As the taxing last days of winter ebb away, taking all the unimaginative and absurd films with it, there is much to get excited about in the cinema once again. Summer movies near, as they now start in the spring, and the festival circuit starts to begin once again.

This week begins the Canadian Film Fest, a four day event featuring the best films from the land of ice and snow – and of course they’re not all about ice and snow.

The opening film, The Storm Within, is takes place amid a furious winter tempest, with ice and snow.

The French language film, also going by the title Rouge Sang, is a tension-filled intimate historic thriller. At the turn of the 19^th century – that’s 1799—a young mother awaits the return of her husband when a group of British soldiers decide to hole themselves up for the night at her place. So ensues a clever and Canadiana-infused entry into the female revenge genre.

For some relatively lighter fare, the quirky comedy Please Kill Mr. Know It All is fun, silly, and strangely satisfying. A young writer finds herself quickly losing control of her life when she attributes a random stranger’s face to her increasingly popular self help column. That man, however, is a hired assassin, and when he starts getting recognized, he seeks out the real Mr. Know It All – even though none exists. And in fitting fashion, the film opens with Colin Mochrie.

Somewhere in between those two is Mr. Viral, a sinister comedy filled with backstabbing, illicit sex, and manipulation. I’m sure Canada has more than just one attractive leading man, but Jefferson Brown plays the ruggedly handsome advertising operative Simon (Mr. Viral), and also plays the aforementioned assassin in Mr. Know It All – and he’s great in both!

It’s by far the most bizarre and mesmerizing movie you can see is the documentary Skull World.  Justin McConnell’s frenetic, unbelievable doc follows the life of Greg Sommer and his adopted alter ego, Skull Man. Donning a skull mask during his high school graduation before going on a tirade and storming out, Somer has embraced the bizarre. He had his own strange variety show of sorts, described as Sesame Street  gone mental. Skull Man is also credited with, if not inventing box wars, representing it and bringing it to greatness. More demented than Jackass, it’s both fascinating and scary, with the appeal of watching a train wreck.

Of course he works in a cemetery.

For showtimes and more information, please visit http://www.canfilmfest.ca/about.php