2024 Chattanooga Film Festival Review
I remember attending my first Chattanooga Film Festival in 2021 at the height of COVID-19. It was an exciting opportunity to attend my first film festival and I found myself loving the assortment of indie films curated. Now that it is 2024, this is my third time attending the festival and I will say I was rather disappointed with the selection overall this year. That being said, I am excited for some of the stronger entries to get a wider audience and hope to spread their praises as far as I can when they do get released.
Overall, I watched 12 films which averaged a 5.08/10 rating from me, which means I saw mostly fine films during the festival.
Without further ado, here are the 12 films I watched at this year’s Chattanooga Film Festival and my personal ranking of how much I enjoyed them.
12. NOCLIP (Director: Gabin Charles, Alex Conn; United States)
Two burnouts spend the day at their local mail investigating its various liminal spaces with hopes of reaching the backrooms. Once there, they find themselves spiraling into a terrifying ordeal when they find exactly what they want and are unable to leave. Noclip is an endurance test suitable only for the most diehard of found footage fans. Despite its 61-minute runtime, it is an incomprehensible and interminable experience that lacks style, substance, and excitement. While it can be easily clipped from your watchlist, feel free to take a chance on the divisive indie festival flick.
Full Review: See Here
Where to Watch: See Here (Wide Release TBD)
11. Sweet Relief (Director: Nick Verdi; United States)
A small town grapples with the effects of a violent internet challenge taking hold of the community’s youth while a serial killer quietly operates in the shadows. The lives of three different groups of people will intersect in the most twisted manner when these competing terrors come to a head. Sweet Relief is a decidedly boring mumblecore horror film that offers little thrills while attempting to dissect complicated questions about big topics like social media, community, and their intersection. Its repetitive dialogue, rough performances, and baffling climax will understandably turn off many from this indie slasher other than fans of the unique niche it occupies in the genre.
Full Review: See Here
Where to Watch: See Here (Wide Release TBD)
10. Wild Zero (Director: Tetsuro Takeuchi; Japan)
A superfan of garage rock band Guitar Wolf is thrust into the terrifying reality of an alien zombie invasion. Forced to become a hero alongside his idols, he must do whatever it takes to save the beautiful woman who drifted through his town from becoming the murderous zombie horde’s next victim. Wild Zero is a huge swing and a miss. Its appeal comes primarily through its midnight madness approach to horror comedy, offering up zaniness in place of coherence. Some will absolutely adore the film despite its flaws, but others looking for a more conventional ride through zombie cinema will find themselves confused or irritated.
Full Review: N/A
Where to Watch: See Here
9. Video Vision (Director: Michael Turney; United States)
While working at her technology repair shop job, a woman stumbles upon a terrifying reality-altering force after interacting with an old VCR player. Soon, she finds the device wreaking havoc on her life, producing terrifying visions, and transforming her. The difficulty of this is compounded by the introduction of a potential romantic partner that has her questioning her understandings of sexuality and gender. Video Vision is a commendable indie film that struggles to maintain suspense and command over its admittedly interesting material. Asking fundamentally compelling questions without fully exploring the answers, Video Vision is a frustrating watch thanks to iffy performances and rough dialogue. While queer horror is always welcome, Video Vision needs just a bit more substance to make it more of a fulfilling watch.
Full Review: See Here
Where to Watch: See Here (Wide Release TBD)
8. Nightflyers (Director: Robert Collector; United States)
A crew is assembled to board a ship heading for deep space to study a signal emanating from a distant corner of the galaxy. Complications arise when the mysterious captain of the ship begins to fall for one of the crew, inciting the wrath of the ship’s computer. Nightflyers is a hazy science fiction horror film that is chock full of 1980s tropes and gimmicks that make it a fun experience. Unfortunately, it fails to take its interesting premise anywhere, often defaulting to mimicking more memorable movies from the time. Nightflyers shines visually, offering a daydream-like aesthetic to its futuristic story that makes up for its middling plot and characters. It’s deserving of a watch, but don’t expect anything too life-changing from this forgotten space odyssey.
Full Review: N/A
Where to Watch: See Here
7. The Lonely Man with the Ghost Machine (Director: Graham Skipper; United States)
Wozzek is a survivor of the apocalypse, living off the land in a remote cabin. Grappling with the loss of his wife, who succumbed to the invasion years ago, Wozzek is determined to create a machine to bring her back to life. His days of tireless work are interrupted by a sinister visitor who only appears at night, goading him into uncomfortable conversations. The Lonely Man with the Ghost Machine is a flawed yet interesting apocalyptic horror drama. Graham Skipper delivers a solid performance as always, even when the script and production veers into the absurd. Paralleling the intensity of loneliness and isolation during the early days of COVID-19, there is plenty of social commentary to dig out of the tale even if it doesn’t fully reach greatness.
