Fittingly described as “if Frank Henenlotter and David Cronenberg remade Robocop”, Tie Man is a gore-soaked, psychedelic trip back to the golden age of delightfully trashy action B-movies you'd discover at the video stores that wormed their way into your heart for all eternity. Enjoying its international premiere at this year's Fantastic Fest, Rémi Fréchette's weird and wild feature leans fully into its ridiculous elements, providing a laugh-out-loud and wince-inducing thrill ride from start to finish, perfect for a rowdy festival crowd.

Tie Man's carnage centres on policewoman Marjolaine Coppola (Catherine Beauchemin), hellbent on finding her sister, who was kidnapped after their parents were murdered by a laughing man linked to Franz DeMann (Peter Seaborne), a businessman turned politician in their crooked hometown of Ridgway City. After being betrayed by her partner and shot in the face, Marjolaine is taken in by Tie Man (Jérémie Earp), who also finds himself disfigured and jaded as a result of the DeMann family's reign of terror. Together, they embark on a path of revenge-fuelled mayhem to expose the DeManns and bring down their empire once and for all.

Blending gore-soaked horror, gruesome science fiction, brooding film noir, and action-packed police procedurals, Tie Man is a smorgasbord of cinematic delights that shouldn't work in one package, but with Fréchette's maniacal delivery, comedic timing, and bizarre world packed full of oddballs, it delivers in droves. Audiences will be scratching their heads, on the edge of their seats, and laughing out loud within the same scene, and never able to predict what exactly is around the corner.

But that's not to say Tie Man barrels from one nonsensical spectacle to the next. It feels as relevant now as it would back in the heyday of B-movie action flicks, taking a swipe at the powerful elite businessmen buying their way into politics and the havoc and corruption it causes, all the while paying off media bodies to deliver biased reporting to suit their agenda. Between the laughter and guts, Tie Man explores the evils that corrode society and lead to the everyday person finally saying enough, and the power that holds to topple those on top.

Wearing its references on its sleeve while simultaneously, somehow, creating something you will have never seen before, Tie Man is a lovingly crafted homage to a wild and dangerous bygone era of cinema that tested boundaries of taste and lunacy. It's deliriously funny and bafflingly gripping at every turn, taking audiences on a carnage-filled journey for revenge they won't soon forget.

Tie Man had its international premiere at Fantastic Fest 2025 on 23 September