Short version: Towelhead manages to balance humor and drama in this cautionary tale of a 13 year old girl’s burgeoning sexuality.

Like many films shown at Sundance this year, Towelhead combined different styles (humor and drama), but does it more successfully than most. It’s the story of a thirteen year old girl who is half Lebanese / half WASP whose physical development is quite ahead of her age. Towelhead (aka Nothing is Private) was written, directed and produced by Alan Ball, the same fellow who wrote the screenplay for the similarly themed American Beauty a few years ago.

Expectedly, due to the content of this film, it has only been picked up for limited distribution at theaters but it’s definitely worth seeing if you can handle the subject matter.

Short version: Were it not for the Dakota Fanning rape scene controversy, no one would be talking about this boring film.

So you’ve heard all the talk, accusations and screaming about the film Hounddog (or as many spelling-impaired people are writing it: Houndog) screening at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival starring Dakota Fanning but haven’t seen the film. The big question on people’s mind is “Just how outrageous or explicit was that rape scene?”

So you can gauge my answer, keep in mind that although this is a movie & TV website, for the most part I’ve come at stories from the point of view of a parent when it’s appropriate. I do not want every movie release to be Rated G, but on the other hand it drives me insane when bloodless yet intense violence or overt sexuality is aimed at kids.

By Vic Holtreman

Short version: Jack Black is awesome in this movie that starts out hysterically funny but veers off into sentimentality.

Two things could have made Be Kind Rewind better:

1. If it actually had been made on a shoestring budget by a couple of buddies.

2. If it had stuck with the premise of being a comedy all the way through to the end.

Aside from those points, it was still a great film.

Jack Black stars as Jerry, a uneducated slacker with big dreams who lives in a trailer. He’s pals with Mike (played by Mos Def), a low-key guy without any big aspirations who works at one of the last few VHS video rental stores left in New Jersey.

By Vic Holtreman

Short version: Funny, scary, gory and unpredictable, this is sure to become a cult classic with a strong following.

The Signal was one of my favorite films from those I had the opportunity to watch and review at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. As a longtime horror movie fan (much more of older stuff than what’s come out recently), it was great on many levels and fortunately you’ll be getting the opportunity to see it soon as it was picked up for theatrical distribution.

There was a short film before the main feature called Little Farm which was shot in only 48 hours. Given that constraint it wasn’t bad, except for the fact the two of the three main characters gave pretty close to the worst performances I’ve ever seen on screen. Aside from that, although it was pretty strange, in the end it delivered some pretty good scares. I actually had a woman sitting next to me ask if that was the main feature.

On to the main event…

Today was only the second day I made it up to Park City for Sundance and I had planned on doing a summary post of the day. Without a doubt the biggest news of the day was learning that Heath Ledger was dead.

That news utterly and completely swept the news of the Oscar nominees away. Everywhere I turned people were talking about Heath’s death – most in shock and talking about what a tragedy it was. Some of the more pragmatic ones wondering how this would affect the release and marketing strategy for The Dark Knight, Heath’s final completed film in which he has been getting rave reviews over his scenes as the Joker.

By Vic Holtreman

Short version: A bleak and starkly shot film that left me feeling like I needed a shower after watching it.

Downloading Nancy premiered here at Sundance 2008 and is the story of Nancy (played by Maria Bello), a severely emotionally damaged woman married to and emotionally cold man (Rufus Sewell as Albert) who turns to the internet for companionship.

The film opens with Nancy discussing her thoughts on what happens after you die with another woman. At this point it sounds like she is optimistic about the afterlife while her friend is very negative and keeps bringing up counterpoints to make it sound like she could be somehow trapped in some way after death. As it turns out, the friend turns out to be a therapist who is trying to convince Nancy that death is not an escape or freedom.

I drove up to Park City yesterday and ran into a few movie blogger friends of mine: Alex from FirstShowing.net, Peter from /Film and Neil from Film School Rejects (yes, that’s really the name of his site).

I hung out with them while they got settled in at their condo, then we went out for a bite to eat where I dropped $24 on a cheeseburger and a Guiness. Yeesh! After that we attended the premiere of In Bruges, which I’ve reviewed. It’s a hard movie to describe, so if you’re interested just read the review. I don’t think it’s going to do very well at the box office but that’s not because it’s necessarily a bad movie… it’s just kind of odd.

By Vic Holtreman

Short version: While the individual parts of the movie satisfy, In Bruges doesn’t really come together as a whole.

Back in November I posted the trailer to In Bruges and commented that it looked like a movie that would not be a hit with mainstream audiences but those that like indie movies would probably love it. Well I just watched it and I’m more certain than ever that my first reaction will turn out to be accurate.

Right from the opening frame of the movie it seems that the director is intent on keeping the audience off-balance. The camera pans across various landmarks and streets in the beautiful town of Bruges, Belgium with music that sounds like it comes from some French romance movie. But as this is happening, we get quick cuts to the two main characters, Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson) making funny comments profusely laced with the F-bomb.

