Tag: 2016 Sundance Film Festival
Lovesong | Review
Her Best Friend’s Wedding: Kim’s Poetic Exploration of Muted Desire
Indie auteur So Yong Kim continues in English with her fourth narrative feature, Lovesong, a...
The Lure | Review
They Could Go on Singing: Smoczynska’s Debut a Fairy Tale Grim
Polish director Agnieszka Smoczynska crafts a memorable directorial debut with The Lure, a 1980s...
Frank & Lola | Review
A Lover I Don’t Have to Love: Ross’ Debut Explores Troubled Romance
Notions of monogamy and ownership hover on the troubling periphery of Matthew Ross’...
2016 Sundance Film Fest Video: Nicolas Pesce’s The Eyes Of My Mother
Not only one of the more temptingly tasty items from the NEXT section but the entire 2016 Sundance slate, the B&W, economically compact title...
The Eyes of My Mother | Review
And Soon the Darkness: Pesce’s Debut a Superbly Stylized Nightmare
If Portugal were the portal to some Lynchian netherworld of dreams deferred, it would look...
Manchester by the Sea | Review
The Fire Last Time: Lonergan’s Austere Portrait of Razed Emotions in Chilly New England
Kenneth Lonergan musters yet another masterful portrait of pervasive trauma with...
Christine | Review
Mad as Hell: Campos Paints a Moving, Psychological Portrait of Sensational Subject
For his third and most psychologically complex feature to date, Antonio Campos presents...
Certain Women | Review
All I Desire: Reichardt’s Exceptional Triptych of Tenacious Women
Though she’s already touted as one of the most talented American contemporary directors, Kelly Reichardt accomplishes...
The Birth of a Nation | Review
Born Again: Parker Resuscitates Turner Narrative in Painful Labor of Love
An odd, continued legacy of unquestioned applause greets the reception of actor Nate Parker’s...
The Greasy Strangler | Review
Grease is the Word: Hosking’s Repellant Debut Revels in Grotesque
There’s a certain insane glee lurking within Jim Hosking’s directorial debut, The Greasy Strangler, a...
Spa Night | Review
Hot and Bothered: Ahn’s Debut a Knowing Character Study
As proof of the multitudinous, untold human stories happening at any given period within the sprawling...
Little Men | Review
Gentrified Agreement: Sachs’ Poignant Examination of a Childhood Friendship
For his sixth feature, Ira Sachs returns to Brooklyn with Little Men, a perceptive study of...
Interview: Anne Fontaine (The Innocents)
I sat down with Anne Fontaine shortly after her latest film, The Innocents (formerly “Agnus Dei”) premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. The increasingly...
Wiener-Dog | Review
Every Dachshund Has His Day: Solondz Provides Droll Despair
It’s been five years since we were last graced with Todd Solondz’s particular brand of muted...
The Fundamentals of Caring | Review
Careworn Crucibles: Burnett’s Clichés Prove Reading is Fundamental
Writer and producer Rob Burnett, who has a healthy television resume with contributions such as “Ed” and...
The Fits | Review
Get in Where You Fit In: Holmer’s Impressive Allegory of Assimilation
Although it may feel a bit too allegorical or stylistically esoteric for its own...
Viva | Review
Blame it on Fidel: Breathnach Circles the Boiler Plate with LGBT Coming-of-Age Flick
A Havana set coming-of-age tale concerning a young, gay hairdresser, Paddy Breathnach and...
Best of Fest: Sundance 2016’s Top 10 New Faces
Yesterday, Nicholas Bell and I issued our Top 10 New Voices, and now we launch into our New Faces. They range in age, amount of...
Mammal | 2016 Sundance Film Festival Review
The Many Things You Gave Me: Daly’s Icy, Perverse Sophomore Film
Unfit or disinterested mothers still seem to be taboo subjects, at least to center...
Kelly Reichardt’s Certain Women Leads Eric Lavallee’s 2016 Sundance Film Fest Top Ten
With a decent sized sampling of thirty-one features and several four star quality shorts viewed, my assessment of the '16 edition is as follows:...
Kelly Reichardt’s Certain Women Leads Nicholas Bell’s 2016 Sundance Film Fest Top Ten
Sundance 2016 has come to a close, once more showcasing a lack of differentiation based on what constitutes the Audience and the Grand Jury....
Unlocking The Cage | 2016 Sundance Film Festival Review
Breaking Through The Bars: Hegedus & Pennebaker Go Ape In Court With Animal Rights Activist Steven Wise
Having long ago been crowned the king and queen...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #11. Steven Caple Jr. (The Land)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Steven Caple Jr.: The story of Wendell Scott. 2) J.Cole's HBO documentary "Homecoming." 3) Eric...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #9. Bernardo Britto – Jacqueline Argentine
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Bernardo Britto: Jacques Demy’s Lola, Mexican singer Daniela Romo, Cool Cat Saves The Kids.
