Terror headlines the billboard this weekend with the premiere of one of cinema’s most beloved epics, Halloween, alongside the eagerly anticipated finale of Cerdita, a rural thriller exploring the harsh realities of bullying in a small Spanish town. The lineup also spotlights Wild Sunflowers, the new work by Jaime Rosales, and Peter von Kant, François Ozon’s reimagining of a classic Fassbinder piece.
Halloween and the Enduring Darkness
In a nod to one of horror cinema’s defining careers, Jamie Lee Curtis bids farewell to Laurie Strode, a character who helped launch her fame. Halloween Is Over marks the conclusion of a storied horror saga that began with John Carpenter in 1978. The latest entry, Halloween (2018) followed by Halloween Kills (2021), returns as a third chapter directed by David Gordon Green, placing Laurie four years after the second film. She dwells with her granddaughter, convinced she has left behind the specter of Michael Myers.
Cerdita, a Rural Thriller Addressing Bullying
Adapted from the acclaimed 2018 short, Piggy, this feature lands in theatres after a successful run on the festival circuit, from Sundance to Fantastic Fest and Sitges in Austin, where it earned the best picture accolade. The film unfolds in Extremadura, where a violent killer stalks a secluded town while a misunderstood teenager—struggling with family pressures and the weight of bullying—becomes the center of the narrative.
Wild Sunflowers by Jaime Rosales
The filmmaker behind Petra (2018), La Soledad (2007), and Hermosa Joven (2014) returns with a drama tracing the emotional voyage of a 22-year-old mother. Her life threads through three relationships with very different partners, testing her balance and resilience. Anna Castillo and Oriol Pla lead the ensemble, as the film competes in the official section at the most recent edition of the San Sebastian Film Festival.
In the Trenches of the First World War
Almost a century after Lewis Milestone’s adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front, Edward Berger’s Netflix version offers a modern reimagining of the anti-war抗 message. The 1929 novel had already become a blockbuster, shaping American readers’ view of war, and Milestone’s film earned the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director in 1930.
Peter Von Kant: Ozon Reinterprets Fassbinder
François Ozon’s remake of The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant recasts the dramatic story into a contemporary theater world. In this version, the character Petra becomes Peter, a film director who falls for a young actress while neglecting a key assistant. Loneliness, cruelty, and intense romantic longing drive the dark comedy, a project that follows Ozon’s acclaimed San Sebastian work and showcases his flair for reinventing classic cinema.
The Incredible Elisa: A Fantasy of Revenge
Starring Asier Etxeandía, Iván Massagué, and Silvia Abascal, this fresh fantasy thriller from Sadrac González-Perellón centers on a twelve-year-old girl who, after her mother’s accidental death, believes her comic hero has superpowers and can help them right the wrongs that led to the tragedy. The film blends wonder with a stubborn pursuit of justice in a world where imagination and reality increasingly collide.
Dibolic: From Graphic Novel to Screen
Directors Antonio and Marco Manetti bring to life a beloved Italian cult comic about a master thief whose many disguises and clever ruses help him stay one step ahead of danger. The project features Luca Marinelli, a laureate of the Venice Film Festival, who later earned multiple Donatello nominations for his portrayal in this adaptation.
The Legend of the King Crab
This Italian-Argentine co-production follows a man steeped in misfortune during a late-1800s revolt. A fateful accident propels him into exile on Tierra del Fuego, a remote corner of Argentina, where a buried treasure fuels his quest. The film marks the feature debut for Alessio Rigo de Righi and Matteo Zoppis, who draw on enduring Italian peasant legends to tell their story.
Turkish Cinema: Hasan’s Promise and Cannes
Semih Kaplanoğlu, a staple of Europe’s premier festivals, returns with Hasan’s Promise. The film, rooted in Kaplanoğlu’s acclaimed trilogy, follows a farmer whose life is disrupted when a high-voltage tower is proposed to be erected on land inherited from his father. Premiered in Cannes’ Uncertain View section in 2021, the drama examines resilience, community, and the costs of progress.