It wasn’t the F-word or the humor that struck me as odd, heck, I thought Superbad was really funny – it was the incongruity of the scenery and music against what the actors were saying and doing. On a side note, if profanity in films bothers you, this is SO not the movie for you…

The 2008 Sundance Film Festival begins this week and I’ll be doing my best to cover it with my time-limited schedule. I thought I’d start coverage with a report on the movies that seem to be the ones getting the biggest pre-opening buzz.

These are some of the movies that are getting the most attention and are most likely to to be talked about quite a bit in the next couple of weeks on movie sites:

Sleep Dealer
This is one of the few sci-fi films showing this year. It is set in a near future in which there is an underground class of “node workers” who plug their nervous systems into a global computer network that commodifies memory. A private company has hijacked control of a local water supply and is selling it back to the village at outrageous prices, provoking the mobilization of aqua-terrorist cells. The main character lives in the village but doesn’t care about this – he dreams of becoming a node worker and learns how to build his own transmitter, which he uses to hack into the lives of others and live vicariously. One night, he stumbles across a transmission destined to pave the way to the city of the future, but in a way he never could never have expected.

Here’s the lineup of movies to be shown at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. It includes both documentaries and dramas both domestic and international.

I’ll be taking a look at the offerings in a future post to see what stands out or might be interesting and worthwhile since there are 121 movies listed here.

DRAMATIC COMPETITION

AMERICAN SON (Director: Neil Abramson; Screenwriter: Eric Schmid) — Before being deployed
for active duty, a young Marine takes a four-day Thanksgiving leave to return home to Bakersfield,
California. There he meets a young woman, tries to connect with old friends, and confronts his
volatile home life. Cast: Nick Cannon, Melonie Diaz, Matt O’Leary, Jay Hernandez, Tom Sizemore,
Chi McBride. World Premiere

ANYWHERE, U.S.A. (Director: Anthony (Chusy) Haney-Jardine; Screenwriters: Anthony (Chusy)
Haney-Jardine, Jennifer Macdonald) — Told in three segments ranging from satirical to tragic, the
film is a wildly original look at American manners, prejudices, and family dynamics. Cast: Perla
Haney-Jardine. World Premiere

BALLAST (Director and Screenwriter: Lance Hammer) — A riveting, lyrical portrait of an
emotionally frayed family whose lives are torn asunder by a tragic act in a small Mississippi Delta
town. Cast: Michael J. Smith Sr., Jim Myron Ross, Tarra Riggs, Johnny McPhail. World Premiere

CHOKE (Director and Screenwriter: Clark Gregg)— An adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk’s (Fight
Club) novel, CHOKE is the sardonic story about mother and son relationship, fear of aging, sexual
addiction, and the dark side of historical theme parks. Cast: Sam Rockwell, Anjelica Huston, Kelly
MacDonald, Brad Henke. World Premiere

This past weekend I saw the trailer for In Bruges with No Country for Old Men. It looked very funny and I suppose you’d have to categorize it under Quirky Black Comedy. The film will open the Sundance Film Festival a little over a month from now, so I found it odd to see a trailer for it at a movie theater. Generally trailers are only shown for movies that are “coming soon to a theater near you” but after some checking I see that this has already been picked up by Focus Features for at least a limited release in February ‘08.

I don’t think this will be a big hit with mainstream audiences, but it looks like one of those little indie flicks that might end up being considered an undiscovered gem.

It’s officially over.

This was my first year attending the Sundance Film Festival, and it won’t be my last.

Sundance was a pretty cool experience… there’s nothing quite like being a movie lover and spending time in a town full of other fans of film. One of the best things about attending screenings at the Festival is the fact that everyone who is in the audience is there to see the movie. Through eight different films I didn’t hear a single cell phone ring, did not see a single child under the age of 10 watching a film with adult content and did not have to listen to anyone’s conversation during a showing even ONCE.

Man, that was AWESOME. If I could get the same experience at my local multiplex theater I would go see at least 5X the number of movies at the theater than I do currently.

By Vic Holtreman

Short version: A fascinating look at the world of modern art (seriously!) and the questions of whether a four year old’s paintings can compete and whether those paintings were genuine.

My Kid Could Paint That was the last film I saw at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, and is a fascinating look at the story of four year old Marla Olmstead, who a couple of years ago took the art world by storm by rocketing from lower middle class obscurity to international fame through the sale of her paintings. This documentary by director Amir Bar-Lev is extremely well done and is about as close to neutral as I think one could get.

By Vic Holtreman

Short version: An interesting idea poorly executed.

In order to make it to the showing of Weapons at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival I had to leave the post-movie Q&A for Black Snake Moan early. The only reason I’m not totally annoyed with myself for doing that is that the short film preceding the main feature, A Nick in Time by Be’ Garrett was outstanding.

