If your tastes stray more toward the mild than the wild, never fear: Anomaly’s got’cha covered! We’re not exclusively a horror festival, so here are some of this year’s films that avoid excessive blood, guts, gore, and explicit terror.
Note that tastes and sensitivities vary wildly, so please read the Content Warnings for more details. Additionally, the shorts the precede the features are paired thematically, and not necessarily also deemed “safer.”
Something In The Dirt
Thursday, November 3 • 6:15pm
A scintillating sci-fi journey of reality refraction and personal reflection.
John and Levi are new neighbors in a crumbling Los Angeles apartment complex who become tangled together when they witness an inexplicable phenomenon of light and sound one afternoon. Deciding to document the strange event for posterity — and perhaps fame and fortune — the two men soon fall head first into ever-evolving conspiracy theories, twisting rabbit holes, and the impossible trick of giving meaning to the (maybe) meaningless. What happens when selling a mystery becomes more important than being a friend?
The latest indie sci-fi mind-bender from Benson and Moorhead, the filmmakers behind The Endless and Marvel’s Loki season 2. More details & tickets
USA / 2022 / 115 mins
Content Warnings: animal remains, mental health distress
The Antares Paradox
Saturday, November 5 • 2pm
A soulful sci-fi, searching for species, socially, and scattered in the stars.
SETI scientist Alexandra has devoted her life to the search for extraterrestrial life. Tonight it appears she’s made an incredible discovery that could be the culmination of everything she’s been working for. Then she receives some dire news from a loved one, and suddenly Alexandra finds herself torn between her work and the family who needs her. Straddling the line between science fiction and drama, THE ANTARES PARADOX is a tense and emotional single location thriller that asks viewers to consider what’s truly important to us, and what we’d be willing to sacrifice for our dreams. More details & tickets
Spain / 2022 / 96 mins
In Spanish with English subtitles
Content Warnings: flashing lights, blood, death, family trauma
The Jessica Cabin
Sunday, November 6 • 10:15am
A queer, bittersweet ghost story about the complicated search for true connection
One cabin. Four people. But two of them are dead… and desperately trying to connect with their living visitors. Trapped for an uncertain amount of time in this small, isolated box — these restless spirits soon make some unfortunate decisions in their quest to feel something one more time. At times darkly amusing, while at other times deeply heartbreaking, this story of love and loss is a poignant but ultimately hopeful vision of learning to let go, no matter how frightening that might seem in the moment. More details & tickets
USA / 2022 / 73 mins
Content Warnings: suicide
Leonor Will Never Die
Sunday, November 6 • 7pm
A meta action-fantasy of fists and finding fulfillment.
Retired filmmaker Leonor made a living writing gritty Filipino action flicks throughout the ‘70s and ‘80s, but lately she’s struggling to make ends meet. And her exasperated son no longer knows what to do with her. But when she’s conked on the head by a falling television and slips into a coma, Leonor suddenly finds herself lost inside the violent world of one of her unfinished screenplays. Fantasy and reality blur in increasingly outlandish ways as Leonor joins her fist-fighting hero on his quest for revenge against those who wronged him, while back in the more mundane real world her son rallies the family by her side.
A sweet and comically surreal love letter to genre cinema, and the power of the movies to help us cope with whatever hardships life may throw at us. More details & tickets
Philippines / 2022 / 99 mins
In Filipino with English subtitles
Content Warnings: violence, gun violence, blood, death, family hospitalization