Bifan: Face your fears

The final few days here at Bifan: Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival have been a mix of films, parties, ceremonies and some free time to see the sights around Seoul. All of this has been documented in my instagram feed while this blog has focussed on the movies. As a genre festival the movies here have a refreshing unpredictability, more interested in thrilling the audience than impressing us. And it was great to meet so many of the filmmakers from around the world. We will certainly meet up again along the way. Here are comments on the closing film Sana, as well as some others I caught over the festival's final days, plus a list of award winners. As president of the Bucheon Choice jury, I presented the final award of the ceremony, the Best of Bucheon our jury's unanimous favourite...

Sana
dir Takashi Shimizu; with Hana Amano, Akari Hayami 23/Japan ***.
J-horror and J-pop collide in this riotous Japanese freak-out, which uses generous doses of dry comedy to hold the interest as the plot deliberately resists making much logical sense. It's astutely directed by horror maestro Takashi Shimizu to play on primal fears while also putting the members of a boy band through their paces, stalked by a malevolent ghost that uses music as a hook. So even if it's neither very scary nor original, there's plenty of fun along the way.

Privacy
dir-scr Sudeep Kanwal; with Rajshri Deshpande, Nishank Verma 23/India ***.
Subverting the underlying themes of most procedural police thrillers, this Indian film has some sharp things to say about female roles in society. With unusual complexity, writer-director Sudeep Kanwal and lead actress Rajshri Deshpande create a central character who defies the cliches. This remarkably conflicted woman knows all too well what she's up against and how to get what she needs. Her moral compass might be slippery, but there's a reason for that. And taking this journey with her is compelling.

The Eighth Sense
dir-scr Inu Baek, Werner du Plessis; with Im Ji-sub, Oh Jun-taek 23/Korea ***.
Reflecting a society that is still rather terrified of an open discussion of sexuality, this gentle Korean drama follows two young men who struggle to admit to each other, their friends and themselves that they belong together. And this crippling fear is matched by the somewhat timid filmmaking style. This will make the movie feel rather belaboured for inclusive audience members, especially as the story descends into chasms of angst, but the film's heart is clearly in the right place.

HappyMerryEnding
dir Min Chae-yeon; with Lee Dong-won, Byeon Seong-tae 23/Korea ***
Adapted from the Korean TV series, this comes from the BL (Boys' Love) genre of male-male romantic fiction that is directly targeted at teenaged girls. While it feels oddly childlike for Western audiences, it's also relentlessly adorable, packed with cute actors playing tormented young men struggling against inevitable romance. It's also unwaveringly gay, with a refreshingly matter-of-fact approach to the characters' queer sexuality mixed in with some deeper social themes relating to pop culture. 

2 7 T H   B I F A N   A W A R D S

Bucheon Choice: Best of Bucheon
Sorcery by Christopher Murray

Bucheon Choice: Best Director

Superposition by Karoline Lyngbye

Bucheon Choice: Jury's Choice

The Artifice Girl by Franklin Ritch

Bucheon Choice: Audience Award

The Artifice Girl by Franklin Ritch 

Best Korean Fantastic Film 

Iron Mask by Kim Sung Hwan

Korean Fantastic Best Director

Risk Society by Kim Byung Jun

Korean Fantastic Actors

Jung E-seo in Her Hobby

Jang Seongbeom in Abroad

Korean Fantastic Audience Award

Abroad by Giovanni Fumu 

Korean Fantastic: Special Mention

Unknown Narrative: Skyrocket Junipers Under the Crescent by Yang Gun-young

Netpac Award

Hungry Ghost Diner by Cho We Jun

Nonghyup Distribution Award 

Her Hobby by Ha Myung-mi

Watcha's Pick for Korean Fantastic 

Iron Mask by Kim Sung Hwan

Méliès International Festivals Federation Award: Best Asian Film

Best Regards to All by Yuta Shimotsu

Odd Family Awards

Battery Mommy by Jeon Seungbae

Burger Song Challenge by Kim Min-ha

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