NEGATIVE SPACE

Whit Stillmans "Love & Friendship" © Protagonist Pictures

Absteigend aufgelistet sind hier die Sundance-Filme 2016, die mich persönlich am meisten interessieren. Die eigene Vorfreude wie auch das Kritiker-Feedback vor Ort sorgen für die Abstufungen, die ich mit Sternen von fünf bis drei kenntlich mache. Der Ticker wird täglich upgedatet:

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Most-Wanted 2016:

* The Greasy Strangler (Jim Hosking)
* Manchester by the Sea (Kenneth Lonergan)
* The Lure (Agnieszka Smoczynska)
* Wild (Nicolette Krebitz)
* Tickled (David Farrier & Dylan Reeve)
* Love & Friendship (Whit Stillman)

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★★★★

"The Greasy Strangler" (Jim Hosking): "GREASY STRANGLER is the weirdo midnighter we needed. MAJOR props to star Elizabeth De Razzo for sheer unadulterated ballsiness." (Jen Yamato, The Daily Beast) "GREASY STRANGLER is some real deal dare the audience shit." (Sam Zimmerman, Fangoria) "THE GREASY STRANGLER: Vile in every way, periodically disgustingly funny. Dares any audience to watch until the end." (Russ Fischer, L.A. Times) "THE GREASY STRANGLER is the most 'midnight movie' since John Waters' DESPERATE LIVING. I am in awe." (Jordan Hoffman, Guardian) "It's a mind fuck full of potato chips, nudity and GREASE." (Leigh Blickley, Huffington Post) "The Greasy Strangler is an absurdist comedy-horror mashup that delves to Dadaist levels, never lets up & overstays it's welcome on purpose." (Jeff Goldsmith, The Q & A) "THE GREASY STRANGLER just happened to me." (Drew McWeeny, HitFix)

[Produzenten sind unter anderen der "Kill List"-Regisseur Ben Wheatley und der Alamo Drafthouse-Chef Tim League, der mit seinem Drafthouse Films-Verleih "Four Lions" und "Tore tanzt" in die US-Kinos gebracht hat.]

"Manchester by the Sea" (Kenneth Lonergan): "It's fantastic, and also like having your heart slowly cut out." (Alison Willmore, BuzzFeed) "It will be a Best Picture nominee 12 months hence -- guaranteed. Casey Affleck will be Best Actor nominated -- locked." (Jeffrey Wells, HE) "It's an immense, funny & beautifully realized portrait of grief & giving in to it. Made me like a Bruins fan." (David Ehrlich, Rolling Stone) "Oh, MANCHESTER BY THE SEA. All they say. Heartbreakingly fine tale of a lost soul in coastal Mass. Casey Affleck never better." (Ty Burr, Boston Globe) "MANCHESTER BY THE SEA is the ugly cry masterpiece of Sundance." (Drew McWeeny, HitFix)

[Beim Rechtekauf stach Amazon mit seinem 10 Millionen-Angebot prestigeträchtige Studioarme wie Sony Pictures Classics, Fox Searchlight und Lionsgate aus.]

"Tickled" (David Farrier & Dylan Reeve): "Starts as doc on competitive tickling, goes to some fascinating and dark places. Wanted more oomph from ending, but: fun!" (Alison Willmore, BuzzFeed) "It turns into a surprisingly tense and increasingly weird detective story about the shadowy, threatening, abusive figure." (Lee Marshall, SD)

"Love & Friendship" (Whit Stillman): "A supremely elegant and delicately filigreed adaptation of Jane Austen’s epistolary novella Lady Susan." (Justin Chang, Variety) "Whit Stillman returns – and on absolute peak form – with this drastically delightful Jane Austen adaptation." (David Jenkins, Little White Lies) "Whit Stillman and Jane Austen make a most agreeable marriage. Kate Beckinsale is wonderfully diabolical." (David Ehrlich, Rolling Stone)

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★★★½

"The Lure" (Agnieszka Smoczynska): "A gorgeously shot Polish goth musical about homicidal teen mermaids hired to sing at a nightclub. obviously essential." (David Ehrlich, Rolling Stone) "It was a barmy, Eurovision-esque fever dream, but sublime staging and catchy tunes couldn't save its narrative muddle." (Total Film) "It's the neon Polish killer mermaid musical of my dreams. A stunning fairytale." (Sam Zimmerman, Fangoria)

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★★★

"Wiener-Dog" (Todd Solondz): "Buñuel by way of AU HASARD BALTHASAR, WIENER-DOG is probably Todd Solondz's angriest movie, and certain to be his most divisive." (Eric Kohn, indieWIRE) "Todd Solondz's WIENER-DOG melted me. An All-American companion to PIGEON SAT ON A BRANCH." (Matt Patches, Esquire) "The more I think about Todd Solondz's WIENER-DOG, the more I like it. And I'm thinking about it a lot." (Guy Lodge, Variety)

"Swiss Army Man" (Dan Kwan & Daniel Scheinert): "SWISS ARMY is the sweded REVENANT with more to say about mortality and 1,000 fart jokes. Bonkers." (Matt Patches, Esquire) "Yeah, no idea what to make of this fable about depression, magical realist corpses, and flatulence." (Alison Willmore, Buzzfeed) "I've never seen anything like SWISS ARMY MAN. Example: Paul Dano riding a dead, farting Daniel Radcliffe like a motor boat." (Adam B. Vary, BuzzFeed)

"The Birth of a Nation" (Nate Parker): 17,5 Millionen Dollar bezahlte Fox Searchlight für die Nordamerika-Rechte des als schwarzen "Braveheart" titulierten Sklavendramas. Das ist gerade auch dank der #OscarsSoWhite-Kampagne ein neuer Sundance-Rekord, nahezu 100 Jahre nach der Weltpremiere des gleichnamigen, rassistischen Stummfilmklassikers von D. W. Griffith.

