Schlock and awe: Megan Fox and Ethan Hawke among stars at TIFF’s Midnight Madness program
Megan Fox stirred the hearts—and a few other body parts—of millions of men when she donned a pair of tight denim shorts in the two Transformers movies. That they were mediocre films was cause for less celebration. Happily, though, Fox’s Toronto fans will soon have the chance to see her in a movie that promises to be more than a brain-dead ogle-fest: the titillatingly titled Jennifer’s Body, which will open TIFF’s annual Midnight Madness lineup.
Written by Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody and co-starring Adam Brody and Amy Sedaris, Jennifer’s Body represents a turn to the mainstream for the historically esoteric Midnight Madness series. Fox, in the title role, plays a popular high school cheerleader who’s the envy of the school—and boy does she know it. When she becomes possessed by a demon and begins devouring the town’s all-too-willing young men, her nerdy best friend has to step up and save the day. Other titles from Midnight Madness—TIFF’s horror and schlock series—were announced today. More on them after the jump.
Other marquee-worthy features include Daybreakers, with Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe and Sam Neill, about a future Earth overrun by vampires; humans are a dying minority. And then there’s the latest from zombie mastermind George A. Romero, Survival of the Dead, about a war between two zombie tribes (which sounds either awesome or inevitable, depending on one’s point of view).
It is with no small relief that we observe that the fest isn’t abandoning the scrappy indie flicks that got it where it is. Midnight Madness will also include such niche-appeal fare as Solomon Kane, about a 16th-century mercenary who owes his soul to the devil, and Bitch Slap, a camp comedy from the creators of Xena: Warrior Princess.
Full details, a complete lineup and ticket information are all available here.
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