Or more accurately, the virtual portion of the Sundance Film Festival. Due to my current day job, I don’t when I’d ever be able to attend the festival in-person. Man though, if Cincinnati would have won the bid, that would have changed things for sure. Oh, well.
I think this year I’ve managed a similar amount of films compared to the last couple of years. With fewer films available and an even shorter window to watch them all, I think the eight I landed on was a good number. When I think back to the 13 I did the first year, and even the full ten-episode show I watched last year, that’s crazy stuff. Eight is managable. And yet, I still left myself with four to finish yesterday – but I did it! There were several others I was on the fence about, as well as a block of short films, but I was wise in my decision-making. I just have to hope that I can see the rest of them someday.
Thursday night I popped on the uniquely funny, The Musical. While I myself detest musicals, seeing this brief comedy featuring Rob lowe felt like something I couldn’t miss. Also, with all of the more serious films I knew I’d be watching, I was glad for a solid comedic offering. Doug is a middle school teacher who still thinks he has a chance writing for Broadway. He also thinks he still dating a fellow teacher who he’s been on a break with for the past eight weeks. When he learns she’s now dating the principal, Doug makes it his mission to ruin the school’s chances of winning the Blue Ribbon prize. Is Doug likeable? I would disagree, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t laugh a fair bit. A fine offering and start to the festival!
Friday night only had time for one film as well, but this time it was the quirky Scottish comedy, The Incomer. After finishing this film, I’ve determined that I like the brand of weird comedy that the Scottish have. It’s so unusual that I don’t think many people, at least that I know, would really like it that much, but I always find myself cackling a lot when I watch their stuff. In this film, Isla and Sandy have lived on an uninhabited island for the last 30 years, practicing how to take down any mainlanders. Things take a turn when they learn they are being evicted from the island, but their captive, Daniel, both teaches and learns a lot from this sister-brother duo. The actor who played Sandy was the real MVP for me – so funny!
Once the weekend truly arrived, I knew I wanted to make sure I had dedicated time for one of the festival’s most successful films, Josaphine. But before I approached that one, I popped on locally filmed romantic drama, Carousel. The films centers on doctor, Noah, and finely balanced life being tested when an old flame comes back into his life. It forces him to look at things he’s been looking away from for quite some time. I liked it, though it could have been a little shorter. Josaphine was a real powerhouse of a film, and the kind of strong contender that usually finds its way to the festival. The titular Josaphine is an eight year old girl who witnesses a sexual assault in the park. It changes everything about her life, and I found this film really well done for such a sensitive subject. I’m sure we’ll be seeing that one talked about during next year’s awards season.
Sunday was the day where I had to cram in the rest, but I did manage to pace myself. I started the day with zi, a strange fantasy drama about a woman going through her day walking around Hong Kong after she learns she has a brain tumor. Though she thinks the tumor is allowing her to see her future self, the reality is a bit more confusing and perhaps dips its toe into the supernatural, but the strengths here remain in a trio of performances. Not for everyone, but this is the arthouse work I expect from the festival. Next I checked out Run Amok, which was another film tackling a very tough subject with a dose of humor. Meg is a freshman at the school where her mom lost her life in a school shooting ten years earlier. For an upcoming commemoration ceremony, she decides to put on a musical reenacting the events of that day in order to create “catharsis.” I felt the ending lost a bit of steam, but I really liked all of the fresh faces here.
The last two movies of the day were more hardcore dramas, apparently my personal favroite genre. I started with Union County, which takes a look at the drug rehabilitation program in central Ohio. It focuses on Cody, a man who just came out of prison and has enrolled in the program. I have to say, the people in charge of this program seem really empathetic to the struggles of these people who are trying to turn their lives around one day at a time, despite constant temptation. It was even cooler that they filmed with real people going through the program! Finally, I streamed the only film I bought a ticket for out of the Midnight section, Rock Springs. It’s about a Chinese family who moves out to a home in the woods in order to combat the recent grief of losing a loved one. It turns out there is even more grief in the woods. It was floored to learn that this was loosely based off of the real life Rock Springs Massacre that took place in the 1800s. Very neat tie-in despite there being a bit of fantasy involved in this horror film.
Overall, this year gave me a fun mix of genres, as well as just some really well told stories. With that being said, I don’t really feel like I was knocked off my feet by any of these. If I had to pick the strongest of the bunch though, my money goes to Josaphine. I would almost guarantee people will be able to see that later this year. I already can’t wait until next year!