I’ve attended two film screenings at this year’s Toronto After Dark Film Festival (TADFF). Here I share with you some quick thoughts on these films.

I saw the Opening Gala: Mulberry Street. The film was written by Jim Mickle (also the Director) and Nick Damici (principal lead). It is set in post-9/11 NYC in an apartment building situated in a less than glamourous area of the city. A virus takes over the city and people who are bitten by rats become flesh-eating zombies. What a concept! The plot is cohesive and not too convoluted, which for this genre, is appreciated. The characters are well developed and as someone pointed out in the Q&A afterwards, one is given the chance to get to know pretty much all the principal characters who reside in this apt building. There is plenty of chases, gory scenes and all that a zombie movie makes. As well, there is an underlying social commentary on how governments react to a “state of emergency” situation… Katrina, anyone?! But I digress… The ending is refreshing; not the typical let’s save the hero BS we tend to see in mainstream American films…. I hope this film gets distribution so you can get a chance to see it too.

My other screening was that of The Rebel, a Vietnamese film that included plenty of martial arts and historical drama. This was a pleasant surprise since I had not heard much about it.

Director Charlie Nguyen sent a print without credits with some sound editing issues. Nonetheless, the film worked for me on many levels. The film takes place in 1920’s French-occupied Vietnam. The principal leads include Johnny Nguyen as Cuong and Dustin Nguyen as Sy; both members of the secret police. The female lead is played by Ngo Thanh Van as Thuy, whose father is a resistance leader. I’m not going to get into details about the plot. Succinctly stated, there is an assassination; Thuy gets arrested and Cuong decides to help her escape and take her to her father. While escaping the secret and French police, there are plenty of fights. I am most impressed with how much Thuy also gets to kick some butt! She totally rocks! I wish the audience had been more responsive to some of the scenes. In terms of camera work, The Rebel has some great shots. There are many scenes shot in different lighting. The score works well; however, the sound quality of this particular print could have been better. All in all, one of my surprise faves in terms of action films this year…