It's snowing in Park City, Utah, but the sun has only just risen. This year's slate of films leave much to be expected because the talent, both on the screen and behind the camera, leaves room for nothing less. In addition to founder Robert Redford, patrons can expect to see the likes of Jeremy Irons, Melissa Leo, Robert De Niro, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Susan Sarandon, who herself has two film premiering here. Over the next ten days, hoards of critics and movie buffs alike will be treated to their first taste of what lies ahead in film this year. Some notable films by established filmmakers include Academy Award-winner James Marsh's new film
Shadow Dancer,
about a mother with a dodgy past who ventures to Belfast as a British
Intelligence mole at the threat of imprisonment, looks to have a more
personal take on the female spy than we have seen from more commercial
films in the past. Also, French actress Julie Delpy, best known for her roles in
Before Sunset and
Before Sunrise opposite Ethan Hawke, directs herself in her latest feature
2 Days In New York, which stars Chris Rock as her common-law husband who has to endure the unwitting antics of her family when they come for a visit. The film seemingly puts a new spin on both "meeting the in-laws" and interracial relationships.
Probably even more exciting are the new directors who are making their debut here. Several alumni who have done just so in the past, include Paul Thomas Anderson, Steven Soderbergh, Darren Aronofsky, and Quentin Tarantino. Newcomer So Yong Kim's film
For Ellen, centralizes on a failing musician father who journeys a great distance to try to retain parental custody over his estranged daughter. Kim, who also wrote the screenplay, humanizes the main character of Joby (played by Paul Dano) in the most unlikely of manners. Another notable film, Ira Sachs' drama
Keep The Lights On is about a decade long love affair between two men in New York City during the 90's. Sach's specialized choices, such as the musical score and cinematography, beautifully brings this film together and forces audiences to appreciate it as more than just another gay genre film. These are just a few of the many movies by relative rookies that hold much promise. Sundance, after all, is most renowned for affording new filmmakers their "big break" into a very competitive industry.
Strangely enough, another draw are this year's musical festivities and varying musical artists who will be making appearances. Ice-T and hip hop icons Chuck D and Grandmaster Caz are slatted to perform in 'A Celebration of Music in Film' on Saturday, which compliments the premiere of Andy Baybutt and Ice-T's collaborative film
Something From Nothing: The Art of Rap. The Sundance ASCAP Music Café has a fantastic line up of musicians performing at their venue this year. Including
John Forte, Natasha Bedingfield,
David Gray, Josh Kelley, Flying Lotus, A Fine
Frenzy, and The All-American Rejects. Check out who's performing, when and where in detail at the festival's official Music page
here. Sundance seemingly is as much about the music, as it is about the films.
And for those of you who might not be feeling the urban-spectacle this weekend, British comedian Eddie Izzard will also be doing a stand-up show at the New Frontier venue. His appearance is meant as a precursor to his forthcoming IFC television series “Bullet in the Face” which airs this summer. Plus, for all you early risers (myself
not included), there's a great schedule of daily intimate discussions with many of the filmmakers at the Cinema Café. Which probably is far easier to get a seat for than the panel discussions at the premieres. So there seems to be a little something for everyone, and I encourage you to "look again".. B-)
OPENING NIGHT, Thursday, January 19th
Hello I Must Be Going | Directed by Todd Louiso
 |
| Christopher Abbott & Melanie Lynskey |
Divorced and demoralized Amy Minsky’s prospects look bleak when she is condemned to move back in with her parents at the age of 35. Everyone wants to help, but, as her patience level with advice is plummeting, a bold teenage boy enters her life, igniting her last bit of self-esteem. What ensues is an unconventional love story infused with all the good things Amy needs to get on in life, and that just may include great sex. Todd Louiso and screenwriter Sarah Koskoff tread new ground with a modern agenda and infectious optimism. They gently seduce us into a relationship dilemma that far exceeds age difference. The two lead actors—Melanie Lynskey and Christopher Abbott—are bursting with talent, ensuring that their situation is believable and compelling us to root for them.
Hello I Must Be Going is fresh and original, proving what we so easily forget: the best medicine for most of the discomforts in life is the power of human connection.
Friday, January 20th
 |
| Cillian Murphy |
Two investigators of paranormal hoaxes, the veteran Dr. Margaret Matheson and her young assistant, Tom Buckley, study the most varied metaphysical phenomena with the aim of proving their fraudulent origins. Simon Silver, a legendary blind psychic, reappears after an enigmatic absence of 30 years to become the greatest international challenge to both orthodox science and professional sceptics. Tom starts to develop an intense obsession with Silver, whose magnetism becomes stronger with each new manifestation of inexplicable events. As Tom gets closer to Silver, tension mounts, and his worldview is threatened to its core. Red Lights is movie magic at its very best. Classically conceived and executed, it is an example of pure cinema, constructed by combining thrillingly meticulous filmmaking with extraordinary performances. Rodrigo Cortés (Buried screened at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival) shrewdly straddles both sides of the paranormal argument, creating an analytical conundrum with passion in its story line. In doing so, he fashions an exhilarating cinematic experience where illusion confronts science, and the truth lies hidden deeply within.
