Thursday, January 26, 2012 10:41AM - By Brendan Walsh
Spike Lee is back! He premiered his latest joint, Red Hook Summer this week at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival to a sold out crowd of 1300, and it has become one of the most talked about films of the festival. In a return to form (and Brooklyn), Lee brings back the colorful visual and storytelling style (and even a few characters!), that made him famous with Do The Right Thing. As usual, he doesn’t pull any punches, and left audiences with a lot to discuss. Check out the rest of the review after the jump…
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 12:41AM - By Christie Ko
This is my first exposure to the Zellner brothers’ work, and I’m intrigued, but I found it a bit confusing. They have a quirky comic edge and a healthy respect for the bizarre that amuses and attracts me. That said, there is a darkness and a stillness to Kid-Thing that I found unsettling and hard to watch. The Sundance Film Festival is often a staging ground for experimental dramas, and I would put this film in that category.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012 4:22PM - By Christie Ko
Based on the title and Sundance 2012 program description, I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about this film. Full disclosure, I was pretty sure I was going to hate it, mainly because I, too, Am Not a Hipster (hint). But an unexpected thing happened part way through: My heart started pounding, and I realized that I was anxious for the characters and their situation. And later, when I teared up, I had to give up on my aspirations of being an eye-rolling naysayer…
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Tuesday, January 24, 2012 2:13PM - By Christie Ko
This film has Criterion Collection written all over it. It has everything I wanted it to have: stunning imagery, complex, well-developed characters, a blend of folktale and modern-day storytelling, and a truly masterful incorporation of the real and the imaginary. A brilliant, inventive, and beautiful coming-of-age journey, Beasts of the Southern Wild is by far my favorite film to-date from Sundance 2012.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012 9:27AM - By Laura Aguirre
For the first time in “Gossip Girl” history, Blair gets drunk. We’ve seen Serena drunk and on drugs plenty of times, but Blair has always managed to stay sober, despite her crazy friends. Well, finally, after five seasons, we get a taste of drunk Blair, who celebrates her last few days as a single gal in a very non-Blair environment. Elsewhere, Serena spends her time with Dan, prepping for the launch of her new blog; Chuck spies on Blair (nothing new there); and Nate continues his secret relationship with Gossip Girl.
Let’s go over Monday’s episode of “Gossip Girl.”
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Sunday, January 22, 2012 5:53PM - By Christie Ko
I think it’s fair to say we as Americans have an obsession with the rags-to-riches story and a fetish-like desire for judging rich and famous people with a mixture of envy and disgust. The Queen of Versailles, Jackie Sieger, has everything, is pretty out-of touch with reality, and benefited greatly from the sale of sub-prime mortgages. And yet somehow, she is completely and utterly likeable. This Sundance 2012 tragicomic documentary is an equal-parts moving and funny post-recession commentary on the folly of the American Dream.
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Sunday, January 22, 2012 3:39PM - By Christie Ko
If you’re lucky, you don’t spend much time at the hospital, but all of us at some point in our lives will find ourselves needing medical care. And when we’re sick or injured, we want to believe that the health care system we have in place has our very best interests in mind. Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Health Care, debuting at Sundance 2012 paints a picture that may make you rethink what it means to be “healthy” and how much you trust your doctor’s advice… Continue Reading
Sunday, January 22, 2012 1:50PM - By Mali Elfman
Yet another one of my Top 5 Film Picks coming through. This film was exactly what I was hoping for: witty, funny, meaningful, enlightened and brilliantly acted by Frank Langella. The film takes a high concept premise and a character driven plot and turns it into a wonderfully executed experience.
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Sunday, January 22, 2012 1:05PM - By Mali Elfman
Wish You Were Here was absolutely perfect way to kick-off Sundance Film Festival 2012! It’s innovative, well made, beautifully acted and like all the best Sundance films, there’s really no way to explain it to those who haven’t seen it without ruining it. But, I will do my best to tell you about the wonders of Wish You Were Here without destroying any of this amazing film!
Too lazy to read? That’s okay! Watch my video review at the bottom of the post!
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