Receiving a standing ovation at Sundance is a pretty big deal. In fact, receiving a standing ovation at Eccles Theater (which seats about a 1,000 plus) is about as epic as it gets for a filmmaker. The goofy, brilliant, and lovable Mike Cahill wowed the audience with his first feature film Another Earth.

Another Earth offers a unique blend of drama and science fiction. On the night that a twin planet earth is discovered, John Burroughs (William Mapother), loses his family when the recently M.I.T. accepted Rhoda (Brit Marling), slams into his car. Four years later, after John wakes from his coma, and Rhoda is released from prison, their story begins to unravel.

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Brit Marling

Here at Sundance, in one day (yesterday), I saw two different films starring, co-written, and produced by indie up and comer Brit Marling.  The first, Another Earth, I saw at noon at the Eccles Theater and the second, sound of my voice, I saw later in the evening at the significantly smaller Yarrow Theater.  I really enjoyed both films and the rest of both audiences seemed to as well (Another Earth received a standing ovation from packed theater of well over a thousand people).  Although the two films covered very different subject matters and bore the artistic styles of two different directors, the link between the two of Brit Marling’s unique style of storytelling was evident.  She definitely has a beautiful and intriguing way of crafting an enthralling story in which you never know what will happen next, in which you’re never quite sure which side you believe, and where even the ending can be interpreted in various different ways. (more…)

Kaboom (2010)

Gregg Araki’s tenth film Kaboom is unapologetically funny, sexual, inappropriate, and apocalyptic.  In short, it was entertaining and pretty brilliant.  The movie is a fast-paced, sex-driven, drug-fueled, surreal, highly-stylized, live-action graphic novel about coming of age and dealing simultaneously with the stress of college and the end of the world.  If that description seems crazy or a little bit confusing, just wait until you see the film.  But throughout all of the craziness, I was thoroughly entertained, amused, amazed, and impressed.  All in all, it is a film well worth watching.  Kaboom premiered in May at the Cannes Film Festival to rave reviews and is quickly creating the same buzz here at Sundance.  (more…)

Every once in a while you come across a movie that stays with you for a very long time because of the story. Taking Chance is just such a movie: it hits home and it hits hard. Based on the real life experience of Lieutenant Colonel Michael Strobl (Kevin Bacon), the story revolves around Strobl taking the remains of Chance Phelps, a young Marine killed in Iraq, back to his family. Given that this is Ross Katz’s first directorial feature, it is all the more unique that he manages to convey with such ease a simple story about coming home that provides the audience with an unforgettable experience. (more…)

Todd Haynes’ Safe depicts the story of Carol (Julianne Moore), a housewife whose bourgeois lifestyle slowly begins to disintegrate around her. Beginning with typical ‘picket fence’ image, Haynes gradually begins to show the effects of Carol’s monotonous lifestyle on her health, attributing it to a medical condition known as the “twentieth century illness” or “chemical sensitivity.” Carol eventually seeks solace in the Wrenwood retreat but still feels out of place and isolated. Finding little peace at Wrenwood, Carol eventually moves into a secluded pod and is completely cut off from the world. The gradual meltdown of Carol’s lifestyle and the slow isolation of her existence is difficult to watch but Haynes captures this brilliantly.

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