Full Review: See Here
Where to Watch: See Here (Wide Release TBD)
6. The Tomb of Dracula (Director: Akinori Nagaoka, Minoru Okazaki, Robert V. Barron; Japan)
When a cult attempts to sacrifice a woman to Satan, Dracula intervenes and takes her as his bride instead. This angers the cult, who is instructed by the Devil to retaliate against him. All the while, Van Helsing recruits a man in hopes of killing Dracula himself. The Tomb of Dracula is an interesting and entertaining Japanese film that makes its animated horror come to life. The film gets messy with all its combined subplots, but it is impossible to call the effort boring. Quirky and memorable, this oddity certainly deserves more word-of-mouth than it currently receives, and those who find lighter horror more desirable will find themselves delighted with this version of Dracula.
Full Review: N/A
Where to Watch: See Here
5. A Guide to Becoming an Elm Tree (Director: Adam Mann, Skye Mann; Canada)
After the death of his wife, Padraig seeks out the help of a carpenter to teach him how to build a coffin. Through rough manual labor and even tougher conversations, Padraig reveals that his intentions may not be as innocent as he let on. Eventually, Padraig makes a grave mistake that provides him comfort but causes hurt for the one he loves. A Guide to Becoming an Elm Tree is a slow burn horror drama that patiently follows its leading man’s quest for closure that he will never receive. Told in simple black-and-white cinematography, A Guide to Becoming an Elm Tree plays out like a fable reminding audiences of the dangers of not waking up the dead.
Full Review: See Here
Where to Watch: See Here (Wide Release TBD)
4. Carnage for Christmas (Director: Alice Maio Mackay; Australia)
Lola, a popular true-crime podcaster, returns to her hometown for the holidays after leaving long ago to fully live her truth as a trans woman in the city. Upon her return, she is met with the terrifying reality that her hometown’s legendary serial killer is once again causing mayhem. It’s up to her to solve the case while fighting against spiteful locals and doing her best to save her friends along the way. Carnage for Christmas is easily writer/director Alice Maio Mackay’s best work yet. A queer slasher that showcases mystery, gore, and wit, Mackay finds her stride as she balances thoughtful social commentary with fun slasher carnage. It perhaps doesn’t go far enough, but it is bright low-budget gem all the same.
Full Review: See Here
Where to Watch: See Here (Wide Release TBD)
3. Pin (Director: Sandor Stern; Canada)
Leon is obsessed with his father’s anatomy doll, Pin, who becomes both an imaginary friend and coping mechanism whenever his life gets too difficult. Over the years, Pin convinces Leon to do whatever it takes to keep him in his life. This disturbs his sister, Ursula, who finds herself living under her brother’s increasingly erratic rule thanks to Pin’s influence. Pin is a weird and wild ride that keeps viewers guessing on exactly what is going on. Determining how and why Pin has control over Leon is almost as fun as the situational dark comedy that follows as Leon tries to integrate Pin into his adult life. Still, its lighter moments don’t stop Pin from being a disturbing psychological horror film that occupies a unique niche in the horror genre.
Full Review: N/A
Where to Watch: See Here
2. Cannibal Mukbang (Director: Amiee Kuge; United States)
Mark is a socially awkward loner who glides through life with all the purpose of a sunfish. Things change when Ash crashes into him with her car one night after a late-night convenience store run. She nurses him back to health and a romance begins to blossom. Everything is looking up, until he learns the truth behind her already odd job. Now forced to compromise his morals or lose the love of his life, Mark will have to decide how far he will go for love. An enchanting horror romance that isn’t afraid to bring up difficult conversations about modern dating, Cannibal Mukbang is a must-watch for those who enjoy indie horror. Leads April Consalo and Nate Wise have impeccable chemistry which makes their characters feel real, making the film’s climax all the more devastating and enraging. Don’t let the title turn you off, and ensure that you arrive for this feast of gore, laughs, and the occasional bit of sweetness.
Full Review: See Here
Where to Watch: See Here (Wide Release TBD)
1. In the Name of God (Director: Ludvig Gür; Sweden)
After non-consensually taking part of an ancient ritual, a priest is given the power to perform miracles. The only problem is he must sacrifice another to carry out his gift. Caught between the good he can do and the evil he must do, matters are complicated when an investigative journalist with his own messy past intervenes to prove him a fraud. In the Name of God is a deliciously dark and provocative film. Compelling questions about the nature of sacrifice, the power of perception, and the spectrum of morality make for a meaty watch. Its unflinching approach to violence and solid character development make it one of the more interesting movies to come out of Sweden in the previous years and easily the standout of this year’s Chattanooga Film Festival.
Full Review: See Here
Where to Watch: See Here (Wide Release TBD)
Final Words on Festival:
I very much look forward to watching my top 4 films again in the future and feel like the ticket price was absolutely worth it to get a sneak preview of these gems. Attending any festival is a risk as you never know what will be programmed, and I am excited to see what the Chattanooga team cooks up for future iterations!