Saturday, January 21st
Arbitrage | Directed by Nicholas Jarecki
 |
| Susan Sarandon & Richard Gere |
Nicholas Jarecki makes an auspicious directorial debut with this taut and alluring suspense thriller about love, loyalty, and high finance. Arbitrage—buying low and selling high—depends on a person’s ability to determine the true value of any given market. It’s a talent that has made billionaire hedge fund magnate Robert Miller the very portrait of success in American business. But on the eve of his sixtieth birthday, Miller finds himself desperately trying to sell his trading empire to a major bank before the extent of his fraud is discovered. When an unexpected bloody error challenges his perception of what things are worth, Miller finds that his business is not the only thing hanging in the balance. Building on the chemistry and charisma of an outstanding cast, including Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, Brit Marling, Tim Roth, and Nate Parker, Jarecki leads us through the slick and duplicitous limits of impunity and composes an anatomy of the way asset bubbles can burst.
Sunday, January 22nd
 |
| Elizabeth Olsen & Josh Radnor |
Newly single, 35, and uninspired by his job, Jesse Fisher worries that his best days are behind him. But no matter how much he buries his head in a book, life keeps pulling Jesse back. When his favorite college professor invites him to campus to speak at his retirement dinner, Jesse jumps at the chance. He is prepared for the nostalgia of the dining halls and dorm rooms, the parties and poetry seminars; what he doesn’t see coming is Zibby—a beautiful, precocious, classical-music-loving sophomore. Zibby awakens scary, exciting, long-dormant feelings of possibility and connection that Jesse thought he had buried forever. The multitalented Josh Radnor once again returns to the Sundance Film Festival
(happythankyoumoreplease won the 2010 dramatic Audience Award), wearing three hats. As writer, director, and star of
Liberal Arts, Radnor could teach a master class in filmmaking. Given that his engaging costar is Elizabeth Olsen, the master class here is one in chemistry between two exceptional actors.
Monday, January 23rd
Bachelorette | Directed by Leslye Headland
 |
| Lizzy Caplan, Kirsten Dunst & Isla Fisher |
Regan is used to being first at everything. Imagine her horror and chagrin when she finds out the girl everyone called Pig Face in high school is going to tie the knot before she does! But Regan sucks it up and takes on bridesmaid duties along with her childhood pals: substance-abusing, promiscuous Gena and ditzy Katie. The single ladies are determined to put their bitterness aside and have an awesomely hedonistic bachelorette party. Armed with acerbic wit and seemingly endless supplies of coke and booze, the foul-mouthed femmes embark on one very long and emotional night filled with major wedding-dress panic, various bodily fluids, and cute ex-boyfriends. Kirsten Dunst is consistently funny leading the talented cast, which includes the delightful scene stealer, Rebel Wilson, who plays Becky, a.k.a. Pig Face. Adding to the tradition of successful bridal comedies, this debut feature by writer/director Leslye Headland is a sassy and sometimes romantic ride that never forgets to celebrate the complexities of female friendship.
Tuesday, January 24th
Goats | Directed by Christopher Neil
 |
| Graham Phillips & David Duchovny |
Having a self-absorbed New Age mother and an estranged father means 15-year-old Ellis Whitman has grown up relying on an unconventional guardian: a goat-trekking, marijuana-growing sage called Goat Man. So when Ellis decides to leave the alternative ways of his desert homestead for a stuffy East Coast prep school, major changes are in store. But not in the way you’d think. Though often stoned, the exceedingly smart and capable Ellis effortlessly aces school and excels at track. As the year progresses, it’s his relationships with the adults in his life that test him, challenging his beliefs about responsibility and trustworthiness. With its expansive vision of family and passel of delicious oddball characters transposed from screenwriter Poirier’s novel with deadpan naturalism, Goats wryly balances satire with poignancy and tenderness. Ellis’s eventual disillusionment with his various “parents” forces him to seek and find strength within and to realize the truth about love: it’s never perfect, but it is always there.
