Festival Predictions

2019 Sundance Film Festival Predictions: #27. Josh Trank – Fonzo

Published on November 21, 2018

It’s time to say goodbye to the De Niro Capone touch from The Untouchables. A meatier, bulkier project that would certainly rev up Sundance audiences, Josh Trank might not have a history with Sundance as a filmmaker, but as an editor, he cut Robert Siegel’s Big Fan (2009). Fonzo was momentarily placed on the backburner until the film’s star Tom Hardy was done filming Venom. Production took place this past April with Linda Cardellini grabbing a more meaningful part than her recent turn in Green Book, Matt Dillon, Kyle MacLachlan, Kathrine Narducci joining the imprisoned mobster. Be fun to see stoogies passed out on Main Street.

Gist: The 47-year old Al Capone (Hardy), after 10 years in prison, starts suffering from dementia, and comes to be haunted by his violent past.

Production Co./Producers: Addictive Pictures’ Russell Ackerman and John Schoenfelder (Hold the Dark), Lawrence Bender Productions’ Lawrence Bender (Greta), Bron Studios‘ Aaron L. Gilbert (The Front Runner).

Prediction: Acquisitions friendly item for the Premieres section. TIFF in September could cement this as well.

U.S. Distributor: Rights Available. CAA and Endeavor Content (domestic). Bloom (international).

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).