Festival Predictions

2021 Sundance Film Festival Predictions: David Lowery’s The Green Knight

Published on November 18, 2020

Due to have been released just after it’s launch at the SXSW film festival, A24 haven’t been fleeing their fate with The Green Knight but rather, teasing us (albeit, a fun long tease) until they figure out their game plan on this David Lowery project. I’m still pegging this swords and other kinds of swords project as a possible SXSW premiere, but perhaps this will be tossed in the awards race with an online launch at Sundance. Currently working on Peter Pan on the other side of the pound, Lowery had the likes of Dev Patel, Alicia Vikander, Joel Edgerton, Sarita Choudhury, Sean Harris, Kate Dickie and Barry Keoghan for his Ireland shoot back in April of 2019. Lowery has been to Sundance on many occasions – Pioneer, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints and A Ghost Story.

Gist: This tells the story of Sir Gawain (Dev Patel), King Arthur’s reckless and headstrong nephew, who embarks on a daring quest to confront the eponymous Green Knight, a gigantic emerald-skinned stranger and tester of men. Gawain contends with ghosts, giants, thieves, and schemers in what becomes a deeper journey to define his character and prove his worth in the eyes of his family and kingdom by facing the ultimate challenger.

Production Co./Producers: Sailor Bear’s James M. Johnston and Toby Halbrooks, Tim Headington, David Lowery, Theresa Steele Page.

Prediction: PREMIERES

U.S. Distributor: A24.

Eric Lavallée

Eric Lavallée is the founder, CEO, editor-in-chief, film journalist and critic at IONCINEMA.com (founded in 2000). Eric is a regular at Sundance, Cannes and TIFF. He has a BFA in Film Studies at the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema. In 2013 he served as a Narrative Competition Jury Member at the SXSW Film Festival. He was an associate producer on Mark Jackson's This Teacher (2018 LA Film Festival, 2018 BFI London). In 2022 he served as a New Flesh Comp for Best First Feature at the 2022 Fantasia Intl. Film Festival. Current top films for 2022 include Tár (Todd Field), All That Breathes (Shaunak Sen), Aftersun (Charlotte Wells).