distinct halves to Closer to God: the smart and subtle human science fiction story and the creature feature. Both sides aren;t bad, but if we;re going to be honest here, neither is outstanding. Still, watching how the movie quietly transforms from one story to another is intriguing and the solid performances help elevate the screenplay, which doesn;t always know what it wants to be. Honestly, the strongest moments in the film arrive in the second half, when everyone embraces the schlock and the body count starts to rise. It;s here that writer-director Billy Senese shows a penchant for tension and creepy monster moments, which are stronger than the early, more dramatic scenes.Future ShockAt the time of its inception, 2000 A.D. was one of the most influential comic books of all time. A weekly anthology containing stories from various writers and artists, the series melded science fiction and politics, creating violent pulp stories that raged against the British government and society. Future Shock tells the story of 2000 A.D. from its creation to modern day and for people interested in the subject matter, it;s massively entertaining.But will it appeal to people who aren;t already comic book fans? That;s the big question. Although the series introduced some of the biggest names in the sequential art world (including Alan Moore and Grant Morrison), it;s hard to imagine normal people caring about this niche industry. The film;s style doesn;t help matters. Despite a very cool opening-credits sequence that animates art from the comics, this is 95% talking heads with very little style to it.However, the already initiated will have a blast. The stores are solid, the interview subjects funny, and the information all informative. You;ll know going in whether or not this is a movie for you.Jacky in the Kingdom of WomenJacky in the Kingdom of Women features one of the most profoundly stupid movie universes in recent memory, but the film;s commitment to this absurd world is something to behold. Like Idiocracy before it, this movie;s dumb world is treated with a certain amount of gravity and like Mike Judge;s undersung masterpiece, this film;s satiric intent becomes all the stronger for it. Although much of the film feels like a feature Monty Python never got around to making, the darkness at its center makes it unique.The film takes place in a gender-swapped dystopiawhere women run the government and the military while men stay at home and are forced to wear full body robes in public. This leads to jokes both obvious and subtle, but the hit ratio is far higher than the miss. As goofy as the movie is, it;s played with a straight face, so even the dumbest jokes (like how the citizens think horses are divine beings) connect. The film eventually becomes a weirdo Cinderella story, with the title character attempting to win the heart of the dictator;s daughter (played by a very game Charlotte Gainsbourg). All kinds of idiotic jokes follow and it;s all very, very funny.If there;s one major problem to be had with Jacky in the Kingdom of Women is that its satire feels unfocused. The obvious goal is to call out misogynistic societies that treat women like dirt and make fun of them, but the film;s politics often get lost in between the dick jokes. Still, anyone who loves absurd comedy full of actors and actresses without any shame are going to have a blast with this one.SpringFor its first 45 minutes or so, Spring is your standard American goes to Europe, falls in love and finds himself kind of movie. However, that;s all setup for one of the craziest turns at Fantastic Fest this year. What is the gorgeous European lady you;ve fallen for isn;t quite, uh, human?And then Spring becomes a horror movie, albeit a horror movie that has a clever science fiction explanation for everything that happens in it. The sci-fi doesn;t play a major role in the film, but honestly, neither does the horror. This is, first and foremost, a romance and hangout movie. Most of the running time is the two lead characters wandering around Italy, swapping stories. One of them just so happens to be a monster.Somehow, it works. This is a beautifully shot and acted romance that uses it genre elements to explore traditional dramatic questions from a unique angle. You;re going to want to see this one.