CIFF 2018 Review – Liverleaf (Capsule)

*NOTE: This review is going to be a CAPSULE review, which means it’ll be a tight, quick critique of the film as opposed to the more in-depth reviews I usually do.

Over the years of going to the Chicago International Film Festival, the After Dark program has been one of my favorite parts of the festival, as it showcases some of the wildest movies from around the world.  Filled with thrillers and horror films, the After Dark program has opened my eyes to a whole new world of these genres.  This year’s After Dark program is substantially smaller than most years, only highlighting four films as opposed to the usual eight or nine.

Liverleaf is one of the four movies in the 2018 After Dark program and it continues the trend of great midnight fare and the festival.  This is a bloody, delirious, stunning revenge flick.

Think of Liverleaf as a high school Kill Bill set in Japan.  Haruka (Anna Yamada) is constantly being bullied by a quadrant of girls at her school.  When she faces an unthinkable tragedy at the hands of the bullies, Haruka goes on a trail of revenge.

Liverleaf is a movie filled with constant twists and turns.  The plot seems like it is your run-of-the-mill revenge story, but it is far deeper than that.  There are multiple love stories, and themes of grief and forgiveness all coupled by some insane action sequences that would make Quentin Tarantino smile from ear to ear.  Creative, thrilling, and shot against a snowy landscape, these fight scenes are bloody and fun as hell.  The performances from the cast are uniformly great and movie is absolutely gorgeous to look at.

Liverleaf continues the Chicago International Film Festivals trend of great After Dark movies.  This gorgeous, bloody revenge flick is a wild ride and a blast to watch.

Continue to follow Kevflix’s coverage of the 54th Chicago International Film Festival on Twitter and Instagram, @kevflix, or on Facebook by searching Kevflix.