This is where the wild ones come out to play
Reality bends, time loops, and flesh transmogrifies as all things take a turn for the freaky in this year’s outrageous Altered States selection. The adage that all relationships are complicated inspires mesmerizing cautionary tales concerning the ramifications of our dependence on technology, perils of cutthroat work environments, and pitfalls of taking a supernatural spouse. All told, these 10 oddities serve notice that Altered States truly is for lovers, be they fanciers of the grounded, gory, gastronomic, or gloriously ridiculous.
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Jim Queen
When far-right activists infect gay influencer Jim Queen with a drug that turns him straight, he must join forces with a closeted follower to cure his ailment. Jim Queen is a film unafraid to skewer gay “body fascism” and bigoted conservatism alike.
Species
Species follows Margot, a young doctor who wakes covered in blood as the pressures of a demanding French ER take a physical toll. As lesions spread across her body, workplace burnout transforms into skin-tearing body horror.
Image: © ARP Sélection Trésor Films Windy Production
The Peril at Pincer Point
A hapless sound recordist sails to an island seeking a missing girl and the perfect sound for a monster’s roar, but faces a phantom pirate and giant crabs. Handmade and hilarious, The Peril at Pincer Point revels in the scrappy joy of indie filmmaking.
Freaks Part II
Freaks Part II follows Mary and her daughter Chloe as they flee the Abnormal Defence Force through a country where those with powers are hunted and identified through telltale blood-red tears. A tense, emotionally grounded second chapter.
Image: © Kailey Schwerman - Elevation Pictures
Family Fears Another Night of Terror
Night after night, a family of four is tormented by an unseen presence inside their home — or so it seems. Family Fears Another Night of Terror transforms the aesthetics of a late-night television special into an analogue nightmare.
Midnight Momo
Kunga, a waiter at a Queens momo shop, finds himself trapped in a loop of the final minutes of his shift. Midnight Momo is a frenetic, distinctly Tibetan American indie comedy that puts a working-class spin on the Buddhist cycle of suffering and rebirth.
Death Has No Master
When Caro returns to Venezuela to sell her late father’s cacao plantation, she finds the family mansion occupied by its former staff, who have no intention of leaving. After legal action proves ineffectual, Caro decides to dispense justice herself.
Ugly Cry
When her Ugly Cry costs an aspiring actor her dream role, she takes desperate measures in pursuit of perfection. A cheeky injection of dark humour and delirium, this genre-bending psychological thriller takes a clever jab at internet-age beauty standards.