Tag: Johnny Flynn

A Prayer for the Dying (2026) | Fantastic Fest 2026 | REVIEW

John C. Reilly and Johnny Flynn in Dara Van Dusen’s A PRAYER FOR THE DYING. Image provided by Fantastic Fest. Courtesy of Quiver Distribution.

Directed by Dara Van Dusen – Screenplay by Dara Van Dusen.

Following its world premiere at this year’s Berlinale, the western-adjacent drama, A Prayer for the Dying, from debut feature filmmaker Dara Van Dusen, just had its North American premiere at Fantastic Fest 2026. As part of my remote coverage of the latter festival, I got the opportunity to watch this ambitious debut. Dusen’s Western-adjacent debut, which is being prepared for a post-festival US theatrical release on October 9th, contains fascinating surreal imagery, pitch-black dark character predicaments, and a challenging role for its competent leading man. Although it has some blemishes, I thought it was mostly quite effective.

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Fantastic Fest 2026 | Preview

Festival logo — Image provided by Fantastic Fest.

Later this month — from September 17th to September 24th — the 21st edition of Fantastic Fest takes place at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar in Austin, TX. Over the years, the beloved film festival all about genre film has featured world premieres of such films as There Will Be Blood, Zombieland, and Apostle, as well as the U.S. premiere of Obsession, which now, just a year later, has taken the world by storm following its theatrical release. Now, while I won’t be in Austin, I have been approved for remote coverage of the festival. Thus, I plan to post standalone reviews of select films over the course of the week of the festival, which I am very much looking forward to.

In this preview, I’ll highlight some of the major premieres, screenings, and titles. But this article also dives deeper into Fantastic Fest‘s fascinating line-up, as I have prepared a list of ten films that have caught my eye based on intriguing loglines, the creative team involved, or, in certain cases, the cast that appears in the film. Although it is unlikely that I’ll get to see all of them during my remote coverage, these are some of the films that I think you should seek out if you are going to be in Austin, TX this month.

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REVIEW: Emma. (2020)

Mia Goth as Harriet Smith (left) and Anya Taylor-Joy as Emma Woodhouse (right) in Autumn de Wilde’s ‘Emma.’ — Photo: Focus Features.

Directed by Autumn de Wilde — Screenplay by Eleanor Catton.

Autumn de Wilde’s feature film directorial debut, Emma., is a romantic-dramedy period piece based on the 1815 Jane Austin novel of the same name, which has been adapted numerous times. Autumn de Wilde’s film takes place in the early 19th Century and it follows its privileged titular character, Emma Woodhouse (played by Anya Taylor-Joy), as she interferes with her friend’s love life. Her friend, the sweet but impressionable Harriet Smith (played by Mia Goth), is attracted to a Mr. Robert Martin (played by Connor Swindells). But, instead, Emma thinks that Harriet should pursue a romantic relationship with the local vicar, Mr. Elton (played by Josh O’Connor), even though it’s clear to everyone except for Emma and Harriet that he is actually attracted to the title character. Continue reading “REVIEW: Emma. (2020)” →

REVIEW: The Dig (2021)

Carey Mulligan, Archie Barnes, and Ralph Fiennes in ‘The Dig.’ — Photo: Larry Horricks / Netflix.

Directed by Simon Stone — Screenplay by Moira Buffini.

Back when I was just a very young teenager, my school had arranged for me to receive (what I guess you would call) on-job training for a week with a team of Danish archaeologists. I had had a natural interest in archaeology, and therefore I was thrilled when I got the chance to learn from them. Over the course of that week, I archived a lot of items, I spoke with the archaeologists for quite some time, I got an early look at a history museum’s recreation of a Viking ship (if memory serves), and I even got to take part in an actual excavation. For this reason, I had a particular interest in Simon Stone’s The Dig, a Netflix original film about a historic excavation in England in 1939, and I actually really enjoyed watching it and learning about Basil Brown and Edith Pretty. But I will say that this period drama is probably a little bit too slow for your average Netflix subscriber. Continue reading “REVIEW: The Dig (2021)” →