"Dark Night" (Tim Sutton): "If there is a more heartbreakingly tender, dread-inducing, cinematically expressive film in Sundance than Tim Sutton’s DARK NIGHT, I’ll be surprised." (Amy Taubin, Film Comment)

"Under the Shadow" (Babak Anvari): "UNDER THE SHADOW is the first great horror movie of the year." (Eric Kohn, indieWIRE) "UNDER THE SHADOW is so good. Wish it was eligible for jury awards." (Gregory Ellwood, HitFix) "Shrieks all over the theater for UNDER THE SHADOW, an awesome mother-daughter spook story set in '80s Tehran during Saddam's missile strikes." (Amy Nicholson, MTV) "Creepy, creepy mix of the (maybe) supernatural with wartime dread, maternal anxiety. Setting specific and key." (Alison Willmore, BuzzFeed) "UNDER THE SHADOW is this year's THE BABADOOK." (Peter Sciretta, Slashfilm)

[Ich bin wirklich kein Fan dieser aktuellen Meta-Horror-Welle, wo Subtext gleich Plot ist. Gerade "The Babadook" ist da eher ein Reizwort als eine Empfehlung.]

Links: - 2015, - 2014, - 2013, - 2012, - 2011

Jared Hess' Neuer "Don Verdean" (Rockwell, Clement) © Lionsgate

Absteigend aufgelistet sind hier die Sundance-Filme 2015, die mich persönlich am meisten interessieren. Die eigene Vorfreude wie auch das Kritiker-Feedback vor Ort sorgen für die Abstufungen, die ich mit Sternen von fünf bis drei kenntlich mache. Der Ticker wird mehrmals täglich upgedatet:

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Most-Wanted 2015:

01. The Diary of a Teenage Girl - Marielle Heller
02. Mississippi Grind - Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck
03. Hot Girls Wanted - Jill Bauer & Ronna Gradus
04. Dope - Rick Famuyiwa
05. The Witch - Robert Eggers
06. Mistress America - Noah Baumbach
07. The Nightmare - Rodney Ascher

Kommentar: Für Sundance ist das eine sehr bescheidene Ausbeute. Irritierend auch, wie wenige Sundance-Filme auf der Berlinale gezeigt werden. Ob da ein Zusammenhang besteht? Zumal ja zum Beispiel noch die letzten Filme von Noah Baumbach und Andrew Bujalski mit Kusshand genommen wurden ...
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★★★★

"The Diary of a Teenage Girl" (Marielle Heller): "Frank, daring, funny chronicle of '70s San Francisco coming of age. Star Bel Powley sure to be a Sundance breakout." (Alison Willmore, BuzzFeed) "A fine adaptation of Phoebe Gloeckner's autobiographical novel." (Dennis Harvey, Variety) "A strikingly intimate look at a teenager's sexual life in an outstanding debut film." (Todd McCarthy, THR) "It's another Sundancefest gem + that rare American movie that doesn't punish its protagonist for her sexual curiosity." (Scott Foundas, Variety) "Lovely, honest look at teen sexuality. Won't be enjoyed by young people thanks to inevitable R rating." (Matt Patches, Grantland) "Like a Fox Searchlight remake of NYMPHOMANIAC PT 1. Sensitive, genuine & deeply mediocre. Valuable for kids." (David Ehrlich, TimeOut)

"Mississippi Grind" (Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck): "Ben Mendelsohn and Ryan Reynolds give terrific performances as gambling buddies in this bittersweet, beautifully textured road movie." (Justin Chang, Variety) "Ryan Reynolds’ performance as a charming gambler in MISSISSIPPI GRIND is his best ever. This is also the best film he’s ever starred in." (Jeffrey Wells, HE) "A rambling, Southern-tinged CALIFORNIA SPLIT update that's a great time until its half-dozen endings." (Alison Willmore, BuzzFeed) "Inspired by 1970s Hollywood films such as FIVE EASY PIECES and THE LAST DETAIL." (Anthony Kaufman, Screen Daily) "A good bet for lovers of unhurried, character-driven contemplation." (David Rooney, THR) "Everyone’s favourite under-the-radar Aussie pays back the praise with a blistering turn as a gambler in this winning spin on Robert Altman’s CALIFORNIA SPLIT." (Jordan Hoffman, Guardian) "A rambling, gambling, pleasing throwback to 70's road films, with good Ryan Reynolds and a great Ben Mendelsohn." (Ty Burr, Boston Globe)

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★★★½

"Hot Girls Wanted" (Jill Bauer & Ronna Gradus): "If everyone who watches porn saw HOT GIRLS WANTED, sad, empathetic doc about the amateur industry, it'd be the biggest movie of the decade. But no one wants the reality when the fantasy sells so well. All the more reason then. Hope it gets seen." (Ty Burr, Boston Globe) "A cinéma vérité look at the disturbing, exploitative world of amateur porn and the young women it preys on." (Kenneth Turan, L.A. Times)

"Dope" (Rick Famuyiwa): "An Inglewood mixtape of RISKY BUSINESS, noir tropes, Tarantino verve & ‘90s hip-hop culture. electric but often misjudged." (David Ehrlich, TimeOut) "Sat down for DOPE expecting great '90s haircuts and a few good jokes. Left totally charmed. Audiences are going to love it." (Amy Nicholson, L.A. Weekly) " Armed with snappy dialogue, dynamic camera­work and breakout star Shameik Moore, this is a crowd-pleaser from start to finish." (Boyd van Hoeij, THR)

