What Are Folks Saying About ALMOST HUMAN!

We have been absolutely probing social media since Tuesday's chilling, uproarious premiere of Almost Human to see what people thought of this wild, alien ride in the tradition of Fire In The Sky and Xtro. Director Joe Begos and stars Josh Ethier and Graham Skipper were all soaking up the TIFF fun before, during, and after the screening as well, so let's see what the always-opinionated Midnight Madness audience had to say about this otherworldly ride to terror!

Keep tweeting your thoughts about this ridiculously cool 25th anniversary Midnight Madness lineup to our official Twitter, and check these tweets (and a few really cool Vines) out on Storify!

ALMOST HUMAN Screening Times:
Wednesday, Sept 11th, 7:15 PM SCOTIABANK 3
Friday, Sept 13th, 2:30 PM SCOTIABANK 9

Midnight Madness Audience Treated to a Clip of BERANDAL (THE RAID 2)

If you weren't at the World Premiere of ALMOST HUMAN on Tuesday night, cross your legs before you read on, because you're going to want to kick yourself.

Before the film, the crowd in attendance were treated to a clip from BERANDAL, the sequel to Gareth Evans' THE RAID. If you've been following the film's production, you've likely read about a character named Hammer Girl. A vicious female assassin whose weapons of choice are two hammers.

I'd rather not spoil the scene for those who weren't there, but rest assured that it kicked as much booty as you'd expect it to! Get excited for when the film premieres in 2014!!

ALMOST HUMAN screens one last time:

Friday September 13
Scotiabank 9
2:30 PM

5 Questions with Lee Hardcastle, the 26th Director of THE ABCS OF DEATH

Lee Hardcastle's insane short "T is for Toilet"won him a slot as the 26th director of The ABCs of Death. He was nice enough to answer some questions for the Midnight Madness Blog.

1. Congratulations on being the 26th director of The ABCs of Death! When you first heard about the contest, how did the idea of a collection of death scenes strike you? Did you think, "Oh, this is me--I got this"? Or did you have some hesitation?

Thanks! I stumbled upon The ABCs of Death as it was just announced. I read the concept and saw which directors were involved and I instantly wanted to be a part of the project! And honestly, in a panic I quickly tried to find a contact for the producers so I could beg them to let me be a part of it--which is when I found the "26th Director" contest, the greatest film-making contest I'd ever seen in all my life. It felt like it was utter fate and I waited for a couple months in anticipation for the competition to start. I had not had so much passion and excitement for anything like that for a long time--like waiting for Xmas I tell you.

2. You went with "Toilet" as the mode of death in your ABCs short. What other "T" options did you consider? Did you get as far as writing out any other concepts? Or did you just always know it was going to be "Toilet"?

I went through hundreds of words. I came close to "T is for Toad." It was gonna be a group of redneck type hunters in the woods being picked off one by one by a huge monster toad. But I thought the idea of toad was too easy--it was a competition after all. I went with "Toilet" because, I thought about the title "T is for..." and I wanted a "T" word that was simple yet intriguing to the viewer. Plus "toilet" is such a beautiful word. I started with that word with no idea what the story was going to be.

3. You've made an impressive collection of what you call "Claymations that are NOT for children." How did you find this niche? What did you watch growing up? Were you a horror freak? An animation freak? Both?

It's a bit of a long story how I got into claymation but in a nutshell, I've always wanted to be a filmmaker and one day a video that I'd made went viral. It was a 60-second claymation remake of Evil Dead. And so, I found my audience and continued down that road.

I was very much a horror nut growing up, a real obsessive. Things got scary when the Internet came into my life at age 14. I was suddenly exposed to horror communities and websites. Mix that with eBay and I was ordering so many VHS tapes, bootlegs even of films that were originally only available on a German Laserdisc or something ridiculous. It peaked when I was about 17, I reckon, and then the obsession slowly faded.

I wasn't big on animation, but I grew up with Will Vinton, MTV animation, Wallace and Gromit, and The Adam and Joe Show, all of which are responsible for putting me on the claymation path.

4. The Midnight Madness audience went crazy for the world premiere of The Raid last year. Much of that audience no doubt went on to enjoy your wildly popular, sped-up claymation version of the film, Claycat's The Raid. How did the concept of a claymation adaptation of that film come about? How was the experience of it turning viral and even ending up as an extra on DVD/Blu-ray releases of The Raid?

I was hired by Momentum Pictures to do a claymation remake of the film. I'd never heard of The Raid, so I went to Soho and sat in a cinema by myself and watched the film and I was like "How the hell am I gonna remake this?!" Daunting stuff--I wasn't feeling confident. But it turned out to be one of my best works. The corny jokes get some big laughs--the ball of wool and stuff like that. I can't believe people find it funny. For it to go viral? I was not expecting that at all. That's the science of being a filmmaker--you unexpectedly do something that gets a good audience reaction and you keep that in mind for the next time you make a film.

