The Host and Pan’s Labyrinth

One of the interesting things to do after the Toronto International Film Festival is to sit back and wait to see which of the films you saw (or heard about) actually make it into your neck of the woods, or even just to American shores. Of course, in my case, the “neck of the woods” happens to be Lincoln, Nebraska, and so the chances of festival films making their way here are still slim even if they receive U.S. distribution.

That being said, I did get very excited when I saw that full-length trailers for The Host and Pan’s Labyrinth both surfaced on the Web today (the former courtesy of AICN, the latter of IGN Filmforce).

Both of these films were among my favorite films of the fest — read my reviews of The Host and of Pan’s Labyrinth — and both are amazing horror/fantasy genre pictures. The sort of pictures that really puts in stark relief the absolute glut of creativity found in Hollywood’s genre films, which these days seem to consist almost entirely of remakes and tired old plot retreads.

I have no idea if either of these films will make it to Lincoln. If I had to make a wager, I’d say that Pan’s Labyrinth is the more likely of the two, if only because of Guillermo Del Toro’s previous films (Hellboy, Blade 2). However, if I had my druthers, I’d love to see The Ross pick up both films.

I just remember when I saw Bubba Ho-Tep there in 2004. Although a fair distance from the theatre’s usual line-up of arthouse fare, the joint was absolutely crazy on opening night, and there was always a decent-sized crowd every subsequent time I went.

Something inside me thinks that both Pan’s Labyrinth and The Host would find very appreciative audiences; I think Lincoln has a seriously starved crowd for good cult films that would be most appreciative of the Ross’ efforts.

Oh, and lest you think I’m bagging on The Ross, I’m very excited that The Science of Sleep, This Film is Not Yet Rated, and Jesus Camp will all be playing there in the coming weeks. They do good work there, and Lincoln is blessed to have this particular cultural resource.