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★★★

"The Witch" (Robert Eggers): "A jaw-droppingly bold gift from God, THE WITCH is a major horror event on par with recent festival sensations like KILL LIST and THE BABADOOK. (David Ehrlich, TimeOut) "Malick’s THE NEW WORLD meets THE EXORCIST is as fine an elevator pitch as any." (Jordan Hoffman, Guardian) "Ye Olde CABIN IN THE WOODS. You'd think witchcraft & Satanism would always be this chilling, bleak & weird. Refreshing!" (Matt Patches, FITWR) "THE WITCH is like THE CRUCIBLE meets KILL LIST. A very impressive debut." (Eric Kohn, indieWIRE) "Most important influences on Eggers here were Kubrick's THE SHINING and Bergman's CRIES AND WHISPERS." (Todd McCarthy, THR) "An impressive feature debut with this gripping historical horror-thriller." (Justin Chang, Variety) "Often stunning, flame-licked film." (Samuel Zimmerman, STYD) "This is the breakout horror movie of Sundance. You must see it!" (Devin Faraci, Badass Digest)

"Mistress America" (Noah Baumbach): "Like FRANCES HA on adderall, Baumbach goes the full Sturges for his lightest, funniest & most winning film." (David Ehrlich, TimeOut) "Fastest spoken dialogue in an American film since Howard Hawks’s HIS GIRL FRIDAY, or else since Peter Bogdanovich’s THEY ALL LAUGHED." (Todd McCarthy, THR) "Felt labored to me for a long time, but takes off once it commits wholeheartedly to a screwball vibe. [57]" (Mike D'Angelo, TimeOut) "Lots to like, but it's such a concentrated dose of rapidfire clever Baumbach lines it becomes a little distancing." (Alison Willmore, BuzzFeed) "It's a CLUELESS for relentless millennial ambition. A hysterical, wild companion to FRANCES HA." (Matt Patches, FitWR)

"The Nightmare" (Rodney Ascher): "It manages to be terrifying and inquisitive at the same time. Like ROOM 237, a true original." (Eric Kohn, indieWIRE) "I'm now going to eat 3 lbs of espresso beans, because after THE NIGHTMARE I'm never sleeping again." (Jordan Hoffman, Guardian) "THE NIGHTMARE is both creepy fun and oddly comforting." (Sam Zimmerman, Fangoria) "sleep paralysis doc is a logical next step for Ascher, but silly/scary/sleep-ruining fun is all there is to it." (David Ehrlich, TimeOut) "I have sleep paralysis, but it's way less dramatic than what these folks describe. Fascinating, repetitive." (Mike D'Angelo, TimeOut)

Die 80er-Jahre sind die neuen 70er (Maika Monroe in "The Guest")

Da lacht doch das Herz des Genrefans angesichts eines solchen Überangebots an interessanten Horrofilmen in den ersten Tagen des Sundance-Festivals 2014. Genrefestival-Chefs und DVD-Anbieter reiben sich schon die Hände. Dazu gibt es gleich in mehreren Werken die so schmackhafte wie trendige 1980er-Nostalgie serviert. Wie singt doch so passend die schweizerische Künstlerin Sophie Hunger: Cannon und Amblin sind das neue New Hollywood ... na dann, Bon appétit!


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Most-Wanted 2014:

01. The Guest - Adam Wingard
02. Boyhood - Richard Linklater
03. A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night - Ana Lily Amirpour
04. What We Do in the Shadows - Jemaine Clement & Taika Waititi
05. Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter - David Zellner
06. Cold in July - Jim Mickle
07. The Babadook - Jennifer Kent
08. Life After Beth - Jeff Baena
09. Obvious Child - Gillian Robespierre
10. Cooties - Jonathan Milott & Cary Murnion
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★★★★★

"The Guest" (Adam Wingard): "THE GUEST was not what I expected at all. Slyly funny, great cast and a batshit crazy third act straight out of Cannon's heyday. My only complaint about it is that there wasn't enough." (Eric Vespe, Aintitcool) "It's like every '80s movie ever." (Matt Patches, FitWR) "If John Carpenter directed THE TERMINATOR in 1987 for Cannon Films, it would be THE GUEST." (Drew McWeeny, Hitfix) "THE GUEST is a magical blend of half remembered 80s video rentals, a fever dream of neon, synths, automatic weapons, and super soldiers." (Evan L. Katz, director of CHEAP THRILLS) "A willfully over-the-top, giddily violent exercise landing between slasher horror and ’70s crazy-Vietnam-vet-returns action-thrillers." (Dennis Harvey, Variety) "Really enjoyed THE GUEST. Adam Wingard grows with each film in big ways." (Devin Faraci, Badass Digest) "THE GUEST is big, bad, bold action filmmaking from YOU'RE NEXT duo Adam Wingard & Simon Barrett. Atmospherically explosive." (Matt Patches, FitWR)

★★★★½

"Boyhood" (Richard Linklater): "The title feels insufficient. How we build and rebuild lives, personalities, families, homes. Vast and yet beguilingly small." (Guy Lodge, InContention) "2 years in the making, a quiet, sweeping epic of normal (waking) life. Feels like Before Before Sunrise." (Ty Burr, Boston Globe) "Softly unique, at its best feels totally effortless. Like a synthesis of several of Linklater's most personal films." (Russ Fisher, Slashfilm) "Richard Linklater's remarkable BOYHOOD is immersed in the mundane but interested in the sublime." (Steven Zeitchik, L.A. Times) "Predictably great, but what's particularly impressive is that despite the 12 year production cycle it's unassuming throughout." (Eric Kohn, indieWIRE) "Still feeling the glow from the screening of BOYHOOD last night. It's like reading a big, satisfying, great novel. You're sad when it ends." (Lars Nilsen, Alamo Drafthouse) "The laidback dramatic equivalent of time-lapse footage showing the larval stage to the opening of the chrysalis." (Mike D'Angelo, TimeOut) "Is Richard Linklater the greatest director at work in America today? BOYHOOD offers compelling evidence. Funny, sad, tender, wise, beautiful." (Scott Foundas, Variety) "BOYHOOD is far and away the best film I've seen at Sundance." (Xan Brooks, Guardian)