Lavallee: What...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #8. Camille Rutherford (Jacqueline Argentine)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
This year I discovered Extras, the series Ricky Gervais did after The Office. It's so...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #14. Brett Potter – Jacqueline (Argentine)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Brett Potter: Koji Shirashi - His documentary horror films are these sprawling, epic mysteries that...
Sand Storm | 2016 Sundance Film Festival Review
The Member of the Wedding: Zexer’s Debut Churns Empathy from Obscene Custom
We’ve seen an increasing tide of feminist perspective narratives detailing the despicable social...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #7. Tahir Jetter (How To Tell You’re A Douchebag)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Tahir Jetter: The Internet (band). Dough Doughnuts (a work of art). Ernie Barnes (Painter).
Lavallee: By...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #6. DeWanda Wise (How to Tell You’re a Douchebag)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
DeWanda Wise: #1. Justin Bieber (C'mon guys, Purpose is soooo good.). #2. Phuket, Thailand. Authentic...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #1. Charles Brice (How to Tell You’re a Douchebag)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”...
Charles Brice: Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp A Butterfly. Ta-Nehesi Coates' Between the World and Me. BoJack...
The Land of the Enlightened | 2016 Sundance Film Festival Review
Something Better Better Come: Afghan Kids Reign Supreme
In the opening sequence of The Land of the Enlightened following a radio broadcast from President Obama that announces...
Plaza de La Soledad | 2016 Sundance Film Festival Review
Waiting For Tonight: Goded Finds Friends in Circle of Sex Workers
Having spent the last 20 years visiting Mexico and the notoriously dangerous streets of the...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #15. Andre Hyland (The 4th)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Andre Hyland: 1. NORMAN GUNSTON, funny and weird Australian talk show host from the 70'-90s...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #10. Melody C. Roscher (Christine)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Melody C. Roscher: (1) The 2009 album “Zebra” by Karl Blau. (2) Tybee Island, Georgia. (3)...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #5. Craig Shilowich (Christine)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Craig Shilowich: That new Carly Rae Jepsen album (Emotion), Florida. Woolite (the product).
Lavallee: You've worn...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #12. Nick Case (Christine)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Nick Case: 1.) Recording Artists: They aren't brand new bands, but I listed to...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #3. Anna Rose Holmer (The Fits)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Anna Rose Holmer: Kiah Victoria. Choreographer Lin Hwai-min & Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan....
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #2. Royalty Hightower (The Fits)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Royalty Hightower: K.C. Undercover. Flying. I got to take my first airplane ride to Venice,...
2016 Sundance Trading Card Series: #4. Lisa Kjerulff (The Fits)
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2015 discoveries”.
Lisa Kjerulff: Dettifoss in Iceland. 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. Olivier Assayas' Clouds of Sils Maria.
Lavallee: On...
Belgica | 2016 Sundance Film Festival Review
Bar None: Van Groeningen Returns to Musical Inclinations for Vibrant Sibling Portrait
Belgian auteur Felix Van Groeningen, the front runner of the Belgian New Wave,...
2016 Sundance Film Festival: Eric Lavallee’s Top 5 Most Anticipated Films
Unlike some other media outlets who are blasphemously drawing up "most anticipated" Sundance lists that come across as a simple rehash of the entire feature film line-up,...
What’s Up Doc?: Park City Premieres From Pennebaker/ Hegedus, Herzog & Greene Help Bring In The New Year
Having started this doc tracking project back in the summer of 2014, its been incredibly fascinating to see the development of these films and...
Sundance ’16: Reichardt, Marston, Sachs, Solondz, Stillman & Lonergan Among Premieres
Sundance programmers have unveiled what is a jaw-dropping, savoury Premieres line-up. With names such as Asif Kapadia (Ali & Nino), Kelly Reichardt (Certain Women), Joshua...
Sundance ’16: Antonio Campos, So Yong Kim, Elizabeth Wood & The Daniels Among U.S. Dramatic Competition
In last year's selection of sixteen U.S. Dramatic Competition offerings, it was Alfonso Gomez-Rejon's Me & Earl & the Dying Girl that landed both...
Sundance ’16: Felix van Groeningen, Rebecca Daly & Ana Katz Load Up World Dramatic Comp
In last year's section which included Ariel Kleiman's Partisan and Anne Sewitsky's Homesick, it was John Maclean's debut Slow West claimed the World Cinema...
Sundance ’16: Jeff Feuerzeig, Robert Greene, Josh Fox & Clay Tweel Among U.S. Docu Comp Selections
Cartel Land and The Wolfpack were the big winners last year, and judging from the massive submissions that the fest received for the U.S....
Sundance ’16: Tim Sutton, Nicolas Pesce, Bernardo Britto, Matt Johnson & Anna Rose Holmer Break into NEXT section
We might look back to 2015's 10 film line-up as a true vintage year for the NEXT section. With the likes of Rick Alverson's...