Wednesday, January 25th
California Solo | Directed by Marshall Lewy
 |
| Robert Carlyle |
Lachlan MacAldonich is a self-described “lazy Scotsman” and former guitar player for a once-popular 1990s rock band. No longer famous, he now lives a comfortably numb existence working on an organic farm outside Los Angeles. He drinks himself into a stupor every night and retires to his shabby apartment to record his podcast, recounting the tragic deaths of great musicians. After a particularly heavy night of drowning his sorrows at a local watering hole, he is arrested for driving under the influence. This snag, coupled with a long-ago conviction for a drug offense, means Lachlan faces possible deportation. His only hope of remaining stateside is proving that his absence would cause extreme hardship for a spouse or relative—forcing him to confront relationships he thought were buried forever. Robert Carlyle injects equal amounts of washed-up rock star and winsome charm into the lead role of a lovable loser struggling with personal demons and an intractable legal system. In his eagerly awaited follow-up to 2007’s
Blue State, writer/director Marshall Lewy paints an intimate portrait of human fallibility and the ever-present possibility of making things right, even from the darkest depths.
Thursday, January 26th
 |
| Frank Langella |
Set sometime in the future,
Robot & Frank is a delightful dramatic comedy, a buddy picture, and, for good measure, a heist film. Curmudgeonly old Frank lives by himself. His routine involves daily visits to his local library, where he has a twinkle in his eye for the librarian. His grown children are concerned about their father’s well-being and buy him a caretaker robot. Initially resistant to the idea, Frank soon appreciates the benefits of robotic support—like nutritious meals and a clean house—and eventually begins to treat his robot like a true companion. With his robot’s assistance, Frank’s passion for his old, unlawful profession is reignited, for better or worse. Frank Langella makes acting—and acting with a robot, no less—look effortless, and his relationship with the machine is filled with poignant exchanges and amusing adventures. First-time director Jake Schreier creates a lush world with futuristic flourishes and tells a beautiful story about family and the implications of humankind’s ever-changing relationship with technology.
Friday, January 27th
Predisposed | Directed by Phil Dorling & Ron Nyswaner
 |
| Jesse Eisenberg, Melissa Leo, Isiah Whitlock Jr. & Tracy Morgan |
Piano prodigy Eli Smith has talent to burn, but he is constantly derailed by his troubled mother, whose vices keep getting in his way. On the day of his big audition for a prestigious music program, Eli attempts to get his life on track by taking her to rehab. Enlisting help from two hapless drug dealers, mother and son embark on a riotous journey where events spiral comically out of control. Along the way, this gang of misfits faces the mistakes of the past, the challenges of the future, and the possibilities of love. Phil Dorling and Ron Nyswaner return to the Sundance Film Festival with an extended version of their short that played in the 2009 Festival. Making the most of the full-length format, they humorously and poignantly flesh out the complicated nature of addiction and how it affects those around us . . . especially family. The all-star cast, including Jesse Eisenberg and Melissa Leo, wonderfully bring to life the shrewdly conceived script by the two writers/directors, who reveal a deft ability to balance the disparate notes in a film that will make you laugh out loud one moment and swell with emotion the next.
Saturday, January 28th
The Words | Directed by Brian Klugman & Lee Sternthal
 |
| Bradley Cooper & Jeremy Irons |
Rory Jansen, a struggling writer, aspires to be the next great literary voice. When he discovers a lost manuscript in a weathered attaché case, he realizes he possesses something extraordinary that he desperately wishes he had created. Rory decides to pass the work off as his own and finally receives the recognition he desperately craves. However, he soon learns that living with his choice will not be as easy as he thought as he faces a moral dilemma that will make him take a hard look at the man he has become. In their directorial debut, Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal have crafted a subtle tale that examines how overwhelming desire can lead to unforeseen and unwanted consequences. Bolstered by a strong cast, led by Bradley Cooper and Jeremy Irons, The Words adeptly assembles multiple narratives that reveal how one man’s lost legacy holds the life of another man captive.
Sunday, January 29th
Lay the Favorite | Directed by Stephen Frears
 |
| Catherine Zeta-Jones |
Beth Raymer is a beautiful girl with a big heart who leaves her dancing job at a Florida strip club to become a Las Vegas cocktail waitress. Not exactly an ideal career choice, but her borderline-ditzy personality doesn’t give her many options. In walks Dink, a professional sports bettor who sees through her bubbly exterior and offers her a job placing wagers all over town to gain an advantage over the casinos. Her surprisingly impeccable mind for numbers soon cements her status as Dink’s good-luck charm, until his gorgeous-but-frigid wife, Tulip, starts to get jealous. Faced with no other choice but to fire Beth, Dink’s luck runs out when she heads to New York to work for a smarmy bookie, a turn of events that lands her squarely on the wrong side of the law. Acclaimed director Stephen Frears first wowed Sundance Film Festival audiences in 1985 with his sardonic thriller
The Hit, and returned in 1991 with
The Grifters, which garnered several Oscar nominations. With
Lay the Favorite, Frears nimbly displays his penchant for interweaving comedy and drama to create a thoroughly satisfying tale of improbable friendship found in the unlikeliest of places.