"A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night" (Ana Lily Amirpour): "It's gorgeous and sad and singular. Man, what a day I've had." (Drew McWeeny, Hitfix) "It's wholly unique. Hypnotically beautiful b/w anamorphic photography, great leads, inspired direction." (Eric Vespe, Aintitcool) "It's great. This will not be the majority opinion but it is the correct opinion. Total Kier-La core. It's SINGAPORE SLING plus MONSTER DEMOLISHER plus DIABOLICAL DOCTOR Z. If this means anything to you: see it!" (Lars Nilsen, Alamo Drafthouse) "If you loved the cat in INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS, wait until you see the one in Iranian feminist vampire movie A GIRL WALKS HOME ALONE AT NIGHT. They may even be related." (Guy Lodge, InContention) "Moody and gorgeous film." (Boyd van Hoeij, THR)

★★★★

"What We Do in the Shadows" (Jemaine Clement & Taika Waititi): "I am genuinely sore from laughing at WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS. Holy crap. Team EAGLE VS. SHARK for the win." (Drew McWeeny, Hitfix) "WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS is a hilarious faux documentary about the thriving vampire, werewolf, witch & zombie population in Wellington, New Zealand." (Eric Vespe, Aintitcool) "Vampire mockumentary WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS is 90 hilarious minutes of NZ ridiculousness. Not disappointed." (Ryland Aldrich, Twitch Film) "Hilarious mock-doc is a shift from the shock humor of zombie comedies." (John DeFore, THR)

"Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter" (David Zellner): "It's a poetic stunner, shot through w/ Zellner Bros' blend of empathy and black humor but with a new sense of majesty." (Scott Macaulay, Filmmaker Magazine) "It's more great dark comedy from the Zellners. Rinko Kikuchi gives one of the fest's best performances." (Ryland Aldrich, Twitch Film) "KUMIKO is far and away the Zellners' best movie. True story about a Japanese girl who goes searching for the Fargo case of cash." (Eric Vespe, Aintitcool) "Rinko Kikuchi takes Coens' FARGO way too seriously. Slow cinema, not for everyone, but I loved it." (Ty Burr, Boston Globe) "It's ok until it becomes spectacular. Ending left me with tears in my eyes." (Devin Faraci, Badass Digest)

★★★½

"Cold in July" (Jim Mickle): "A History of Violence smashed to (a) pulp, 80s synths a-tremble. Prefer lean first half to bonkers second, but a blast." (Guy Lodge, InContention) "I really dug Jim Mickle's southern fried bit of violent weirdness COLD IN JULY. His best yet." (Eric Vespe, Aintitcool) "Damn, COLD IN JULY is some tough, stylish southern crime shit. Absolutely excellent. Mickle is it for Americana soaked genre." (Sam Zimmerman, Fangoria) "Jim Mickle continues to show that he’s among the most distinctive genre filmmakers on the indie scene with this cracked but flavorful thriller." (David Rooney, THR) "For old-school, '80s-style genre thrills, you can't do much better than Jim Mickle's COLD IN JULY." (Scott Foundas, Variety)

"The Babadook" (Jennifer Kent): "BABADOOK is a bit Guillermo del Toro-lite, but I dug the myth building and the proactive weapon-constructing 6 year old lead." (Eric Vespe, Aintitcool) "A stylish, aurally assaulting and often tremendous feature debut." (Samuel Zimmerman, Fangoria) "BABADOOK is the best possession movie in years, a vigorous and very intense horror film about a family on the edge of sanity." (Russ Fisher, Slashfilm) "Kent proclaimed her love of German Expressionist films and the pioneering cutout animation of Lotte Reininger." (Sam Adams, indieWIRE) "You can't stop THE BABADOOK, which is creepy as all hell." (Eric Kohn, indieWIRE)

★★★

"Life After Beth" (Jeff Baena): "Fantastic, unique zombie film. Funny, aggressive, gross break-up movie. Aubrey Plaza is amazing." (Sam Zimmerman, Fangoria) "It's a comedy first and foremost, and it showcases a great cast, including two leads who both seem to be stretching here in ways that are exciting to see." (Drew McWeeny, Hitfix) "One of the most emotionally credible zom-coms since SHAUN OF THE DEAD." (John DeFore, THR)

"Obvious Child" (Gillian Robespierre): "It's funny, barbed and the most purely enjoyable film I've seen at Sundance so far." (Xan Brooks, Guardian) "First real Sundance charmer: warm, gangly quarter-life crisis comedy with salty feminist undertow. Jenny Slate rocks it." (Guy Lodge, InContention) "A very funny and likeable first feature." (Todd McCarthy, THR)

"Cooties" (Jonathan Milott & Cary Murnion): "A horror-comedy that manages the very difficult trick of fulfilling both halves of that equation with equal skill." (Drew McWeeny, Hitfix)

Letztes Jahr hatten wir die Oscaranwärter "Beasts of the Southern Wild" und "The Sessions", die Indie-Komödien "Safety Not Guaranteed" und "Celeste and Jessie Forever", die Horror-Geheimtipps "V/H/S" und "Simon Killer", die Dokumentationen "The Ambassador", "How to Survive a Plague", "The Invisible War" und "The Queen of Versailles" und das obligatorische Queer-Movie "Keep the Lights On". Der neue Jahrgang ist nach meiner Vorfreude geordnet, bei der die Berlinale, aber auch meine eigenen Erfahrungen mit früheren Filmen der Regisseure und natürlich der Sundance-Buzz selbst eine Rolle spielen.

