Other Films Watched | Sundance 2023
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Here, you'll find quick, mini-reviews about films I watched throughout this year's Sundance Film Festival that I didn't have time to write a full, lengthy article about. By clicking on the titles below, you'll be redirected to the respective review.
Birth/Rebirth Run Rabbit Run Magazine Dreams Eileen Infinity Pool
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Birth/Rebirth
Directed by: Laura Moss
Written by: Laura Moss, Brendan J. O’Brien
Starring: Marin Ireland, Judy Reyes, A.J. Lister, Breeda Wool
Runtime: 98 min
Synopsis: A morgue technician successfully reanimates the body of a little girl, but to keep her breathing, she will need to harvest biological materials from pregnant women. When the girl's mother, a nurse, discovers her baby alive, they enter into a deal that forces them both down a dark path of no return.
Thoughts: Birth/Rebirth contains a few gruesome, visually shocking scenes. That said, the compelling drama about life and death is what makes this such a horrifyingly captivating watch. Judy Reyes and Marin Ireland are truly outstanding. Highly appreciate the focus on characters instead of cheap scares.
Rating: B
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Run Rabbit Run
Directed by: Daina Reid
Written by: Hannah Kent
Starring: Sarah Snook, Lily Latorre, Damon Herriman, Greta Scacchi
Runtime: 100 min
Synopsis: A doctor is frightened by her young daughter’s inexplicable memories of a past identity.
Thoughts: Run Rabbit Run features an award-worthy, powerful performance from Sarah Snook, as well as excellent cinematography by Bonnie Elliott. Unfortunately, it's overlong, messy, and repetitive and gradually replaces its intriguing, thematically profound mystery with generic jumpscares.
Rating: C
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Magazine Dreams
Directed by: Elijah Bynum
Written by: Elijah Bynum
Starring: Jonathan Majors, Haley Bennett, Taylour Paige, Mike O’Hearn, Harrison Page, Harriet Sansom Harris
Runtime: 124 min
Synopsis: A Black amateur bodybuilder struggles to find human connection in this exploration of celebrity and violence.
Thoughts: Magazine Dreams is relentlessly uncomfortable, nerve-wracking, and simply excruciating to get through. Not for everyone, myself included, sadly. That said, JONATHAN FREAKING MAJORS! One of the most intense, unforgettable performances you’ll see all year. Damn. Really… damn!
Rating: C+
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Eileen
Directed by: William Oldroyd
Written by: Luke Goebel, Ottessa Moshfegh
Starring: Thomasin McKenzie, Anne Hathaway, Shea Whigham, Marin Ireland, Owen Teague
Runtime: 97 min
Synopsis: A woman's friendship with a new co-worker at the prison facility where she works takes a sinister turn.
Thoughts: Eileen surrounds viewers with an immersive noir environment and an atmospheric score, taking audiences through a captivating "light at the end of the tunnel" character study. William Oldroyd's visual style resembles Edgar Wright's - The Last Night in Soho vibes - while the performances of Thomasin McKenzie and Anne Hathaway are nothing short of brilliant. The tonal shift that marks the third act will no doubt divide audiences - a rather light narrative about female revitalization and friendship drastically transforms into a dark, heavy thriller filled with shocking, macabre developments - but it's the lack of a more impactful ending that doesn't allow character arcs to be closed in a more memorable manner. Personally, it was still quite satisfying.
Rating: B+
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Infinity Pool
Directed by: Brandon Cronenberg
Written by: Brandon Cronenberg
Starring: Alexander Skarsgård, Mia Goth, Cleopatra Coleman
Runtime: 118 min
Synopsis: James and Em Foster are enjoying an all-inclusive beach vacation in the fictional island of La Tolqa, when a fatal accident exposes the resort's perverse subculture of hedonistic tourism, reckless violence and surreal horrors.
Thoughts: Infinity Pool is truly a film of two halves. The first is incredibly engaging, mysterious, and unpredictable. The tense, uneasy atmosphere never leaves the viewer comfortable, and the technical aspects of the entire movie deserve tons of praise. However, the second part follows a repetitive, aimless path when the narrative's potential points to an in-depth study of privilege and wealth in a world where consequences cease to exist. Characters make decisions "just because", and Brandon Cronenberg overuses the trippy montages - if the first one still has some meaning, the others are merely excruciatingly long visual nonsense. Despite the extremely inaccessible film, Alexander Skarsgård and Mia Goth are absolutely mesmerizing.
Rating: C
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Cat Person
Directed by: Susanna Fogel
Written by: Michelle Ashford
Starring: Emilia Jones, Nicholas Braun, Geraldine Viswanathan, Hope Davis, Fred Melamed, Isabella Rossellini
Runtime: 120 min
Synopsis: The brief relationship between a twenty-year-old sophomore college student Margot, and an older man Robert, who is a regular at the movie theater where Margot works.
Thoughts: Cat Person is quite the mixed bag. Themes are there, as do the thought-provoking messages about trust and fear in modern dating from a female perspective. Sadly, the tonally inconsistent, frustratingly cringe, underdeveloped script needed more work. Emilia Jones is great, though!
Rating: C-
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You Hurt My Feelings
Directed by: Nicole Holofcener
Written by: Nicole Holofcener
Starring: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Tobias Menzies, Michaela Watkins, Owen Teague, Arian Moayed, Jeannie Berlin
Runtime: 93 min
Synopsis: A novelist's longstanding marriage is suddenly upended when she overhears her husband giving his honest reaction to her latest book.
Thoughts: You Hurt My Feelings is one of those pleasantly light films that serve as the perfect palate cleanser during a festival. Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Tobias Menzies share good chemistry in a story about how trust and lies can impact loving, healthy relationships. Left me feeling good.
