Interest: Cult & Offbeat Cinema
WolfCop
Director
Lowell Dean
Writer
Lowell Dean
Cast
Leo Fafard, Amy Matysio, Sarah Lind, Corinne Conley, Jesse Moss
Producers
Lowell Dean, Bernie Hernando, Deborah Marks, Danielle Masters, Hugh Patterson
Genres
Comedy, Horror
Interest
Cult & Offbeat Cinema
Original Language
English
Pontypool
Nothing ever happens in Pontypool, so when Mazzy arrives at the station to start his show one wintry morning, he and his team are surprised by strange reports from town.
The station’s tiny crew find themselves holed up in their church basement studio, trying to piece together what’s happening outside as disturbing details pour in. Callers are making very little sense, and it seems like the English language itself is infected with a strange virus.
“McDonald knows it’s the things you don’t see, but only imagine, that best chill the blood.”
— Peter Howell, Toronto Star
Director
Bruce McDonald
McDonald directed the cult hits Highway 61, Roadkill, Hard Core Logo, The Tracey Fragments, starring Elliot Page, Pontypool, and the award-winning series Twitch City, episodes of Degrassi and Heartland. His recent films include Trigger, The Husband, Hellions, Weirdos and Dreamland. He recently directed the series Creeped Out and Malory Towers and is currently working on the films Switched at Death and I Have a Bad Feeling About This.
Writer
Tony Burgess
Cast
Stephen McHattie, Lisa Houle, Georgina Reilly
Producers
Jeffrey Coghlan, Ambrose Roche
Genres
Comedy, Horror, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Interests
Cult & Offbeat Cinema, Literary Adaptation
Original Language
English
Vinyl
With this film, Zweig established his voice as a documentarian who is not content to be merely a fly on the wall in the lives of his subjects. Instead, he deploys the camera as a tool for engagement, rooting around in the margins of contemporary society to explore themes of beauty, addiction, love and longing in a profound and unique way.
Director
Alan Zweig
Writer
Alan Zweig
Cast
Alan Zweig, Harvey Pekar, Alan Williams, Don McKellar
Producers
Alan Zweig, Greg Klymkiw, Bruce McDonald, David McCallum
Genre
Documentary
Interests
Arts and Culture, Cult & Offbeat Cinema
Original Language
English
Prom Night
This memorable slasher film was remade in 2008, but we’ll stick to the original, thanks! This gruesome and wildly fun cult hit was a drive-in-theatre hit all over the country, and garnered Jamie Lee Curtis a Genie nomination for her performance.
Director
Paul Lynch
Writers
Robert Guza Jr., William Gray
Cast
Leslie Nielsen, Jamie Lee Curtis, Casey Stevens
Producer
Peter R. Simpson
Genre
Horror
Interest
Cult & Offbeat Cinema
Original Language
English
Kids in the Hall: Brain Candy
The film stars and was written by The Kids in the Hall, one of Canada’s best loved and most internationally acclaimed comedy troupes. Made on the heels of their successful five-season TV show, Brain Candy is an uproarious social satire of both Big Business and modern science.
An off-beat, oddball combination of cerebral humour and belly laughs, Brain Candy is sure to delight any Kids in the Hall fan.
Director
Kelly Makin
Writers
Norm Hiscock, Bruce McCulloch, Kevin McDonald, Mark McKinney
Cast
Dave Foley, Bruce McCulloch, Kevin McDonald, Mark McKinney, Scott Thompson
Producers
Lorne Michaels, Tom Rosenberg, Sigurjon Sighvatsson, David Steinberg
Genres
Comedy, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Interest
Cult & Offbeat Cinema
Original Language
English
Videodrome is one of David Cronenberg’s most original and provocative works, and is widely acclaimed as one of the most influential and mind-bending sci-fi/horror films of the 1980s. “Long live the new flesh” goes this movie’s most famous quote — and long live crazy Canadian body horror!