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"Why am I noticing nothing but raves coming out of Sundance? Allow those of us at sea level to inject more than a dose of skepticism." (Robert Koehler, Variety)
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★★★★

"Computer Chess": "Better than COMPUTER CHESS? I don't believe it. Kind of a Tim and Eric thing that no one remembered to ask Tim and Eric to show up for." (Russ Fischer, Slashfilm) "It's ultimately unlike anything Bujalski has done before—and unlike just about anything anyone has done before." (Anthony Kaufman, Screen Daily)

"Prince Avalanche": "The film is rambly and sweet and beautiful, the best work either David Gordon Green or Paul Rudd has done in quite a while." (Katey Rich, CinemaBlend) "Wow. PRINCE AVALANCHE is perfect mix of David Gordon Green's indie sensibility & big star comedy. Tiny, hilarious, touching tale." (Ryland Aldrich, Twitch Film) "Tonally strange & slight PRINCE AVALANCHE is like a consolidation of DGG's earlier work & comedies." (Eric Kohn, indieWIRE) "Really liked David Gordon Green's PRINCE AVALANCHE. Feels like something new for all involved." (Scott Macaulay, Filmmaker Magazine)

"Before Midnight": "Complicated, meandering but also wonderful film." (Tim Grierson, Screen Daily) "Now officially one of the best trilogies ever." (Eric Kohn, indieWIRE) "Some really great writing, wonderful balance of drama and comedy. Linklater at the top of his game." (Steven Zeitchick, L.A. Times) "Linklater, Delpy & Hawke find a whole new deeper level in BEFORE MIDNIGHT. Brilliant in that it steers toward epiphany but never gets there." (Kristopher Tapley, InContention) "Rohmer-level stuff." (Guy Lodge, Variety)

"Upstream Color": "A tightly controlled explosion of imagination. An uneasy love story about regaining control. Unique, beautiful." (Russ Fischer, Slashfilm) "Not every audience will be thrilled by the ambiguity or the anxious tone of much of the movie, but I think it is a tremendous return by a gifted filmmaker, and one of the real highlights of this year's Sundance Film Festival." (Drew McWeeny, HitFix) "Shane Carruth's UPSTREAM COLOR is one of the most original, inventive, puzzling & ultimately exciting movies at Sundance 2013." (Eugene Hernandez) "A singular, beautiful, strange sci-fi fable of love's terrifying wonder." (James Rocchi, MSN Movies)

★★★

"S-VHS": "By a mile, it's the best film I have seen at Sundance." (Tim League, Alamo Drafthouse) "Sounds like S-VHS just rocked Sundance. Consensus is it blows the first one away. My not-being-at-Sundance depression has hit a new high." (Eric Vespe, Aintitcool) "Hats off for S-VHS, which is the original with the volume stuck at 11. Totally bonkers. So much fun." (Drew McWeeny, HitFix) "Bloody kinetic, bloody fun, bloody bloody." (Total Film) "S-VHS is fucking proper. Goes bigger and weirder. Eisener and Gareth Evans & Tjahjanto are on some holy shit." (Sam Zimmerman, Fangoria) "S-VHS is every bit the Super POV anthology we were all hoping. A clamshell packed with blood, zombies, ghosts, & aliens. Loved it." (Ryland, Aldrich, Twitch Film) [Alles unter Vorbehalt, da Gareth Evans am Projekt beteiligt ist]

"Two Mothers": "A thoughtful, sexy drama about female friends who start dating each other's sons." (Tim Grierson, Screen Daily) "Rich, ironic, overlong drama about two women who try to remortgage their youth by screwing each other's sons. I think Robin Wright is the performance to beat this year." (Damon Wise, Empire) "Naomi Watts and Robin Wright are fine MILFs in this gauzy erotic-drama." (Lisa Schwarzbaum, EW)

"Escape from Tomorrow": "WOW! Surreal, funny, ballsy, deep, daring. Film of the Fest? Maybe." (Devin Faraci, Badass Digest) "Insane on so many levels. Never seen anything like it. Wally World has nothing on the real thing." (Scott Macaulay, Filmmaker Magazine) "It's a fascinating, surreal indictment of Disneyfied society that Disney will never, ever let you see." (Eric Kohn, indieWIRE)

★★

"The Spectacular Now": "The rare teen drama that earns what you feel, with Oscar-level acting." (James Rocchi, MSN) "The best teen movie in many a season." (Scott Foundas, Village Voice)

"Ain't Them Bodies Saints": "Life after Badlands: chilly, classical Americana. Sounds, images thrill, a bit impressed with its own languor." (Guy Lodge, Variety) "Unsurprisingly, very involving, gorgeous outlaw western (of sorts) w/1st-rate performances all around." (Eric Kohn, indieWIRE) "The first big wow of Sundance ‘13. Quiet, arty, Malicky, off-center, darkly photographed, character- driven. Feels like a grandson of Altman's THIEVES LIKE US." (Jeffrey Wells, Hollywood Elsewhere) "Has got to be frontrunner for grand jury prize. Gorgeously crafted sorta western. All actors amazing." (Peter Knegt, indieWIRE)

"Stoker": "My favourite Sundance film so far is Park Chan-wook's demented, ragingly beautiful STOKER." (Guy Lodge, Variety)

Das letzte Jahr brachte Werke wie "The Future", "Like Crazy", "Bellflower", "Terri", "Here", "The Woman", "Take Shelter", "Another Earth", Martha Marcy May Marlene" und "Vampire". Man darf also gespannt sein, was die fleißigen Bienensoldaten Karina Longworth, Drew McWeeny, James Rocchi, Robert Koehler, Eric Vespe, Ty Burr und Alison Willmore dieses Jahr ausgraben. Und auch die Trade Press wie der Hollywood Reporter oder Screen Daily werden neben der Genrebastion Twitch Film nicht vergessen:

Most-Wanted 2012:

01. V/H/S - Ti West, Joe Swanberg, Adam Wingard
02. SIMON KILLER - Antonio Campos
03. ROOM 237 - Rodney Ascher
04. KEEP THE LIGHTS ON - Ira Sachs
05. BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD - Benh Zeitlin

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Room 237 (Rodney Ascher) ★★★★

"The fastidiousness, intellectual obsessiveness and attention to minute detail for which Stanley Kubrick was known is matched by some devoted acolytes in ROOM 237, a fanatical, sometimes hilarious analysis and deconstruction of hidden meanings to be found in the director’s controversial 1980 horror film THE SHINING", schreibt Todd McCarthy (THR). "Anyone with even the slightest interest in decoding images will enjoy the wacky, wonderful ROOM 237. Most fun I've had all Sundance", twittert Justin Chang (Variety). "Ascher's ROOM 237 is by far the most imaginative doc in Sundance by a new filmmaker that it's insane it's not in a prime-time position here", twittert Robert Koehler (Variety).

