Bradford's 9th annual fantastic films weekend

If you can stand it, there is a whole weekend of shocks in store in Bradford this weekend.

The Ninth annual Fantastic Films weekend opens today at the National Media Museum with a day-long symposium on all aspects of horror movies. Later today there is a screening of Lizard in a Woman's Skin (6.30pm) and Hitchcock's classic Psycho (8.30pm).

A spokesman for the festival said: "This year more titles than ever before have been unearthed from the Museum's unique archive and are being presented in FFW for the first time, making Bradford the premier destination for those seeking the weird, the wonderful and the plain bizarre."

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Films screening over the weekend include an exclusive midnight screening of Birdemic: Shock and Terror, a double-bill of horror with 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later and a selection of titles from the museum's archive including The Giant Spider Invasion and Patrick.

Guests include exploitation king Stanley Long and writer/director Michael Armstrong, creator of the notorious Mark of the Devil. Stanley Long has worked with the likes of Roman Polanski on Repulsion and with Peter Cushing on The Blood Beast Terror. He co-directed Screamtime with Michael Armstrong. Both British horror features will be screened. Stanley will also be signing copies of his autobiography X-Rated: Adventures of an Exploitation Filmmaker.

Writer/director Michael Armstrong is best-known for his cult horror films and for providing David Bowie with his screen debut in the short film The Image. He will be discussing his career in the Museum's Cubby Broccoli Cinema on Saturday ahead of a screening of Mark of the Devil, a long-banned film in which a twisted witch hunter hands out God's will punishing an array of innocent women.

Other film highlights include Plague Town, a film about an American family in search of their roots in Ireland who instead discover a small village with a terrible truth from generations past; Videodrome starring James Woods and eXistenz starring Jude Law.

For festival passes, day passes or individual tickets visit www.nationalmediamuseum.org.uk/fantastic or call the NMeM box office on 0870 7010200. June 4-6.

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