5. I understand you're coming to Toronto for the premiere of The ABCs of Death. What directors' segments are you most anxious to check out in ABCs? Are you hoping to catch any other films in Midnight Madness while you're in town?

To be painfully honest, I've not seen too many of the directors' works, or heard of half of them. The 2 big names that got me excited were Ti West and Jason Eisener. But the way I see The ABCs of Death is like those sample CDs that record labels put out--you buy them because there's a band or two on there that you dig a lot and you end up discovering a new artist that impresses you. Then you go out and look at all their other stuff.

I want to see Dredd 3D!

You can read more about the "26th Director" contest in our earlier post hereand see more of Lee's grisly claymation videos at leehardcastle.com.  

THE ABCS OF DEATH

Fri., Sept. 14th, 11:59 PM RYERSON

Sat., Sept. 15th, 3:15 PM SCOTIABANK 9

Sun., Sept. 16th, 9:00 PM SCOTIABANK 9

THE RAID Director Gareth Huw Evans' Top 3 Midnight Madness Picks

Gareth Huw Evans, the director of The Raid (AKA The Raid: Redemption) brings us his Top 3 anticipated Midnight Madness picks today!  Enjoy!

This line up of films has been a tough group to whittle down to just three - a sign yet again of the talent of the legend that is the Midnight Madness programmer, Mr. Colin Geddes. There's nothing I could want more than to spend 10 nights in the company of the Midnight Madness crowd, enjoying every single one of them. But it's a bit of a trek from Indonesia, so instead I will spend each night bitter and angry while you guys are treated to a pretty healthy dose of inspired, blood soaked genius.

Regardless, here are my picks...

#1 - The ABC's of Death

What's not to like, 26 short films by 26 different directors from around the world all not wanting to be outdone by the other. I'm good friends with one of the directors, Timo Tjahjanto, and having seen an early cut of his "L" if the rest are anywhere near the insanity of his entry there's very little out there that can prepare an audience for this.

#2 - Dredd 3D

 

Let's get this out of the way shall we. Both Dredd and The Raid were in production at the same time, if anything Dredd started before us. But here it is and setting aside any coincidental similarities this film looks absolutely stunning and the talent behind it I greatly respect and admire. The character was well overdue a revamp and it looks like they've done a superb job this time round.

#3 - Hellbenders

JT Petty's S&Man chilled me to my core. One of the most effective horror films in some time--it's the work of pure genius. And while I know very little about Hellbenders beyond a 2 line synopsis, the fact that Petty's name is on there makes this a must see.

Best,
Gareth

Gareth Huw Evans is the director of last year's opening Midnight Madness film, The Raid (The Raid: Redemption), as well as Merantau, and Footsteps. He is currently in pre-production on Berendal; a sequel to The Raid.












Screening Times:
The ABCs of Death
Fri., Sept. 14th, 11:59 PM RYERSON
Sat., Sept. 15th, 3:15 PM SCOTIABANK 9
Sun., Sept. 16th, 9:00 PM SCOTIABANK 9

Dredd 3D
Thurs., Sept. 6th, 11:59 PM RYERSON
Sat., Sept. 8th, 12:30 PM CINEPLEX YONGE & DUNDAS 7

Hellbenders
Sun., Sept. 9th, 11:59 PM RYERSON
Tue., Sept. 11th, 7:00 PM CINEPLEX YONGE & DUNDAS 7
Sat., Sept. 15th, 9:15 PM SCOTIABANK 2

Preview of The RAID Sequel, BERANDAL

The Raid (aka, The Raid:  Redemption) opened last year's Midnight Madness program, ripping up Ryerson before punching, kicking, slashing, choking, gouging, elbow-striking, hacking and blasting its way through theaters all over North America and the world.  Director Gareth Huw Evans and star Iko Uwais are following up with Berandal, the second in a proposed trilogy.



Evans discusses Berandal in interviews with Heatvision, The Collider and BBC News South East Wales.  Twitch has concept art for Berandal's mysterious and obviously dangerous, Hammer Girl

Can't wait to see what Hammer Girl smashes, hopefully at Midnight Madness.

NO ONE LIVES + THE RAID = FAST 6!

How do you make the already explosive Fast and Furious franchise any bigger or better? Easy, cast a couple of Midnight Madness stars as villains! Check out the pic below of Joe Taslim from 2011 Midnight Madness Audience Award Winner The Raid & Luke Evans of No One Lives hanging out on the set of Fast 6. Follow @Joe_Taslim and @TheRealLukeevans on twitter for more set pics and join hundreds of your closest friends at The Ryerson at midnight to see how Luke fares in No One Lives!

