THE GLORIOUS DEAD

Sheriff Deb is woken up by her deputy, Mikey, on her day off. Half the sheriff's office hasn't shown up for work, and the phone lines are down. Deb heads out to perform a welfare check on a local resident, only to find the house completely empty. As the day unfolds, strange things begin happening around town. The power is out, blood runs from some faucets, animals have disappeared, and more and more people are reported missing. Residents are growing uneasy after discovering rotten, flesh-like holes on their properties.

As the hours pass, things become increasingly bizarre. The dead come back to life, grotesque flesh-covered creatures begin roaming the town and feeding on people, and a heavy snowfall slowly engulfs the area.

While Deb tries to make sense of what's happening, the remaining townspeople become convinced that a virus is spreading. They cut off all access in and out of town and begin burning the dead who have come back to life. Alone against the growing panic, Deb starts to realize that this strange and terrifying day may be the beginning of the end.

It wouldn't be Fantastic Fest without our yearly dose of the Adams family. The most prolific family in genre filmmaking returns with their own take on the Rapture, setting the apocalypse not in a sprawling city but in a quiet small town, making it all the more unsettling. This isn't the end of the world you expect. It arrives quietly, spreads relentlessly, and before long has you by the throat.

Every film the Adams family directs and produces feels different, yet unmistakably their own. THE GLORIOUS DEAD may be modest in scale, but it's generous in heart. And it's always a pleasure to see an entire family come together, film after film and year after year, with the same passion and commitment. Every project is crafted with genuine care and love, and every film the Adams family brings into the world deserves to be seen. (ANNICK MAHNERT)

*Paired with the short THE KING OF THE FULL MOON NIGHT dir. Christian Silva

In the dead of night, a doctor is summoned to treat an incredibly discreet patient suffering from a very hairy affliction... in Memphis, 1971.