Shadow Dancer (James Marsh) ★★

"Expertly directed and paced by Marsh, and boasting another riveting lead performance from rising UK star Andrea Riseborough, the film is neither didactic nor educational, and could be the first troubles film in years to make a dent at the box office", schreibt Mike Goodridge (Screen Daily). "Marsh's film is one that makes a difference, a poetic and unapologetically arthouse story of betrayal and loyalty that, with its terrific score, measured pacing and fierce female performances, is a raw reminder of a sad and painful past", schreibt Damon Wise (Guardian).

The Surrogate (Ben Lewin) ★★

"A feel-good film about how a sexual surrogate helps a polio victim conquer virginity could be a popular hit with the right handling", schreibt Todd McCarthy (THR). "Hawkes rocks as poet & polio survivor Mark O'Brien, who learns how to make human connection via virginity quest. Tender, funny, exceptional", schreibt Peter Debruge (Variety) und gibt die Höchstwertung. "THE SURROGATE will win 8,000 audience awards and probably make you cry. Not subtle or fresh, but a stellar John Hawkes makes up for that", twittert Katey Rich (Cinemablend). "THE SURROGATE takes what feels like a fake trailer premise and makes it incredibly moving. John Hawkes will earn his first Oscar for this", twittert Eric Vespe (Aintitcool). "Hawkes is remarkable in this film, with even his voice transformed from what we normally here. He spends the entire film twisted into a painful, terrifying question mark of a man, desperate to connect to someone, and Helen, who is used to treating sex with her patients as a clinical form of therapy, devoid of emotion", schreibt Drew McWeeny (HitFix).

Safety Not Guaranteed (Colin Trevorrow) ★★

"Sundance applause fades, but movies with a voice as strong, strange, smart and yes, sincere as SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED deserve to be heard long after the festival's end", schreibt James Rocchi (MSN Movies) und gibt viereinhalb von fünf Sternen. Was eher gegen ihn spricht ist Trendhopper Peter Sciretta (Slashfilm): "I kinda loved SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED. The most ridiculous yet awesome misfit time travel relationship story you'll ever see." "Sweet, small shaggy dog comedy about time travel, and the lead role Aubrey Plaza has been waiting for.", twittert Ty Burr (Boston Globe). "SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED is a really good film fest movie, a character driven ambiguous sci-fi flick starring Mark Duplass and Aubrey Plaza", twittert Eric Vespe (Aintitcool).

V/H/S (Ti West, Joe Swanberg, Adam Wingard u.a.) ★★★★½

"Not stupid fun, but real energy and excitement. V/H/S certainly has all that. Plus gratuitous nudity, crazy gore and some incredibly inventive tweaks to a subgenre that’s trying its damndest to wear out its welcome", schreibt mein Aintitcool-Liebling Eric 'Quint' Vespe. "V/H/S is fresh and pulse-quickening to the end, one of the best discoveries of this year's fest", schreibt Jen Yamato (Movieline). "This movie is loaded with unnerving imagery, simple and direct scares that play on a primal nightmare level, and ideas that blindside you with the way they twist expectation", schreibt Drew McWeeny (HitFix). "Even better than I expected. Forget the stigma of found footage horror. Breathes new life (& lotsa death) into the genre", twittert Eric Kohn (indieWIRE).

Keep the Lights On (Ira Sachs) ★★★

"Richly textured, sad and beautiful autobiographical love story", schreibt Karina Longworth (L.A. Weekly). "A tender portrait of a gay man in his 30s, Ira Sachs’ fourth feature film marks not only a return to the director’s own personal experiences living in New York City in the late ’90s, but to a modest filmmaking style and sensibility that recalls a bygone era of American independent cinema", schreibt Anthony Kaufman (Screen Daily). Peter Debruge (Variety) gibt ihm dreieinhalb von vier Sternen. "Like recent indie discoveries WEEKEND and PARIAH, KEEP THE LIGHTS ON operates in a kind of poetic realism that feels fresh and culturally specific. It also marks a return of sorts for Sachs to the hypnotic mood-piece quality of his first feature, THE DELTA", schreibt David Rooney (THR). "I can't be positive, but I think this story of a 9-year relationship was told in real time", twittert Katey Rich (Cinemablend).

Beasts of the Southern Wild (Benh Zeitlin) ★★½

"Magical realist brilliance, like WHALE RIDER as a post-Katrina folk creation myth. Spellbinding", twittert Ty Burr (Boston Globe). "One of the most striking films ever to debut at the Sundance Film Festival, BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD is a poetic evocation of an endangered way of life and a surging paean to human resilience and self-reliance", schreibt Todd McCarthy (THR). "BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD knocked me out. Assured, ambitious, lovely", twittert Devin Faraci (Badass Digest). "Every year Sundance fascinates festival goers with a drama that introduces audiences to a hidden corner of America. Last year it was ON THE ICE; the previous year, WINTER'S BONE. That honor this year belongs to Benh Zeitlin's BEASTS OF SOUTHERN WILD", schreibt Ryland Aldrich (Twitch Film). "Imagine TREE OF LIFE in a Godless (but not hopeless or loveless) world of mud and blood and fire and flood", twittert James Rocchi (MSN Movies).

Celeste and Jesse Forever (Lee Toland Krieger) ★★

"Sweet, smart, funny LA divorce comedy. Better than I was expecting and Samberg proves he can do drama", twittert Ty Burr (Boston Globe). "Really liked CELESTE AND JESSE FOREVER. Sweet and charming; funny, but never to jokey. Rashida Jones & Andy Samberg do a great job", twittert Matt Patches (Operation Kino). "A likably bittersweet relationship film that doesn't telegraph its intentions, CELESTE AND JESSE FOREVER borrows tropes from the rom-com playbook, and has enough laughs to be mistaken for one, but ultimately doesn't want to be pigeonholed", schreibt John DeFore (THR).

