18/04/2017 - Chris Peckover’s comedy-horror won over the official jury, while Small Town Killers, awarded by the European Jury, will be battling it out for the Golden Méliès at the end of 2017

It is no secret that Asian genre film is on a roll. But just for a change, this year it was an Australian film that came out on top at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival, as the comedy-horror Safe Neighbourhood by Chris Peckover had the jury (chaired by Euzhan Palcy) eating out of the palm of its hand. Meanwhile, two films share the second step of the podium: The Mermaid (China), the new opus by the great Stephen Chow, and We Go On by duo of US directors Andy Milton and Jesse Holland. We should also point out that a Special Mention was given to Vanishing Time: A Boy Who Returned by Tae-Hwa Um, a Korean fantasy fable revolving around time and space. 

If we wish to find movies from the Continent in the winners’ list, we need to examine the decisions of the European Jury, which this year singled out Small Town Killers [+see also:
trailer
film profile], the new romp by Denmark’s Ole Bornedal, which follows the ill-fated adventures of two drifters who pay a Russian hitman to dispatch their cumbersome wives. But of course, not everything goes to plan… Having now won a Silver Méliès, the film will duke it out for the Golden Méliès for Best European Fantastic Film at the end of 2017. A Special Mention went to Hatem Khraiche’s Orbiter 9 [+see also:
trailer
film profile], a Spanish sci-fi film that’s literally lost in space.

For its part, the Thriller Jury chose to award the Argentinian-Spanish co-production At the End of the Tunnel [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Rodrigo Grande and handed its Mention to the British title Free Fire [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Ben Wheatley, which stars such names as Cillian Murphy and Brie Larson.

Lastly, the Audience Award was bestowed upon the first English-language film by Norwegian director André Ovredal (Troll Hunter [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Andre Øvredal
film profile]), The Autopsy of Jane Doe [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], a UK-US co-production starring Brian Cox and Emile Hirsch.

Here is the complete list of award winners:

Golden Raven
Safe Neighborhood – Chris Peckover (Australia)

Silver Raven (ex-aequo)
The Mermaid – Stephen Chow (China)
We Go On – Jesse Holland, Andy Mitton (USA)

Special Mention
Vanishing Time: A Boy Who Returned – Tae-hwa Um (South Korea)

Silver Méliès – Best European Film
Small Town Killers [+see also:
trailer
film profile] – Ole Bornedal (Denmark)
Special Mention
Orbiter 9 [+see also:
trailer
film profile] – Hatem Khraiche (Spain/Colombia)

Best Thriller Award
At the End of the Tunnel [+see also:
trailer
film profile] – Rodrigo Grande (Spain/Argentina)
Special Mention
Free Fire [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] – Ben Wheatley (UK)

7^th Parallel Award
Swiss Army Man – Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (USA)
Special Mention
Saving Sally – Avid Liongoren (Philippines)

Critics’ Award
The Tunnel – Seong-hun Kim (South Korea)

Audience Award
The Autopsy of Jane Doe [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] – Andre Ovredal (UK/USA)

(Translated from French)