Indie film news, reviews, commentary, interviews, podcasts and more, updated throughout the week.
Panel Panic: A Day in the Life of SXSWi
By Anthony De Rosa on 03/12/2010
With four to five or more events happening at one time, at all times, choosing which direction to take can be a daunting task at SXSW Interactive, the portion of the festival devoted to all thing internet. There are plenty of tools to choose from to keep track of what's available -- the main SXSW.com website, Plancast, Sched, and SitBy.us. If you're the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants type and want to follow the crowd, you can always check which panel your friends are at by logging into Foursquare or Gowalla, or do a Twitter search to see which panels are trending. Personally, I... MORE »
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Sundance Spin for 1/30: The Award Winners
By Stephen Saito on 01/30/2010
Filed under: FestivalsSundance put a punctuation mark on this year's festival with their awards announcement -- emcee (and "The Perfect Host" star) David Hyde Pierce rapped the name of nearly every festival film over the Black Eyed Peas' "Boom Boom Pow." (Hyde Pierce joked, "it was Redford's idea.") Here are the winners: Grand Jury Prize for U.S. Dramatic Film: Debra Granik's "Winter's Bone" (Roadside Attractions picked up the film and will likely distribute in the summer.) Special Jury Prize for U.S. Dramatic Film: Mark Ruffalo's "Sympathy for Delicious" Directing Award, Dramatic Category: Eric Mendelsohn for "3 Backyards" Directing Award, Documentary Category: Leon... MORE »
Sundance Spin for 1/29: "Delicious" Isn't Tasty, "Blue" Is Bought
By Stephen Saito on 01/29/2010
Filed under: FestivalsWe're calling it a day in Sundance, but keep looking at our Sundance home page and Cheat Sheet for continuing coverage from this year's fest. Since returning from Park City, we've already posted new photo galleries from the "Get Low" and "Winter's Bone" premieres, and more is on the way. In the meantime, check out Matt Singer's review of "Sympathy for Delicious" and our roundup of Sundance and Slamdance award winners, news of who will be distributing the Ryan Gosling-Michelle Williams romantic drama "Blue Valentine" and other Sundance flicks, and where you can see some clips of those films right... MORE »
Sundance Spin for 1/27: "Twelve" is a Zero.
By Stephen Saito on 01/27/2010
Filed under: FestivalsWhile our Sundance home page is the place for all our coverage from Park City, here is a brief rundown of what's been going on during the last 24 hours, including Matt Singer's interview with "The Freebie" writer/director Katie Aselton and co-star Dax Shepard and reviews of the Chace Crawford drama "Twelve," the Banksy doc "Exit Through the Gift Shop," Philip Seymour Hoffman's directorial debut "Jack Goes Boating" and the 3D Aussie doc "Cane Toads 2: The Conquest." Some were puzzled when Sundance accepted "Batman and Robin" director Joel Schumacher's latest film "Twelve." James Rocchi writes that the concern was... MORE »
Sundance Spin for 1/26: "Mother" Doesn't Know Best
By Stephen Saito on 01/26/2010
Filed under: FestivalsWhile our Sundance home page is the place for all our coverage from Park City, here is a brief rundown of what's been going on during the last 24 hours, including a new photo gallery for the Catherine Keener-Amanda Peet dramedy "Please Give" and reviews of "Lucky," "The Freebie" and "Mother and Child." Matt Singer got an unwelcome Paul Haggis vibe from Rodrigo Garcia's "Mother and Child," a multi-stranded drama starring Annette Bening, Naomi Watts and Kerry Washington as a trio of women connected through pregnancy and adoption that Sony Classics will release in May. Here's an excerpt from his... MORE »
Sundance Spin for 1/25: Does "The Runaways" Rock or Is It Rocky?