The Ambassador (Mads Brügger) ★★

"With a wardrobe blending pocket squares, riding boots, a cigarette holder and aviator shades, he seems to have found a stylistic middle-ground between Hunter S. Thompson and Erich von Stroheim - fitting for a film that's both a work of gonzo journalism, and an epic production starring its director", schreibt Karina Longworth (L.A. Weekly).

Simon Killer (Antonio Campos) ★★★★

"A tense, grim & gorgeous story of the unknown heart (4/5)", twittert James Rocchi (MSN Movies). "A dark, Parisian Pilgrim's Progress from collective behind MARTHA MARCY. Fewer cults, more prostitutes", twittert Steven Zeitchick (L.A. Times). "The film SIMON KILLER is an intense character study with good performances but pretentious cinematography and a dull ending. Leaves me unsatisfied", twittert Peter Sciretta (Slashfilm), der eher dafür bekannt ist, Trends hinterher zu laufen, als sie zu setzen. "The film equivalent answer to 'What is DONKEY PUNCH?' Stylish, disturbing portrait of the last guy you should ever date", twittert Jen Yamato (Movieline). "SIMON KILLER will divide people, but what else to expect from Campos? Enjoyed this creepy noir, amounts to AN AMERICAN PSYCHO IN PARIS", twittert Eric Kohn (indieWIRE). "Really loved SIMON KILLER. Bravo Brady Corbet; great portrayal of a diminished spoiled psyche", twittert Damon Wise (Empire). "Feeling perplexed by SIMON KILLER. I admire it but need to sit on it a bit longer to say much more. Brady Corbet deserves a lot of credit", twittert Katey Rich (Cinemablend). "SIMON KILLER is a brutally unflinching, often brilliantly realized portrait of the dark side of humanity. Huge step forward for campos [A]", twittert Peter Knegt (indieWIRE). Und auch Karina Longworth (L.A. Weekly) zählt sich zum Team Simon Killer: "As sensually rich as it is, full of eye-candy color and smartly chosen pop music and flashily ambitious filmmaking, SIMON KILLER is an embodiment of, and comment on, cinema as a manipulation of the eye and the brain." Spielverderber ist dagegen Todd McCarthy (THR): "This lushly and pretentiously made drama about a young American whose worst instincts are unleashed during a stay in Paris endeavors to entice with details of the seedy underworld of La Pigalle but is a turn-off in almost every respect."

"THE FUTURE becomes a really thrilling hybrid, using nearly avant-garde, highly conceptual staging and imagery to further what is essentially a classic romance of remarriage", schreibt Karina Longworth (Village Voice). "THE FUTURE blossoms into something lovely and melancholy, a magical realist miniature about the dread of time passing, the gradual narrowing of options that underlies the watery commitment-phobia of its central couple", meint Alison Willmore (IFC News). "I kind of really loved THE FUTURE. For what it's worth, ideal viewing circumstances are when you've spent a week away from your boyfriend", twittert Katey Rich.

LIKE CRAZY - Drake Doremus

"LIKE CRAZY is, like, really wonderful. Young people fall in love like young people fall out of like adults", twittert Wesley Morris (Boston Globe). "The glib will joke about LIGHT BLUE VALENTINE or 2,000 DAYS OF BUMMER, but there's lots to appreciate here, incl. great acting", twittert James Rocchi. "Many want to hear about LIKE CRAZY, but don't have much to say about it. Effectively tearjerking, narratively inane, Jones breakout star", twittert Karina Longworth. "Anton Yelchin and Felicity Jones are felicitously well-cast in Drake Doremus' emotional but flawed LIKE CRAZY", findet auch Robert Koehler. "Breathtakingly captures the elation of immediate attraction and first love between two college students then impeccably registers the growing distance between them as they are forced to live in different countries for a long period", schreibt Todd McCarthy (THR) und meint weiter: "Director Drake Doremus and his superb cinematographer, John Gulesarian, bring the viewer as close to the couple as possible without inducing suffocation, creating an experience of enveloping intimacy."

BELLFLOWER - Evan Glodell

"The whole film has a handmade quality that gives it a shabby charm. BELLFLOWER is a mess, but one that's unquestionably the product of incredible ambition and potential. And for all its flaws, it's the discovery of the festival thus far", bloggt Karina Longworth (Village Voice). "I hope Tim League gets a look at it, because this would be an amazing pick-up for Drafthouse Films, and if Tim and Glodell hit the road to promote the movie in the actual muscle cars, stopping in each town for a flamethrower demo, I might have to quit my job and follow them like the Grateful Dead", schreibt Drew McWeeny (HitFix). "What happens when boys raised on nothing but beer and TV commercials get a camera", twittert Wesley Morris.

THE CATECHISM CATACLYSM - Todd Rohal

"Not the biggest film at Sundance by a long shot, nor the flashiest or most extreme, THE CATECHISM CATACLYSM is possessed of a gentle charm masking an urge to in your face subversiveness, a combination that is going to make the cult for this film a fervently loyal one", schreibt Todd Brown (Twitch Film).

