Sundance 2017: 'The Big Sick,' 'Mudbound,' 'Wind River' and More …

Over the weekend, the Sundance Film Festival kicked into full gear, unleashing a torrent of new independent films for attendees who braved cold weather and a winter storm to slush through the streets of Park City, Utah. Here are a slew of highlights, starting with a selection of the most notable debuts. 

The Big Sick was a big story among narrative features. Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon wrote the romantic comedy, drawn from their own experiences; Judd Apatow produced. Nanjiani stars opposite Zoe Kazan. It debuted on Friday evening and sparked an instant bidding war for distribution rights.

Some #Sundance thoughts on the terrific @TheBigSickMovie, about the humor, heartache and hardships of love. cc: @kumailn & @emilyvgordon pic.twitter.com/BmMBYvjQfK

— ErikDavis (@ErikDavis) January 21, 2017

Mudbound takes place after World War II in the southern United States and is an ambitiouis tale that paints a bleak picture.

Mudbound: a brutal look at racism in the south during WW2, superbly directed by Dee Rees, top notch cast. This one hits you! #Sundance pic.twitter.com/UWaszz1Ogb

— Alicia Malone (@aliciamalone) January 22, 2017

Wind River stars Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen in a tale of the American frontier. Taylor Sheridan, who wrote Sicario and Hell or High Water, makes his directorial debut.

#WindRiver is a tense, captivating thriller that proves Taylor Sheridan is one of the most exciting emerging storytellers in years #Sundance pic.twitter.com/lmsV0MDEyr

— ErikDavis (@ErikDavis) January 23, 2017

Novitiate is a coming-of-age story set at a convent during the 1950s and 1960s, starring Margaret Qualley, Julianne Nicholson and Melissa Leo. The movie also sold its distribution rights over the weekend.

I’m an atheist/don’t believe in religion. One scene in Novitiate made me sob uncontrollably. I want to watch this film again ASAP. #Sundance

— Tomris Laffly (@TomiLaffly) January 20, 2017

Wilson features Woody Harrelson as a man who may be too bracingly honest for his own good. He reunites with his estranged wife (Laura Dern) and learns he has a teenage daughter who he’s never met.

‘Wilson,’ based on Daniel Clowes’ graphic novel, is no ‘Ghost World,’ but Woody Harrelson is fun. My Sundance take: https://t.co/jdAKYtmFXy

— Owen Gleiberman (@OwenGleiberman) January 23, 2017

A Ghost Story, directed by David Lowery (Pete’s Dragon), follows Casey Affleck as a ghost who haunts his lover (Rooney Mara), but not in the traditional maner.

A Ghost Story is the best film of #Sundance2017 https://t.co/40c2JDa1bn

— Brian Tallerico (@Brian_Tallerico) January 23, 2017

Technical Issues

Sundance is a world-class film festival featuring hundreds of screenings. On Friday evening, though, the world premiere screening of Berlin Syndrome ran into technical troubles. First, an announcement was mistakenly made over the public address system midway through the screening. Then, shortly before the ending, the digital projector stopped working.

As reported by Slashfilm, director Cate Shortland and cast members Teresa Palmer and Max Riemelt did their best to handle the situation during a question and answer session. The film itself still received positive notices from critics.

Berlin Syndrome: Aussie Cate Shortland’s VERY intense, slow kidnap drama starring the brilliant @teresapalmer. I was hiding! #Sundance

— Alicia Malone (@aliciamalone) January 21, 2017

The next day, the festival box office system suffered an attack by computer hackers. Screenings were not affected and the problem was resolved by early afternoon, according to the festival (via CNet.com). A power outage affected three screenings at the Redstone theater yesterday. Power was restored later in the day and the screenings were rescheduled for this morning. As far as we know, all systems are currently running fine. 

Source link