From My Cold Dead Hands – Fantasia 2024
James Cameron Teaches Filmmaking
July 18 to August 4, 2024
Content Advisory: Real world violence and/or war
FILM FESTIVAL
Fantasia 2024
Fantasia Film Festival
PROGRAMME
Documentaries from the Edge
A light is shone on United States Gun Culture using footage from thousands of YouTube videos in From My Cold Dead Hands. Framed by a video listing the reasons for being a gun owner, Spanish documentarian Javier Horcajada Fontecha compiles a YouTube mash-up about gun-toting Americans. This includes the best places to keep a gun, preparing for the zombie apocalypse and a Disney princess musical parody.
From My Cold Dead Hands Synopsis
From My Cold Dead Hands is a video essay from director Javier Horcajada Fontecha, compiled from thousands of hours of YouTube footage. The title of the film is, of course, referencing the infamous speech made by then-NRA president Charlton Heston in the aftermath of the Columbine School Shooting, which is one of the many videos featured throughout this documentary. The videos include everything from preachers discussing how God is not a pacifist to gifting a young boy his first body armour.
My Thoughts on From My Cold Dead Hands
From My Cold Dead Hands is edited in such a way that the film is meant to be responded to in laughter and indeed there are some scenes, such as a woman dressed as Cinderella singing a gun-loving interpolation of “Part of Your World” while on a gun range, that are worthy of audience laughter. However, for the same reasons, From My Cold Dead Hands is also an extremely disturbing documentary that shows how ingrained gun culture is in the American identity. Let’s just say that thank goodness Canada has gun control laws.
Trailer for From My Cold Dead Hands – Fantasia 2024