TERRI - Azazel Jacobs

"Crowd pleasing without being pandering, TERRI above all else feels true", schreibt Karina Longworth (Village Voice). "TERRI, tubby kid, messed up principal, hormones, a little alcohol, life. Wooooonderfuuul", twittert Wesley Morris. "Dawdling, draggy deadpan journey to the island of misfit boys; as lightly charming as it is immensely inert", twittert James Rocchi. "With a sensitive eye and an even more perceptive heart, director Jacobs brings new life to the outsider’s ordeal with a story about a large, lonely high-school boy (beautifully played by Jacob Wysocki) who discovers a sense of self-worth with the help of some charming oddballs", schwärmt Manohla Dargis und bezeichnet TERRI als einen ihrer zwei Lieblingsfilme des Sundance-Festivals (New York Times). "TERRI is a sweet, dry and very offbeat coming of age movie that makes Terry Zwigoff seem mainstream", twittert Damon Wise. "The film's not as focused or as strong as Jacob's last film, 2008's MOMMA'S MAN, but it has some of the fluky poetic charm of his 2005 debut, THE GOODTIMES KID. It's an advance sideways. Where everything about movies like NAPOLEON DYNAMITE and RUSHMORE are drenched in irony, the vibe here is warm, observant, inclusively comic", schreibt Ty Burr (Boston Globe).

HERE - Braden King

"HERE is pretty phenomenal. And as far as semi-naturalistic doomed romances go, it blows LIKE CRAZY out of the fucking water", twittert Longworth. Und hier gibt es ihre Kritik nachzulesen. "Beautiful, shimmering road-trip romance where the map is not the territory and farewell not goodbye. A heartfelt highlight", twittert James Rocchi.

THE WOMAN - Lucky McKee

"THE WOMAN is fantastic, a wonderfully bizarre tale of what could be in the top 10 most fucked up families ever portrayed in film", schreibt Eric Vespe (Aintitcool-News). Drew McWeeny (HitFix) fand ihn auch ganz großartig und dokumentierte gleichzeitig den Traum eines jeden Horror-Regisseurs, nämlich den Ausraster eines Zuschauers, der des Saales verwiesen wurde.

TAKE SHELTER - Jeff Nichols

"TAKE SHELTER is a fantastic movie, a taught thriller, an emotional depiction of a solid family unit fracturing under paranoia and a tour de force leading performance by one of our best working character actors. I can’t recommend this one enough", schreibt Eric Vespe (Aintitcool-News). "TAKE SHELTER, starring perennial Sundance 'It actor' Shannon, had deservedly strong word of mouth. A slow-burner about a Midwestern husband and dad who has nightmares of a coming apocalypse and starts building a survivalist dugout in his back yard, SHELTER collects all the angst that can beset a modern family man — post-9/11 fears, ecological disaster, the fragile well-being of one’s loved ones — and squeezes", schreibt Ty Burr (Boston Globe).

VAMPIRE - Shunji Iwai

"While some will find the film too dark, too graphic, too weird - fans will surely find much to love in the artistry, the intricacy, the magic", schreibt Ryland Aldrich (Twitch Film).


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Link-Tipps: Alison Willmores sehr hörenswertes Zwischenfazit, auch wenn sie die Hälfte des IFC-Podcast verschwendet, um sich über Kevin Smith aufzuregen. Slashfilmcast-Moderator David Chen tut unterdessen das, was er am besten kann, nämlich O-Töne von anderen, kompetenteren Filmkritikern zu sammeln. Ty Burr zieht ein schönes Fazit im Boston Globe-Blog. HitFix hat eine Bildershow mit etwas Text. Und Karina Longworth hat sich auch noch mal für die Village Voice hingesetzt und etwas runtergetippt.


Quellen: - Karina Longworth, - Drew McWeeny, - Wesley Morris, - Katey Rich, - Alison Willmore, - James Rocchi, - Bob Koehler, - Eric Vespe, - Damon Wise, - Anne Thompson, - Total Film, - THR, - Screen Daily

Seitenblick: Senses of Cinema hat eine weltweite Umfrage gemacht, was denn die besten Filme 2010 waren. Wer also noch nicht genug hat und genauer wissen will, wie die Lieblinge von Geoff Andrew, Christoph Huber, Rainer Knepperges, Olaf Möller oder Neil Young hießen, ist hier bestens aufgehoben. Knepperges hat zum Beispiel bereits den neuen Klaus Lemke-Film "Drei Kreuze für einen Bestseller" gesehen und offenbar sehr gemocht.

Drew McWeeny ist vor allem auf "Vampire" gespannt: "I'm curious to see a movie that's got balls big enough to use that title in the year 2011." Karina Longworth wird für die Village Voice bloggen. Für sie sind die "Red State"-Tickets die heißesten, weil Kevin Smith letzter Film "Cop Out" ungefähr von jedem Kritiker auf der ganzen Welt gehasst wurde (mit Ausnahme von ihr) und es keine generellen Pressevorführungen geben wird.

Klingt nach einer originalgetreuen Umsetzung: "'Silent House' was awful, a one-take experiment filled with shitty acting, 98 jump scares and a twist ending telegraphed in the first 5 mins", twittert Eric Vespe (aka Quint von den Aintitcool-News) über das US-Remake des uruguayischen Horrorfilms "La casa muda", der in Fachkreisen dank Robert Koehler (Variety) nur noch "La casa mierda" gerufen wurde: das beschissene Haus. Immerhin spielt bei den Amis die jüngere Schwester der Olsen-Twins, Elisabeth Olsen, mit.

Steven Zeitchick von der Los Angeles Times freut sich am meisten auf: "Little Birds", "Like Crazy", "Win Win", "Project Nim", "Becoming Chaz", "Tyrannosaur" und "Vampire" (Iwai Shunji).

Nikki Finke-Äffchen Mike Fleming berichtet für Deadline Hollywood vom ersten Sundance-Deal: Sony Pictures hat die nordamerikanischen Rechte für Morgan Spurlocks Doku "The Greatest Movie Ever Sold" gekauft.

Der frischgebackene Movieline-Chefkritiker Elvis Mitchell im Gespräch mit Trevor Groth, dem Programmchef des Sundance Filmfestival. Seine speziellen Empfehlungen sind der Morgan Spurlock-Film "The Greatest Movie Ever Sold" über Product-Placement und "The Interrupters" von Steve James ("Hoop Dreams"), in dem ehemalige Bandenmitglieder auf den Straßen von Chicago gefährdete Jugendliche aufklären.