One of the best horror film festivals in the world returns for its third terrifying outing!
Written by Adam Mast
Anyone else out there a fan of horror films? If so, then “The Stanley Film Festival” is definitely for you. Not only does this exceptionally terrifying film festival pride itself on curating the very best in horror, but it calls Colorado’s The Stanley Hotel its home. Yes, the same Stanley Hotel that inspired horror maestro Stephen King to write “The Shining.” Nothing beats a great horror picture, but seeing a pitch perfect genre film in a venue like this is, without question, a once in a life time experience.
“The Stanley Film Festival” is still relatively young. It will embark on its 3rd outing from April 30 to May 3. But just because this fest is the new kid on the block doesn’t make it any less grand. In only a few short years this particular genre showcase has garnered tremendous buzz, and with good reason. It’s well organized and perfectly programmed. It’s also less congested than other high profile film festivals. Granted, as the years progress I suspect the crowds will grow once festival goers start flocking to breathtaking Estes Park in an effort see what all the fuss is about.
I was fortunate enough to attend last year. While there, I took in advance screenings of Jennifer Kent’s brilliant “The Babadook,” Eli Roth’s cannibal opus “The Green Inferno,” Adrián García Bogliano’s werewolf gem “Late Phases,” Ti West’s shocking “The Sacrament,” and Jemaine Clement & Taika Waititi’s hilarious “What We Do in the Shadows.”
It should also be noted that “The Stanley Film Festival” prides itself on amazing retrospectives. 2014’s festival presented screenings of “Gremlins” with director Joe Dante in the house, a stunning digital restoration of “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” and a special 35mm print of Stanley Kubrick’s under appreciated “Eyes Wide Shut.”
Furthermore, “The Stanley Film Festival” is a great place to meet with genre film-makers in an intimate setting and listen to them talk about their craft. Joe Dante, Elijah Wood, Eli Roth, Larry Fessenden, Ti West were all on hand last year. You never know who you might bump into at The Stanley.
With the recent announcement of their line-up, “The Stanley Film Festival” is showing no signs of slowing down. Programmers will open the 2015 fest up with “Cooties”, an immensely entertaining horror comedy about a middle school faculty forced into survival mode after their students turn into flesh eating ghouls. On the retro front, the 2015 fest will see a 30th anniversary screening of “Re-Animator” with “Master of Horror” award recipient Stuart Gordon on hand to talk abut the making of his much beloved H.P. Lovecraft adaptation. David Cronenberg’s early career effort “Shivers” will also screen in honor of its 40th anniversary. These titles only scratch the surface. There are dozens of horror gems just waiting to be discovered at one of the world’s premiere genre film festivals.
In addition to movies, “The Stanley Film Festival” will also unveil a handful of special events including Larry Fessenden’s “Tales From the Pale;” a collection of original horror stories read and recorded live as a sort of old school radio broadcast.
Again, if you’re a horror junky, this is a film festival you don’t want to miss! For more details, click here.
Here’s a look at our coverage from the 2014 “Stanley Film Festival.” It includes interviews with the iconic Joe Dante, the great Elijah Wood of SpectreVision, and independent horror king Larry Fessenden.
We’ll provide plenty of coverage from the 2015 festival here at The Independent.