When I read the description for director/screenwriter Adam Bhala Lough’s Weapons, I had a feeling it might not be up my alley but I figured I’d give it a shot anyway. In the end I should have passed on it, and many people I spoke to after the showing had the same, if not stronger opinions to the negative as well. It’s never a good sign when people start leaving in droves before the Director Q&A session…

By Vic Holtreman

Short version: Funny, gripping, violent, and erotic, this movie from the creator of “Hustle and Flow” stands out from the crowd big time.

Up until now I haven’t seen director Craig Brewer’s hit movie Hustle & Flow, but I’m going to make it a point to see it now. If it has any of the power and style of Black Snake Moan, I’m in for a treat.

Black Snake Moan was a hot ticket at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, and little did I know that I was attending the premiere of the film at that particular showing. It was through sheer luck that I got in, trading my ticket for the very wierd horror-comedy Teeth for the opportunity to see this film. That was a good call. My bad call was to leave while the director and cast were still on stage to see the absolutely dreadful Weapons, which I’ll be reviewing here as well.

The film stars the awesome Samuel L. Jackson and (in this movie, anyway) sexual heat personified in the person of Christina Ricci. The film opens with a bang (if you’ll pardon the pun) showing a sex scene between Rae (Ricci) and Ronnie (Justin Timberlake) which is, for lack of a better word – intense. Let me just say now, that between the sex, violence and drug use in this movie, PLEASE for the love of Pete do NOT bring little ones to see this when it’s released this February!!!

By Vic Holtreman

Short version: Well crafted, excellent performances, but not exactly entertaining.

For me, this is one of those rough reviews to write… where I really have to think about what my criteria is for deciding whether a movie is “great”, “good”, or “bad”. I’ll admit my reviews can be subjective – I don’t just rate films based on technical quality, but on how they make me feel. They don’t have to be “entertaining” (see my 5 star review of Enemies of Happiness as an example), but I like some sort of sense of positive “take-away” or satisfaction when I’m done.

Technically, is The Good Life a great film? Based on the script and the performances I would have to say yes. Overall, for the average viewer, is it great? I’d have to say no. At most I would call it a good movie.

By Vic Holtreman

Short version: A powerful documentary about a young woman who risks her life for human rights in Afghanistan and gives insight into what daily life is like there.

Regardless of which side you are on in regards to the current war, you will be entranced by Enemies of Happiness. It is an important film which humanizes the people of Afghanistan by showing the daily struggles of everday people and how the lingering ways of the previous regime still hover over their lives.

The films opens at a government meeting in 2003, where Malalai Joya, then a 25 year old woman and outspoken critic of the Taliban (which marks her as incredibly brave right from the start) is given the opportunity to speak to the hundreds of people present. She criticisizes the government for still allowing tribal warlords to be in power and function as part of the government, pointing out the atrocities that they have committed, particularly against women, over many years. Although we are shown some nods of agreement with her statement in the audience, the official presiding over the meeting has her thrown out and banned permanently from any future meeting of this type.

By Vic Holtreman

Short version: Just a really fun (and gory) movie about how zombies might fit into the (supposedly) idyllic 1950’s lifestyle.

This is the first movie I had the pleasure of viewing at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. It was preceded by the insane short film Goodbye Mr. Snuggles by Jonathan Hopkins, about a shootout between an insane clown and an elderly and refined British gentleman out in the countryside. It was a great warm up for the feature: Fido.

We learn the premise of the film in a 1950’s style black and white educational movie, the sort of which most of you reading this have only seen as a parody, but I actually watched as a kid. It describes a mysterious “radiation cloud” that came from outer space and re-animated corpses. Shortly thereafter came “the great zombie war”, and the rise of a huge corporation called ZomCon which at first took over protection of populated areas, but then introduced a method of domesticating zombies. This was done by means of an electronic collar which eliminated the zombies’ desire for human flesh, and rendered them quite docile. They’re used to mow lawns, pack groceries, deliver newspapers and most any other mundane job you can think of.

I managed to score a ticket package to the Sundance Film Festival this year, so I’ll be reviewing a handful of films from the 2007 film-fest. It should be pretty interesting… I’ve never been to Park City for this event and I’m sure I’ll be wandering around pretty cluelessly.

There are a fair number of films that I just couldn’t bring myself to purchase tickets for, because I knew they would just really torque me off. Not just due to the content, but due to their selection for this venue, without other films to counterbalance the themes. For example, a documentary about what happened in Abu Ghraib: How about a documentary that includes footage of terrorists literally sawing the heads off of civilians? Then of course there is the required “global warming” documentary (anyone read Michael Crichton’s excellent and extrememly well documented “State of Fear”?). And of course there has to be at least one anti-Christian, pro-Gay documentary.

Oh, and don’t forget the one about the guy who died while having sex with a horse.

But I digress…

Here are the films I’ll be reviewing: