New slasher by Slovenian horror king in cinemas
Ljubljana, 18 September - Tomaž Gorkič, the director of Slovenia's first feature-length horror film, the 2015 slasher Idyll, has returned to the genre that brought him acclaim. His latest film, which he describes as a "politically incorrect mix of horror and black comedy" will be on show at Kino Šiška tonight before it premieres in cinemas on Thursday.
Ljubljana
Director Tomaž Gorkič.
Photo: Nejc Saje
Prekletstvo Valburge (Curse of the Valburga) has the brothers Bojan and Marjan hoping to make some easy money from hordes of tourists in their home town by organising a tour of an abandoned local castle that is closed to the public.
They spice up the adventure with a local legend, oblivious to the existence of a powerful and much darker legend lurking in the abandoned building.
While Gorkič's latest venture is firmly rooted in the genre, it "does not neglect the present," the producers say.
"It boldly enters Slovenia's past and present where demons, Nazis, vampires, partisans, criminals, parvenus, sexists, snobs, cannibals, hicks, alcoholics, grubbers, junkies, obsessives and other members of society lurk."
The all-star cast includes acclaimed theatre actors Jurij Drevenšek and Marko Mandič, game show host and actor Jonas Žnidaršič, as well as the mother-and-daughter pairing of Tanja Ribič and Zala Djurić Ribić, Swedish black metal musician Niklas Kvarforth and frontman of Slovenian rock band Big Foot Mama, Grega Skočir.
Like Idyll, Curse of the Valburga is an independent production spearheaded by Gorkič, a self-taught film maker, but unlike Idyll, which won the main prize in 2019, it will not be screened at the ongoing Festival of Slovenian Film.
Gorkič withdrew the film from the festival after the programme commission decided - without explanation - not to enter it in the competition programme.