NO ONE LIVESScreening Times:
Sat., Sept 8th, 11:59 PM RYERSON
Mon., Sept 10th, 9:45 PM CINEPLEX YONGE & DUNDAS 7
Fri., Sept 14th, 4:45 PM CINEPLEX YONGE & DUNDAS 6

Cadillac People's Choice Midnight Madness Award Announced

The people have spoken and this year's winner of the Cadillac People's Choice Midnight Madness Award is Gareth Evans' The Raid! Congratulations to Gareth, Iko Uwais, Joe Taslim, Maya Barack-Evans and the producers, cast and crew of The Raid!

First runner-up is Adam Wingard's You're Next! Congratulations to Adam, Sharni Vinson, AJ Bowen, Joe Swanberg, Simon Barrett and the producers, cast and crew.

Second runner-up is Bobcat Goldthwait's God Bless America! Congratulations to Bobcat, Joel Murray, Tara Lynne Barr and the producers, cast and crew.

And thanks to everyone who marked a ballot for the Cadillac People's Choice Award for Midnight Madness.

The Red Carpet Interviews for THE RAID

Here is the Midnight Madness footage from the World Premiere of THE RAID:

The Intro/Q&A for THE RAID Opening Night

The 2011 edition of the Toronto International Film started off with a BANG, another BANG okay many, many bangs, kicks, punches, a surprise appearance by co-festival director Cameron Bailey. ACTION, ACTION, ACTION and more ACTION, the night also marked the first ever Indonesian film to screen at the illustrious Midnight programme and introduced the world to new action superstar Iko Uwais! Oh and one the best give-aways ever from the Midnight stage.

Here is Sheleigh Bober and I's footage from one of the greatest opening nights of the Midnight Madness programme.

@thesubstream - Midnight Madness Review - THE RAID

When Colin Geddes - TIFF programmer and one time originator of Toronto film-geek institution Kung Fu Fridays - selected an Asian martial arts film to open the Midnight Madness programme this year, clever heads took note. For the past few years Geddes has programmed either raucous Canadiana like 2010's opener Fubar 2 or huge-profile films like Borat or Jennifer's Body. So when that coveted slot is given over to a film that's square in his personal geek-out wheelhouse, you know you're likely gonna get something special.

Thankfully, Welshman Gareth Huw Evans' Indonesian action epic The Raid is that something special. It's a gnarly, frantic freakout launched on the flimsiest of premises - a team of SWAT-types (including star Iko Uwais) try and storm the castle of a local crimelord, who resides on the 15th floor of a decrepit building filled with assorted bad dudes and rude crudes itching to gain their boss' favour by delivering him a cop's head. There's fighting. A lot of it.


What makes the film work is the combination of the native Indonesian martial art (silat, which seems to have been designed to brutally answer questions like "why do kung fu guys flap around so much when they could just pick a dude up and smash his dome on the ground nine times?") frenetically and liberally applied by a talented performer, and a director who knows not only how to stage his intricate action pieces, but how to cut them together, as well.

It's delightfully old-fashioned, seeming to come from a distant much-loved time before the Jason Bourne movies turned the beloved genre institution of two dudes wailing on each other in a room into the confusing, nauseating shaky-cam action sequences that fill up too many mainstream action movies recently.

The film is divided into a series of discrete battles - my screening partner and I both individually were reminded of the Nintendo classic "Double Dragon" - each staged in a space whose dimensions are clear - no wobbly asymmetrical battlefields here.

The action is fast, furious, breath-taking and designed to be entertaining, to be the point, as it were, rather than stylish, confusing chaos. Which is a complicated way of not quite managing to say it's hilariously violent, fast and furious and innovative as hell in the ways that dudes get to dispatching each other. If you've ever liked a kung fu movie, you'll like this. As if my recommendation was worth a tenth of the maestro Geddes'.

Full coverage and reviews at www.thesubstream.com

@thesubstream - Midnight Madness '11 Ep. 01: The Raid!

Last night was the opening night of TIFF's Midnight Madness program, and relatively speaking it was a pretty low-key affair, at least until the ass whippings started. Seems that programmer-genius Colin Geddes wants to do something a little different this year, and so far we've got to say that we're intrigued... To start things off he screened The Raid, an Indonesian martial arts film that featured non-stop kinetic action sequences, and yes, plenty of dudes getting kicked in the face. Check out our coverage of night one of MIDNIGHT MADNESS!

Full coverage and reviews at www.thesubstream.com

The Hitlist Raves about THE RAID

James Rocchi reviews The Raid for The Hitlist:

There's humor here, and wit, and economy in every sense of the word -- it's hard to think of a needless shot or beat in The Raid, and it packs more action into a small number of sets in a limited location than Michael Bay can into an entire galaxy, or than Jason Statham can in all his globetrotting Transporting --but there's also back-breaking blows and six-minute long fights that clearly took two days to shoot and bad guys' heads being bounced off of a tile wall 8 times in a second and good guys getting atomized by punk kids who laugh as they pull the trigger.

Read more here.

Your last chance to see The Raid is tomorrow:

Sat., Sept. 10th, 12:15PM, AMC 2