Grindhouse Funhouse

Fantasia International Film Festival turns 30 this year!

It’s hands down one of the best genre film festivals in the world! And yeah, I might be a little biased since it happens right here in my beautiful city of Montréal.

With over 150 features and 30+ shorts in this year’s lineup, I narrowed it down to 9 must-see movies that I’m really excited about and wanted to share with you.

These are just my personal picks, the ones that caught my eye from the trailers, the descriptions, or just the overall vibe.

Some of these could end up being this year’s (or next year’s) breakout horror hits.

Hope you enjoy, and if you see me in line, come say hi!

The 30th edition of the Fantasia International Film Festival runs from July 16th to August 2nd, 2026.

R.I.P. Sam Neill. ❤️

Fantasia Portal: https://fantasiafestival.com/en

My Letterboxd List: https://letterboxd.com/grindfunhouse/list/2026-fantasia-film-festival-watch-list/

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"Is God Is" is a new ’70s-inspired exploitation revenge movie drenched in modern grindhouse style, directed by Aleshea Harris (based on her 2018 stage play) and starring Kara Young, Mallori Johnson, Vivica A. Fox, Erika Alexander, Janelle Monáe, Mykelti Williamson, and Sterling K. Brown.

It’s about scarred twin sisters Racine and Anaia traveling across the American South on a brutal revenge mission ordered by their dying mother. Their target is the abusive father who burned their family years earlier, leaving them physically and emotionally destroyed.

Does it blend all the best ingredients of a classic exploitation/grindhouse flick with a modern edge and deliver one of the best revenge movies in years?

Here’s my review of IS GOD IS!

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SHE KICKS ASS IN STYLE! | Cleopatra Jones (1973) | Movie Review

Tamara Dobson is a fashion-forward, car-chasing, drug-fighting badass in 1973's Blaxploitation classic "Cleopatra Jones"!

Undercover as a high-fashion model, she’s waging a globe-trotting war on drugs and her biggest enemy?

The ruthless evil white lady druglord Mommy, played by Shelley Winters, the queenpin everyone fears!

Will Cleopatra blast, karate-chop, and take down Mommy’s empire before it destroys her community and the world?

Here’s my review of CLEOPATRA JONES!

Buy "Cleopatra Jones" on Blu-ray: https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Cleopatra-Jones-Blu-ray/234589/

Where to watch "Cleopatra Jones" online: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/cleopatra-jones

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HAS SHANE BLACK LOST HIS WAY? | Play Dirty (2025) | Movie Review

"Play Dirty" is a 2025 Amazon Prime Video release starring Mark Wahlberg, LaKeith Stanfield, and Rosa Salazar.

Shane Black returns as writer-director, bringing to life the Parker character based on the book series by Donald E. Westlake.

Does the movie have enough action to hold your attention for 2 hours? Or is this just another forgettable, straight-to-streaming action flick swallowed by the content vortex?

Here’s my review of "Play Dirty"!

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CHUCK NORRIS CAME OUT OF RETIREMENT FOR THIS?! | Agent Recon (2024) | Movie Review

"Agent Recon" is a 2024 direct-to-VOD sci-fi/action movie, produced, written, directed by, and starring Derek Ting.

It also happens to "star" Chuck Norris.

He could’ve gracefully retired after 2012’s "The Expendables 2", dropping a cameo so good it reminded us why he’s a legend.

Instead ... he came back for this.

Was that a wise decision?

Here’s my VERY honest review of "Agent Recon"!

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A NEW ACTION MOVIE QUEEN IN THE MAKING? | JADE (2025) | Movie Review

Jade is a 2025 straight-to-VOD release starring Shaina West, Mark Dacascos, and Mickey Rourke.

Does it deliver on martial arts, gunplay, and exploitation-style thrills? Or is it just another disposable straight-to-streaming action movie?

Here’s my review of JADE!

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PRESTIGE EROTICA OR BORING REBOOT? | EMMANUELLE (2025) | Movie Review

Emmanuelle 2025 is a modern reinterpretation of the famous 1974 erotic classic, this time starring Noémie Merlant in the role made legendary by Sylvia Kristel.

Does it work as a piece of contemporary erotic cinema, or is it a prestige, art-house reboot that forgets what made the franchise provocative in the first place?

I discuss its style, tone, performances, and place in today’s sanitized film landscape.

Here’s my review of EMMANUELLE 2025!

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IN MEMORIAM | Horror & Cult Cinema Losses Of 2025

In 2025, we lost many talented artists who left a lasting mark on horror, exploitation, and cult cinema.

This video honors the actors, actresses, directors, and behind-the-scenes visionaries who helped shape genre filmmaking across decades—from drive-ins and grindhouses to home video and midnight screenings.

Although they’ve taken their one-way trip to the Great Beyond, their work will continue to inspire filmmakers, fans, and audiences around the world for generations to come.

