Maladie mortelle (1977)

Wacky antics ensue when a 100-year-old Jewish man wakes up from a pickled hibernation in the modern world.

At 2:17 a.m., every child in a third-grade class wakes up, leaves their home, and disappears into the darkness—except one. The next day, teacher Justine Gandy discovers that Alex Lily is the only student left, while the rest have vanished without a trace. Did Justine have something to do with it, or is a far more sinister force stalking the town, targeting not just children, but anyone in its path?

Writing great villains is about striking a balance between charming and evil, so we love them but also love to see them lose.

In Stowaway, director Joe Penna narrates the story of a starship crew (Anna Kendrick as Zoe Levenson; Toni Collette as Marina Barnett; and Daniel Dae Kim as David Kim) struggling with serious technical problems on a two-year mission to Mars. During the trip, they discover aboard the presence of Michael (Shamier Anderson), a stowaway who jeopardizes everyone’s life on board.

You can have the best filmmaker and cast in the world, but if the script is lacking, you’re in a troublesome state. Such is the case with Gemini Man, a film full of tremendous artists.

This short film was an overall creative success.