14. HALLOWED GROUND: Made by an Indigenous filmmaker or has featured Indigenous forged members.
Slash/Again
Nyla Innuksuk’s Slash/Again has been on my to-watch checklist since at the very least final yr when it was added to Hulu, but it surely wasn’t till I noticed Scarecrow’s Day 14 immediate—watch a movie “made by an Indigenous filmmaker or has featured Indigenous forged members”—that I lastly sat down to observe it.
It was a blast! Thanks, Scarecrow!
Slash/Again is about and filmed in Nunavut (the place certainly one of my all-time favourite Nashville Predators gamers, Jordin Tootoo, is from!), within the small neighborhood of Pangnirtung. For a gaggle of native ladies, what begins out as simply one other day of breaking insignificant guidelines, getting harassed by cops, and avoiding annoying youthful siblings, shortly devolves right into a literal battle for his or her lives when what seems to be a zombified polar bear crashes their picnic. After some investigation—and a few extra of the monster’s murderous rampages—they uncover {that a} parasitic creature has invaded their land, and it reveals no signal of stopping till the entire city is sucked dry.
I will not spoil the ending, however, hell sure, there’s a “put together for battle” montage in addition to a depraved scene involving an ulu knife. There are additionally just a few candy moments between the women as they bond over their sophisticated relationships with their heritage and traditions and the relatable urge to depart house as quickly as attainable.
It is not reinventing the younger grownup sci-fi flick—comparisons to Assault the Block and Stranger Issues are plentiful and unavoidable—but it surely’s nonetheless a fun-to-watch story about younger individuals who have to avoid wasting their city from violent, blood-sucking aliens as a result of in the event that they don’t do it, nobody else will. It makes for a hell of a metaphor for colonialism, too… however, you realize, with tentacles.
Finest quote: “I minimize open its throat with an ulu.” “Nasty! I like it.”
Snack suggestion: White chocolate-covered gummy polar bears
The Stranger is taking part in Scarecrow Video’s Psychotronic Problem all month lengthy! Each October, Scarecrow places collectively an inventory of cinematic themes and invitations of us to comply with alongside and watch a horror, sci-fi, or fantasy flick that meets the factors. This yr, Stranger staffers are becoming a member of the enjoyable and we’re sharing our each day suggestions right here on Slog! Learn extra about Scarecrow’s 2024 problem—and get the watch checklist—right here. And you may observe our each day suggestions right here! 💀
