As Sundance 2012 quickly approaches and the flurry (aka stress) of ticket-buying subsides, I decided I better dust off the old blog and do some postin’. I wouldn't want to disappoint my fans (Hi Mom and Dad.)
To bring you up to date, my sister, Jenn, and I spent the long Christmas weekend pouring over the Film Guide and carefully crafting the Ultimate Sundance Viewing Schedule. As with previous years, that plan was completely scrapped once we discovered the lack of available tickets. We did however end up with an interesting mix of movies that even includes some of our first choices (thanks to the fact that Jenn has put off getting an Oregon driver’s license, so still "appears to be" a Park City resident.)
Reading the Film Guide is an exercise in code-cracking. As this is our ninth year, we have learned a thing or two about how to interpret the two-paragraph descriptions for each film (see previous posts about completely awful movies.) Here are some examples of actual descriptions that cause our red flag to fly:
“Using a non-linear timeframe…”
“…a funky, surreal, world of deadpan absurdism.”
And this one right from the description of Wuthering Heights (yes, that Wuthering Heights): “A stark cinematic expression of the novel’s fierce beauty. Stripping the story to its elemental form, [the filmmaker] dispenses with narrative embellishments, music, literary sheen and romanticism – leaving a wondrous, spare aesthetic of somber hues and harsh textures dominated by nature, natural sounds, animals, and the craggy, windswept terrain.” This description, coupled with the fact that there is no mention of the actors’ performances makes me think it’s a film comprised of brooding looks and physical tension rather than dialog. I’ll pass.
We prefer (and are seeing) films with descriptions that include:
“…propelled by an exceptional cast, and fused with a fierce hip-hop score…”
“Chris Rock … who convincingly plays the straight man…”
"Parker Posey” (You had me at P-uh.)
And this little gem from the Australian movie Kid-Thing: "...a carefully observed film that is both harsh and poignant, but one that retains [the filmmakers’] idiosyncratic humor – you will learn how to ‘blow a chicken’s mind’." Could be useful in chicken-centric Portland.
If these little snippets aren’t enough and you have a half day to spare, check out the on-line film guide in its entirety at: http://filmguide.sundance.org/
The Festival kicks off on Thursday, January 19, but we will not be arriving until the weekend and plan to see movies every day from 1/23 to 1/27. In the meantime, you will have to do with my musings and ramblings about the films we plan to see and the wines I plan to pack (it is Utah after all.)
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