SYDNEY UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL 2019

The 2019 Sydney Underground Film Festival is on from Thursday 12th until Sunday 15th September at The Factory Theatre, Marrickville. 2019 marks the festival’s 13th edition. The festival programs unique, quality independent films that transgress the status quo and challenge the conservative conventions of filmmaking.

The festival is devoted to renewing local interest in independent and experimental film as part of an international underground film culture and aims to change an ingrained culture of cinematic complacency and revitalise an enthusiasm for cinema.

SWITCH has scoured the films showing at this year's SUFF and brought you the biggest and best offerings in the reviews below. Check back as the festival continues for fresh titles!

THE BEACH BUM

Mayhem with Matthew McConaughey

An incredibly enjoyable 95-minute exercise in escapism, love, and the unprecedented pleasures life can bring, with an incredibly charming performance from Matthew McConaughey.

MEMORY: THE ORIGINS OF ALIEN

Three Men and a Xenomorph

A comprehensive look at the three men who created 'Alien' and the influences which bled together into a masterpiece.

SWORD OF TRUST

Trust the cast, not the comedy

While it has a mix of untapped potential and a stretched plot, ‘Sword of Trust’ is still a fun indie movie.

THE ART OF SELF-DEFENSE

A satire as pitch-black as a karate belt

A truly funny, dark experience that will polarise audiences, hopefully leaving most of them satisfied. Just try not to think about it too much.

TONE-DEAF

A horror in its execution only

A pointless, dull, drawn-out attempt at horror. The only reason it’ll leave you screaming is out of boredom.

DREAMLAND

Surrealist noir

Equal parts violent, tragic, comic, silly and surreal, this is an extremely strange movie, and that strangeness will either endear it to you or alienate you.

BRAID

A dark and unhinged fairytale

Rooted in Polanski-like psycho horror and with an ending that is interpretively ambiguous, this film leaves something to be desired as a story.

FUCK YOU ALL: THE UWE BOLL STORY

A sympathetic portrait of the ultimate Hollywood outsider

Sean Patrick Shaul’s documentary on Boll's life and career explores his background, how he broke into the industry, and why he developed such a bad reputation amongst fans of films and video games.

LOCUSTS

A low-key, low-down thriller

It might be an imperfect movie with a few scenes that ring hollow, but the moments that work are fuller than many whole films.

GREENER GRASS

A deeply odd and very funny suburban nightmare

Distorting reality through a dreamlike lens, the filmmakers created a world of blunt allegories and social antagonisms, perverted by a unique style into a manic, nearly unclassifiable black comedy.

VIVARIUM

What makes a house a (horrific) home?

The film explores the perils of suburbia by satirising typical issues and offering up grotesque caricatures of real-life parenting discomforts.

COLOR OUT OF SPACE

A messy fusion of sci-fi, horror and comedy

Combining the unholy trio of Nicolas Cage, H.P. Lovecraft and Richard Stanley seems like insane brilliance on paper, which is why it's so disappointing that this film is a bit of a slog.