Sundance...the slow recovery
So I am back from Sundance (and have been for almost a week, sorry!) and am slowly recovering. 8 days in Utah & I have learned to appreciate wide streets & powder on 10,500 high ski mountains. And no that is not a drug reference, but actual snow produced by clouds!
Sundance started out a bit slow. We had no tickets to ANY movies until Wednesday, so I was a bit worried.
We arrived late Friday night, to late to go out to any of the “drinking clubs” in Park City, so we just started off on Saturday. We caught a Slamdance Shorts program entitled “Skin”. It was essentially the sex shorts program. There were a few good really good shorts, such as “Dirty Glitter,” and “Phone Sex Grandma”.
After watching the Steelers get into the Superbowl, (part of dating a Steelers fan), and a “Half Nelson” cocktail party, we tried to get into “Science of Sleep” on Sunday night, but so was everyone else in Park City.
• Monday we got up early & waited on line to attend the premier of “Wristcutters: A Love Story.” Set in a parallel realm, all inhabitants have committed suicide, and this is the afterlife they are given. Filmed with a grayish overtone, where no bright colors are accessible & smiles are not possible, the movie could have been quite depressing. But instead, with a cast including Patrick Fugit on a search for his girlfriend, played by Leslie Bibb, Shannyn Sossamon, convinced she was sent here mistakenly, and guest spots by Tom Waits and Will Arnett, the script was kept light enough so you didn’t remember that they are actually dead.
• Then it was off to nap before Broken Social Scene played a party for the “Half Nelson” premier (more on this movie later, I promise!), we left early to catch the last half of the Beastie Boys/ Myspace party. They played for about 2 hours. We saw about 45 minutes. But what we saw was great. I will hopefully post a short video in a few days. Rachel Dratch of SNL was adorable standing on a chair to see above the crowd, dancing her ass off.
• Tuesday- my boy got up & left at the crack ass of dawn (around 7:45 for those of you counting) to wait on line for: Art School Confidential” at 11:30 am. (He is a comic book geek, but a cute one). He was third on line. I got to sleep late. We wound up getting free tickets from SPC just before they sold the extra tickets.
It was a cute movie, about what a talented artist is willing to do to get noticed. Or at least admit to. It starts Max Minghella, a fairly up & coming actor, Sophia Myles, (who played Isolde opposite James Franco in “Tristan & Isolde”) John Malkovich (yes, the). Definitely a movie that will do well in NY/La, etc. And the art community. Enough elements of comedy, love & real life to reign true.
• We stuck around for “Right at Your Door”, starting Rory Cochran & Mary McCormack. Focusing on a married couple in the aftermath of a dirty bomb going off in downtown LA. While parts cause you to question, such as the twist ending, the acting by these characters was absolutely amazing. They go though all the emotions- what do you do when the one you love has been exposed?
I thought it was shot really well, with the limited budget that they had. One minute LA looks fine. A few minutes later, it has been covered in white ash. Music is composed by Tomandandy. This film later won best cinematography.
• Wednesday morning we got up early to see “Puccini for Beginners.” While opera is referenced in this film, the focus is a lesbian, reeling from a recent breakup with her girlfriend, finds herself falling for a man, and then a woman as well. She balances the two relationships, until suddenly, she discovers what the audience already has- her current lovers are each’s former lover. Quelle Horreur!
This is a quirky little movie, in the essence of other semi- NY lesbian films, like “Kissing Jessica Stein”. However, all the actors are great in this. A cute 3rd date movie.
• Our Park City adventure ended with the Premier of “This Film is Not Yet Rated” How this movie got shafted on any awards is really beyond me, as it focuses on something Sundance is constantly struggling against- major corporations! Filmmaker Kirby Dick explores the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), which has the responsibility of rating all films that are distributed in US Theaters. Over the past few years filmmakers, especially independent films that linger on the verge of subjects that are considered non-traditional. The MPAA is made up of a secret society who decides what is morally acceptable and not. Dick, hiring private investigators, is able to locate members of the MPAA, as well as the Appeals board. Dick presents an interesting film, focusing on censorship issues, board qualifications, and piracy. Receiving a NC-17 rating itself upon its first screening, (and Sundance even restricting attendance to 18+), this is definitely a movie for anyone who is interested in pursuing a filmmaking career.