This tribute is offered with respect and gratitude for their lasting contributions to genre cinema.

Join me in celebrating their lives by giving them one last goodbye.

If I’ve forgotten to mention someone, please let me know in the comments below.

Background Music : Simon Leoza - "L'archange"

Watch my previous In Memoriam videos:

2024: https://youtu.be/MpUrPeGyne4 2023: https://youtu.be/MpUrPeGyne4 2022: https://youtu.be/RkmYSXzB96k 2021: https://youtu.be/WHB-s9BEKBw

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GROOVY VEGAS HEIST EURO-STYLE! | They Came To Rob Las Vegas (1968) | Movie Review

Wanna see a rad late-60s heist movie about a bunch of Euro-cool misfits led by an anti-hero hippie trying to rob the Fort Knox of armored trucks?

One that basically looks like a pimped-out Winnebago?

If so, They Came To Rob Las Vegas (original title: Las Vegas: 500 Millones) is the movie for you.

Synopsis:

A casino blackjack dealer (Gary Lockwood) teams up with his girlfriend (Elke Sommer) and a crew of criminals to hijack an armored car carrying $7 million in cash while it's en route between Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

Will the robbery go off without a hitch… or will everything go tits-up, as these movies tend to do?

Come find out!

Directed by: Antonio Isasi.

Cast: Gary Lockwood, Elke Sommer, Lee J. Cobb and Jack Palance.

Trailer @ GF Archives: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URNdhBzVepc

Where to watch "They Came To Rob Las Vegas" online: https://watch.plex.tv/watch/movie/they-came-to-rob-las-vegas https://tv.apple.com/ca/movie/they-came-to-rob-las-vegas

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SISU VS. THE RED ARMY! | Sisu: Road To Revenge (2025) | Movie Review

"Sisu: Road To Revenge" gives you all the insane action you crave and then some.

Writer-director Jalmari Helander returns to unleash more carnage as we dive into the ongoing legend of Aatami Korpi, the unkillable one-man army known as Sisu, with Jorma Tommila once again playing the taciturn killing machine.

This time around, Sisu’s personal mission is to return to Soviet-occupied Karelia, where his family was brutally murdered during World War II, to dismantle his old family house, load it onto a truck, and rebuild it on Finnish soil in their honor.

The Russian higher-ups catch wind of this and send Igor Draganov, played by Stephen Lang, the Red Army commander who killed Sisu’s entire family to finish the job, which is to kill the legendary ex-soldier by any means necessary.

Will Sisu get out of it alive and f**k everybody up?

Come find out!

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmStqCXIgio

My review of "Sisu": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_5JGKr49dc

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NFL STARS RIDE OUT FOR BLOOD! | The Black Six (1974) | Movie Review

 1970s NFL football players become "The Black Six."

Gene Washington from the San Francisco 49ers, Carl Eller from the Minnesota Vikings, Lem Barney from the Detroit Lions, Mercury Morris from the Miami Dolphins, Willie Lanier from the Kansas City Chiefs, and “Mean” Joe Greene from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

They play Vietnam vets returning from the war, roaming the earth on their sweet motorbikes, living a peace-loving life on the open road …

… until they receive the news that their leader's high school football–playing brother, who was dating the sister of the leader of an all-white, super-duper racist biker gang has been killed by said gang.

Shocking, I know.

Will an all-out brawl between the gangs erupt? And will the brother’s death be avenged?

Come find out!

Where to watch "The Black Six" online: https://tubitv.com/movies/657098/the-black-six

Buy "The Black Six" on Blu-ray: https://vinegarsyndrome.com/products/the-black-panther-of-shaolin-the-black-six

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FONG AND VAN CLIEF BRING THE PAIN! | The Black Panther Of Shaolin (1975) | Movie Review

Leo Fong and Ron Van Clief.

The best Kung Fu duo ever?

These martial arts legends were at the peak of their powers when "The Black Panther of Shaolin" (a.k.a. "Bamboo Trap") came a-callin’.

Their mission: rescue the kidnapped girl, smash every bone in sight, and make the gang that took her wish they were never born.

Once lost to time and never officially released on home video, the film roared back to life thanks to the fine folks at the American Genre Film Archive, released on Blu-ray as a double feature with 1974’s "The Black Six".

A skull-smashing good time awaits you!

Buy "The Black Panther Of Shaolin" on Blu-ray: https://vinegarsyndrome.com/collections/agfa/products/the-black-panther-of-shaolin-the-black-six

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KUNG FU! COKE! & A SATANIC DEMON FROM HELL! | Devil's Express (1976) | Movie Review

Warhawk Tanzania.

This magnificent specimen of a man with an even cooler name starred in "Devil's Express" (a.k.a. "Gang Wars"), a wild 1976 blaxploitation/kung-fu/zombie horror mash-up.

