The Sundance Film Festival just concluded in Park City, Utah! The festival is known to host a wide variety of films that go on to receive critical and audience acclaim. I wasn’t an attendee, but I do know about some of the films gathering a lot of buzz. What are they? Read on and find out!
Apollo 11
A documentary made up of never-before-seen footage of the Apollo 11 mission to get a man on the moon.
The footage looks incredible and I can’t believe the filmmakers got it to be so clear considering it’s from the late 1960’s. Apollo 11 will be distributed by Neon and released later this year.
Late Night
Directed by Mindy Kaling, Late Night is a story of a female talk show host (Emma Thompson) who thinks she might be losing her show. Other members of the cast include Mindy Kaling and Amy Ryan. Late Night was just bought by Amazon Studios. There’s no set release date for the film as of right now.
The Last Black Man in San Francisco
This is a film dealing with themes of gentrification as a black man sees his city change drastically around him. It has received a lot of praise from festival attendees. The film stars Jimmie Fails, Jonathon Majors, and Danny Glover. It will be distributed by A24.
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile
One of the most buzzed about films at the festival was Extremely Wicked starring Zac Efron as Ted Bundy and Lily Collins as Elizabeth Kloepfer, Bundy’s girlfriend, who didn’t believe the truth about his crimes. The bizarre title of the film comes from a statement that a judge made referencing Bundy’s heinous crimes. The film will be released by Netflix later this year.
The Farewell
Many attendees at Sundance have praised The Farewell for being one of the strongest films at the festival. It’s a true story from the life of director Lulu Wang about a Chinese family who finds out their grandmother is dying of cancer. Instead of telling her the news, the family decides to have a large reunion and keep the upsetting diagnosis a secret from her. It’s been said that lead actress Awkwafina gives a great dramatic performance, which is a change of pace from her usual comedic roles. The Farewell was picked up by A24.
The Report
The Report is a political drama following CIA agents and their interrogation methods following the 9/11 attacks. It boasts an impressive cast of Annette Benning, Jon Hamm, Adam Driver, and Maura Tierney. The Report has also been picked up by Amazon Studios.
Honey Boy
One of the more bizarre, but talked about films of the festival was Honey Boy. It’s tells of Shia Labeouf’s tumultous childhood and difficult relationship with his father. Labeouf plays his father in the film and wrote the screenplay. It all sounds like a very meta project from the mind of Shia Labeouf. Honey Boy will be distributed by Amazon Studios.
Leaving Neverland
Perhaps the most controversial project coming out of Sundance is Leaving Neverland, a documentary about Wade Robson and Jimmy Safechuck, two men who claim they were sexually abused by Michael Jackson when they were children. Based on the topic, this is sure to be a very upsetting and shocking documentary. It will premiere in the spring on HBO.
Brittany Runs a Marathon
Jillian Bell plays Brittany, a woman who tries to use running to get her life together. It’s said to be a funny and inspiring film. Guess the distributor? Amazon Studios.
These are just a few of the buzz worthy films that premiered this year at Sundance. One thing’s for sure though, most of the films out of Sundance will be distributed through Amazon Studios!