Check back more this week for my SLC viewings!
xoxo
michele
Sundance started out a bit slow. We had no tickets to ANY movies until Wednesday, so I was a bit worried.
We arrived late Friday night, to late to go out to any of the “drinking clubs” in Park City, so we just started off on Saturday. We caught a Slamdance Shorts program entitled “Skin”. It was essentially the sex shorts program. There were a few good really good shorts, such as “Dirty Glitter,” and “Phone Sex Grandma”.
After watching the Steelers get into the Superbowl, (part of dating a Steelers fan), and a “Half Nelson” cocktail party, we tried to get into “Science of Sleep” on Sunday night, but so was everyone else in Park City.
• Monday we got up early & waited on line to attend the premier of “Wristcutters: A Love Story.” Set in a parallel realm, all inhabitants have committed suicide, and this is the afterlife they are given. Filmed with a grayish overtone, where no bright colors are accessible & smiles are not possible, the movie could have been quite depressing. But instead, with a cast including Patrick Fugit on a search for his girlfriend, played by Leslie Bibb, Shannyn Sossamon, convinced she was sent here mistakenly, and guest spots by Tom Waits and Will Arnett, the script was kept light enough so you didn’t remember that they are actually dead.
• Then it was off to nap before Broken Social Scene played a party for the “Half Nelson” premier (more on this movie later, I promise!), we left early to catch the last half of the Beastie Boys/ Myspace party. They played for about 2 hours. We saw about 45 minutes. But what we saw was great. I will hopefully post a short video in a few days. Rachel Dratch of SNL was adorable standing on a chair to see above the crowd, dancing her ass off.
• Tuesday- my boy got up & left at the crack ass of dawn (around 7:45 for those of you counting) to wait on line for: Art School Confidential” at 11:30 am. (He is a comic book geek, but a cute one). He was third on line. I got to sleep late. We wound up getting free tickets from SPC just before they sold the extra tickets.
It was a cute movie, about what a talented artist is willing to do to get noticed. Or at least admit to. It starts Max Minghella, a fairly up & coming actor, Sophia Myles, (who played Isolde opposite James Franco in “Tristan & Isolde”) John Malkovich (yes, the). Definitely a movie that will do well in NY/La, etc. And the art community. Enough elements of comedy, love & real life to reign true.
• We stuck around for “Right at Your Door”, starting Rory Cochran & Mary McCormack. Focusing on a married couple in the aftermath of a dirty bomb going off in downtown LA. While parts cause you to question, such as the twist ending, the acting by these characters was absolutely amazing. They go though all the emotions- what do you do when the one you love has been exposed?
I thought it was shot really well, with the limited budget that they had. One minute LA looks fine. A few minutes later, it has been covered in white ash. Music is composed by Tomandandy. This film later won best cinematography.
• Wednesday morning we got up early to see “Puccini for Beginners.” While opera is referenced in this film, the focus is a lesbian, reeling from a recent breakup with her girlfriend, finds herself falling for a man, and then a woman as well. She balances the two relationships, until suddenly, she discovers what the audience already has- her current lovers are each’s former lover. Quelle Horreur!
This is a quirky little movie, in the essence of other semi- NY lesbian films, like “Kissing Jessica Stein”. However, all the actors are great in this. A cute 3rd date movie.
• Our Park City adventure ended with the Premier of “This Film is Not Yet Rated” How this movie got shafted on any awards is really beyond me, as it focuses on something Sundance is constantly struggling against- major corporations! Filmmaker Kirby Dick explores the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), which has the responsibility of rating all films that are distributed in US Theaters. Over the past few years filmmakers, especially independent films that linger on the verge of subjects that are considered non-traditional. The MPAA is made up of a secret society who decides what is morally acceptable and not. Dick, hiring private investigators, is able to locate members of the MPAA, as well as the Appeals board. Dick presents an interesting film, focusing on censorship issues, board qualifications, and piracy. Receiving a NC-17 rating itself upon its first screening, (and Sundance even restricting attendance to 18+), this is definitely a movie for anyone who is interested in pursuing a filmmaking career.
Check back more this week for my SLC viewings!
xoxo
michele
posted by hunnypot917 at 3:01 PM
1 comments