He was so transcendent in the role that when filming wrapped, he completely disappeared from the face of the Earth, never to be seen again.

My friends, this is pure movie trash heaven and you’re in for a treat!

Where to watch "Devil's Express" online: https://tubitv.com/movies/472650/devil-s-express

Buy "Devil's Express" on Blu-ray: https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Devils-Express-Blu-ray/388496/

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A NEW MODERN BLAXPLOITATION CLASSIC? | Trouble Man (2025) | Movie Review

Michael Jai White is back in the director’s chair and starring in "Trouble Man".

Is this the movie that’ll kick off the retro martial-arts-meets-blaxploitation revival I’ve been craving?

Come find out.

Synopsis:

Jaxen (Michael Jai White) is a no-nonsense private eye/fixer who takes on a high-stakes case for record mogul Branes Holland (Orlando Jones).

The mission?

Track down R&B queen Jahari (La La Anthony), who has gone missing. With streetwise hustler Money (Method Man) riding shotgun and his old flame Gina (Gillian White) back in the picture, Jaxen’s got his hands full. Turns out, even the slickest cat in town might be in over his head.

Directed by Michael Jai White and starring Michael Jai White, Method Man, Mike Epps, Gillian White, La La Anthony and Orlando Jones.

Where to watch "Trouble Man" online: https://tv.apple.com/ca/movie/trouble-man/umc.cmc.16sd0rgvnt02clz10dh6b6yp4 https://www.primevideo.com/detail?camp=1789&gti=amzn1.dv.gti.4f3f5d0e-b8ea-40f0-9cc2-85670deec580&linkCode=xm2&tag=justwatch0a-20 https://watch.plex.tv/movie/trouble-man-2025

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FGMLU3LYU0&pp=ygUYdHJvdWJsZSBtYW4gMjAyNSB0cmFpbGVy0gcJCcoJAYcqIYzv

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CINÉPIX DOCUMENTARY IN THE WORKS! How Canada’s Wildest Film Company Changed It All!

Cinépix (now known as Lionsgate) was a Montreal-based production and distribution company, founded in 1962 by André Link and the late John Dunning.

Think of them as Canada’s answer to Roger Corman — whatever Corman did with New World Pictures, Cinépix did up north.

From sexploitation to slashers, they ruled the North with sleazy, unforgettable exploitation films.

In this video, you’ll get a quick look at what Cinépix was all about, who’s behind the upcoming documentary titled "Any Means Necessary: The Story of Cinépix", and who’s taking part.

I’ll keep you posted as more info drops on its release.

Trailers Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZoc4cN7TGHn7pnyqaYGzlu9SuFaexuG8

Letterboxd Filmography List: https://letterboxd.com/grindfunhouse/list/cinepix-the-complete-filmography/

Rue Morgue Interview: https://rue-morgue.com/fantasia-25-exclusive-interview-george-mihalka-and-susan-curran-on-their-documentary-about-legendary-genre-producer-cinepix

Home Base: https://www.cinepix.ca

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DID THEY GET IT RIGHT? | The Toxic Avenger (2025) | Movie Review

Toxie is back!

The Toxic Avenger is the 2025 reimagining of the 1984 cult classic from Troma Entertainment and Cineverse.

It follows struggling everyman janitor Winston Gooze, who’s transformed by a horrific toxic accident into a new kind of hero: The Toxic Avenger! Armed with superhuman strength and wielding a glowing mop as his unconventional weapon, he must race against time to save his son and stop a ruthless, power-hungry corporate tyrant bent on harnessing toxic superpowers to expand his polluted empire.

Shot in the summer of 2021, the film premiered at Fantastic Fest in 2023 before sitting on the shelf for two years—until Cineverse, the distributor behind Terrifier 3, picked up the rights.

Was it worth the wait?

Come find out.

In theaters now.

Directed by Macon Blair and starring Peter Dinklage, Kevin Bacon, Elijah Wood, Taylour Paige, and Jacob Tremblay.

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IT'S GROOVY POLYAMORY, BABY! | Superchick (1973) | Movie Review

This movie review is to introduce you to "Superchick"!

A 1973 Crown International Pictures release — a mark of quality when it comes to fun, exploitation sleaze — directed by Ed Forsyth and starring Joyce Jillson as Tara B. True — a flight attendant by day and a polyamorous lover by night.

She's the ultimate swinging '70s icon of the modern woman. A stewardess by trade, she has men in every port of call and never passes up the fun of a good time. But when one of her beaus gets her involved in a plot to hijack her flight, she busts out some heavy-duty karate action to stop them!

Does any of this sound as exciting as the actual movie itself?

Come find out!

Where to watch Superchick" online: https://watch.plex.tv/movie/superchick

Buy "Superchick" on DVD: https://www.amazon.com/Superchick/dp/B000065U3K

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