Director
David Cronenberg
Writer
David Cronenberg
Cast
James Woods, Debbie Harry, Sonja Smits, Les Carlson, Peter Dvorsky
Producer
Claude Héroux
Genres
Horror, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Interest
Cult & Offbeat Cinema
Original Language
English
Psycho Goreman
Two children accidentally resurrect an evil alien overlord, who they name Psycho Goreman (or PG for short). While a magical amulet allows the kids to control him into doing their bidding, PG still wants to destroy the universe - and soon their activities draw the attention of a Planetary Alliance that sends an elite assassin named Pandora to stop PG from carrying out his evil will. In this battle of good vs. evil, it’s anyone’s guess who will come out on top.
From Steven Kostanski, the creator of the cult-hit Manborg, Psycho Goreman is a fantastical ride that is as bizarre as it is hilarious.
Director
Steven Kostanski
Writer
Steven Kostanski
Cast
Nita-Josée Hanna, Owen Myre, Matthew Ninaber
Producers
Stuart F. Andrews, Shannon Hanmer, Steven Kostanski
Genres
Comedy, Horror, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Interest
Cult & Offbeat Cinema
Original Language
English
Fido
Visually captivating, sly and clever, Fido follows the Robinson family, who have been hesitant to get a zombie of their own even though everyone on the block has one. All that changes when Mom (Moss) buys Fido (Connolly), and the loveable brute becomes young Timmy’s best friend. Fido is a funny, satirical and refreshing movie with an all-star cast and a standout performance by Billy Connolly as Fido.
“Currie’s zombie comedy is in a class by itself.”
— Lori Fireman, NOW Magazine
Director
Andrew Currie
Currie attended Simon Fraser University and the CFC. His feature films Mile Zero and Fido garnered international acclaim and awards. He recently directed The Steps and produced the feature Indian Road Trip and the short film Cloud Striker. He is currently writing and directing the feature The Invisibles.
Writers
Robert Chomiak, Andrew Currie, Dennis Heaton
Cast
Carrie-Anne Moss, Billy Connolly, Dylan Baker, Henry Czerny
Producers
Blake Corbet, Mary Anne Waterhouse
Genres
Comedy, Horror
Interests
Cult & Offbeat Cinema, Social Justice & Politics
Original Language
English
Project Grizzly
The most hilarious scenes in the film feature Hurtubise as a kind of Japanese robot, willingly testing himself and his suit. The journey takes him to the Rockies…and to some scenes of self-awareness.
“One of the most provocatively entertaining and loopily Canadian documentaries of the decade.” — Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star
“It’s fantastic.” — Quentin Tarantino
Director
Peter Lynch
Lynch earned international success with his wildly popular and critically-acclaimed Project Grizzly. His features include The Herd, Cyberman, A Whale of a Tale and Dem Bones. Lynch won a Genie for his short film Arrowhead. His most recent feature film, Birdland, was released in 2018.
Cast
Troy Hurtubise
Producers
Michael Allder, Gerry Flahive, Louise Lore
Genres
Action/Adventure, Documentary
Interests
Biography, Classics, Cult & Offbeat Cinema
Original Language
English
What is real and what is fantasy is left up to the viewer to sort out, but don’t be fooled by Maddin’s fantastical approach — some of the most shocking stories in My Winnipeg are the true ones! Shot in Maddin’s signature black-and-white style and narrated by the director, the film is funny, touching and mesmerizing.
If you’ve never had the pleasure of watching a Guy Maddin film, this delightfully strange ode to a surprisingly fascinating Canadian city is a great place to start.
My Winnipeg won the Toronto International Film Festival’s award for Best Canadian Feature and the Toronto Film Critics’ Association Award for Best Canadian Film.
Director
Guy Maddin
Writers
Guy Maddin, George Toles
Cast
Darcy Fehr, Ann Savage, Louis Negin
Producers
Michael Burns, Phyllis Laing, Guy Maddin, Jody Shapiro
Genres
Comedy, Documentary, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Interests
Arts and Culture, Biography, Cult & Offbeat Cinema
Original Language
English