Fantasia Festival 2020 Film Review: The Columnist

My coverage of Fantasia Festival 2020 continues with director Ivo Van Aart’s dark satirical comedy, The Columnist. The tale of a writer driven to murder by Internet trolls, the film is a timely modern-day parable about the power of words and one woman’s swath of bloody vengeance when she pierces the veil of online anonymity. In the titular role, Katja Herbers puts forth a wicked performance that is pure fun and catharsis, but The Columnist leaves a fair amount on the table, rarely venturing past the surface to get its kicks. Minor spoilers ahead…