As Fantasia is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, I wanted to fully experience the festival by watching as many films as possible. So, since my schedule is likely to be very busy and I won’t always have the time to write full reviews, I am offering you a daily diary format, featuring not only hot takes on the films watched each day, but also a report on the events.
The Delinquent
We are in Hong Kong in the 1970s, and Ah Chang has just been fired from another job. The future is depressing. Especially since he constantly finds himself in trouble with the local triads, suffering a few injuries, but always ending up beating them. One day, however, the scoundrels decide to rob a vault protected by his father.
While Fantasia is mostly a showcase for upcoming films, the festival also programs older films, most of them being restored versions by their physical media partner, like Arrow Video, showing a Shaw Brothers film every year. This year, it’s The Delinquent.
Co-directed by the studio’s leading directors Chang Cheh (5 Venoms) and Kuei Chih-Hung (The Boxer’s Omen), The Delinquent leaves ancient China for contemporary Hong Kong, where we follow a brawler caught up in organized crime.
Chang Cheh brings his affinity for the tragic hero to the film, while Kuei Chih-Hung brings his reflection on social injustices and his experimental direction. The two styles often clash, however, and the film has aged in certain aspects, notably its representation of female characters.
The action scenes, on the other hand, are great, especially the climax, which is violent, bloody, glorious, and memorable.
The Delinquent is screening at the Fantasia festival on July 18, 2026.
Technical sheet
Original title: The Delinquent Runtime: 106 minutes Year: 1973 Country: Hong Kong Directors: Chang Cheh and Kuei Chih-Hung Screenwriter: Ni Kuang Rating: 7/10
Break Free (Favorite)
Times are tough for the Mikami clan, known for their traditional, even retro, approach in the yakuza world. Their best tough guy, Kunio, an extremely brutal but noble man, and his colleagues are desperately looking for new sources of income when a young woman films an altercation between him and an arrogant passerby who deserves a few smacks. The ban on taking down civilians pushes him to intimidate the man with a surreal, but effective, dance that immediately ends up on TikTok.
The next day, his boss is furious at this public self-humiliation, but the number of views and positive comments give him an idea: make as much cash as possible thanks to the popularity that Kunio has involuntarily acquired on social networks. That’s how he enrolls in a school run by a former professional dancer whose combative and charming attitude does not leave him indifferent.
The yakuza figure has been highly romanticized in Japanese cinema. At the same time, they remain a real problem in the country and take a dim view of those who criticize them. Because of this, making a comedy about Yakuzas might seem strange, especially when the pitch is that one of them learns to dance.
The result? Break Free is my first little favorite of this Fantasia 2026. The film is very funny, playing with the contrast of the brutal and violent world of the Yakuzas. Several scenes gave me a genuine fit of laughter. The lead actor, Akito Fujii, brings a lot to the humor of the film, with his face and physique also playing on the film’s contrast.
He is also a very good dancer, whether in real life or in the film. The dance scenes are well choreographed, just like the fight scenes, which makes the film dynamic and makes us appreciate this dance.
Break Free is screening at the Fantasia festival on July 18, 2026.
Technical sheet
Original title: Odore! Yakuza Runtime: 104 minutes Year: 2026 Country: Japan Director: Yu Nakamoto Screenwriter: Yu Nakamoto Rating: 8/10
Cherry and Vírgin (Favorite)
Ami and Ryo have a lot in common. Both are around 30 years old, and both draw. Ami works as a commercial illustrator, and Ryo creates erotic manga, which is rather ironic, because they also have something else in common: intelligent but socially awkward, neither has ever had a sexual relationship. To try and remedy this situation, they make contact through an app.
Animation is for kids, adults get lost in it. Those who still hold this archaic thought should, first, give themselves a slap in the face and, second, see this film, the first big slap of this festival.
A magnificent romantic comedy that accurately depicts the realities of romantic relationships. And as a little touch of originality, the two protagonists are kinds of “incels”. But instead of denigrating them, we find them sympathetic, understanding their emotional troubles and hoping they snap out of their complacent preconceptions regarding the opposite sex.
But the film’s stroke of genius is the mix of animation styles, most of the characters being represented by the way they draw. A technique specific to director Masanao Kawajiri, which he had already experimented with in his short film A Japanese Boy Who Draws. The style not only allows the film to stand out, but also brings a real statement on how everyone perceives the world.
A funny, inventive, touching, and well-thought-out film. In short, a little gem.
Cherry and Vírgin is screening at the Fantasia festival on July 18, 2026.
Technical sheet
Original title: Cherry and Vírgin Runtime: 87 minutes Year: 2026 Country: Japan Director: Masanao Kawajiri Screenwriter: Misato Kaga Rating: 9/10
Translation by François Grondin with the help of Gemini.
