Fantastic Fest 2008

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Deadgirl
Marcel Sarmiento, Gadi Harel 2008
Categories: Feature, Guest in Attendance, Horror, Next Wave
Average Rating:
Rated 3.322652225274532/5 Stars
My Rating:
Run time: 99 min. | USA | Language: English
Brief Summary:
Exploring an abandoned sanatorium while ditching school, two high school burnouts discover a girl strapped to a gurney in a secluded chamber. Debut directors Gadi Harel and Marcel Sarmiento craft a new breed of teen angst drama set against a backdrop of humor black enough to make John Hughes retreat to a fetal state.

Directors Gadi Harel and Marcel Sarmiento in person!

Full Description:
Many horror films feature teenage characters but these people are generally nothing more than corpses in waiting and might as well be replaced by showroom mannequins. This is a shame as teenagers face unique psychological and physiological disrputions that are ripe for tales of horror. Marcel Sarmiento and Gadi Harel apparently understand this; their film DEADGIRL mines the recesses of the hormone-wracked adolescent mind to create one of the most original American horror films in recent memory.

Shiloh Fernandez (RED) and Noah Segan (CABIN FEVER 2) portray high school stoners who ditch school in favor of drinking beer in an abandoned sanitarium. The pair make their way into the bowels of the building, and stumble across a vicious dog. The ensuing chase leads them to a barricaded door. Upon entering the adjoining room, they find an incapacitated woman wrapped in plastic and strapped to a table. As time passes, the teens make a series of questionable decisions that put them, their friends and the audience on the spot.

Given the film's untenable content, which is best revealed by actually watching the film, many film makers might be prone to either pull back from the edge or deliver an incoherent string of set pieces. Deadgirl, however, attacks its subject matter with an unerring commitment. The precise direction and fluid, dream-like cinematography work in service of an excellent script by Trent Haaga. Instead of marching a set of two-dimensional ciphers through a rote hack and slash plot, Haaga provides fully developed characters that allows the cast of mostly young actors (Michael Bowen has a supporting part) to embrace their roles. The film's attention to characterization and story increases the viewer's emotional investment, thus sharpening the impact of the film's underlying prurience and weirdness. It is useful to note that DeadGirl is an independently produced feature that was digitally shot with HD cameras and a tapeless workflow system similar to that used by David Fincher on his film Zodiac. This might seem like a peripheral detail but it further reflects the type of novel thinking behind this film. DeadGirl's marriage of hard content and technical craftsmanship easily raises the bar for independent horror films, and demonstrates a path away from the genericism that plagues the genre as a whole. (Rodney Perkins)

Directors Gadi Harel and Marcel Sarmiento and screenwriter Trent Haaga will be in attendance to present the film.

Deadgirl just had it's world premiere at TIFF the week before Fantastic Fest, here's some of the reactions if you want to check 'em out.
6 pictures Pictures
Screenings
time venue calendar tickets
11:45 PM     Fri, Sep 19 Alamo S. Lamar 1 + add to cal
11:30 PM     Mon, Sep 22 Alamo S. Lamar 2 + add to cal buy tickets
About the film
Cast & Crew
director
Gadi Harel
Marcel Sarmiento
Audience Buzz
Rated 3.322652225274532/5 Stars
3.3 | 57
views 9,993 people viewed this page
adds 146 people added it to their calendar (find out who)
Featured Review
Notice! The featured review is chosen at random and contributed by an audience member. Click the reviews tab above to read all the reviews for this film, or register to write your own review. Close
Rated 5.0/5 Stars
Purukivel
3:08 AM
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This movie is in fact very easy to describe, but at the same time a brief description by no means would do it justice. Although I'm not sure there's any way to discuss it with non-genre fans without coming off like a degenerate pervert. Nevertheless, the movie has a compelling internal logic of its own, and one can understand, if not condone, the questionable choices made by some characters, given their age, upbringing, station in life, and future prospects. Indeed, it's fair to say that there's an element of class struggle going on here. But let's not get too far away from the central element of the dead girl. Jenny Spain offers a brave turn in what must've been a very demanding role, and I imagine there are going to be those who feel the whole thing is on the whole misogynistic or at least exploitative. But while there's a lot of nudity, none of it is eroticized and the sex on display is mechanical at best and is overtly about power roles and not sensuality. Very effective direction, excellent location shooting, quality sound effects and editing, and overall a great success in establishing an atmosphere of dread and impending wrongness. Highly recommended, if you have the stomach for this. I would really appreciate hearing a woman's view on this, though.
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