By Stephen Saito on 01/25/2010
Filed under: FestivalsWhile our Sundance home page is the place for all our coverage from Park City, here is a brief rundown of what's been going on during the last 24 hours, including the IFC News podcast with Alison Willmore and Matt Singer weighing the positives and negatives of this year's festival including the much-hyped screening of the Banksy doc "Exit Through the Gift Shop," "Restrepo" and "Hesher," plus a new photo gallery for the Ben Affleck-Tommy Lee Jones drama "The Company Men" and reviews of "The Runaways" and "Smash His Camera." "The Runaways" wasn't music to Sam Adams' ears. Here's an... MORE »
Sundance Spin for 1/24: Affleck in Good "Company"
By Stephen Saito on 01/24/2010
Filed under: FestivalsWhile our Sundance home page is the place for all our coverage from Park City, here is a brief rundown of what's been going on during the last 24 hours, including an interview with "Tucker & Dale Vs. Evil" star Alan Tudyk, new photo galleries for "Hesher" and "Howl," and reviews of "The Company Men," "Hesher," "Winter's Bone," and "Four Lions." Said to be close to a sale, Bilge Ebiri expects "The Company Men" to be coming to a theater near you after Sundance. Here's an excerpt from his review, which can be found in full here: While a variety... MORE »
Sundance Spin for 1/23: "Catfish" Catches Fire, "Nowhere Boy" Set Straight
By Stephen Saito on 01/23/2010
Filed under: FestivalsWhile our Sundance home page is the place for all our coverage from Park City, here is a brief rundown of what's been going on during the last 24 hours, including reviews of "Catfish," "Nowhere Boy," "Please Give," and "HappyThankYouMorePlease." Alison Willmore enjoyed the documentary that's become the talk of the festival, "Catfish," which premiered in the Spotlight section. Here's an excerpt from her (spoiler-heavy) review, which can be found in full here: You can see why Ariel Schulman, who co-directed alongside Henry Joost (both also figure in largely on screen), started chronicling the development of his brother Nev's online... MORE »
Sundance Spin for 1/22: "HOWL" Resounds
By Stephen Saito on 01/22/2010
Filed under: FestivalsWhile our Sundance home page is the place for all our coverage from Park City, here is a brief rundown of what's been going on during the last 24 hours. James Rocchi went to the opening night premiere of "HOWL," the narrative debut of "The Life and Times of Harvey Milk" documentarians Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman and is in the U.S. Dramatic Competition. Here's an excerpt from his review, which can be found in full here: "HOWL" is a film full of contradictions, wave upon wave of contrast and complication crashing over each other with undeniable power and, occasionally,... MORE »
Sundance 2010 Cheat Sheet
By Stephen Saito on 01/19/2010
Filed under: FestivalsSundance-bound and tired of flipping through each film individually on the schedule? Staying comfortably home, but don't want to be left out of the conversation about the indies likely to dominate the discussion for the next year? Well, we've got a guide for you. We've put together the ultimate cheat sheet to this year's Sundance Film Festival. Although it's useful as a preview to the 113 features this year's fest (every title links to its respective Sundance page), consider it a living, breathing document with Facebook and Twitter links to follow filmmakers and our own Matt Singer (@mattsinger) and Alison... MORE »
Dystopian Visions
By Alison Willmore on 11/18/2009
Filed under: FestivalsOn our last day in Denmark, a few of us in the CPH:DOX American contingent stopped by Christiania, Copenhagen's hippie paradise and self-proclaimed autonomous zone. In stark contrast to the cobblestones and slick Scandinavian design of the main city, Christiania is dirt paths and DIY housing, a neighborhood based around abandoned military barracks that were taken over by squatters in the early '70s. It was too early for much to be going on, but on the main drag the cannabis market that's made the area a favorite for backpackers and a constant source of controversy was already open, with stalls... MORE »
Everybody's (Sorta) Fine
By Stephen Saito on 11/12/2009
Filed under: Festivals"Everyone's been asking how we're doing this week," film critic-turned-AFI programmer Robert Koehler said, shortly before a screening of Juan José Campanella's Argentinean murder mystery "The Secret of Their Eyes." "And the answer is our sponsors." Indeed, thanks to chief sponsor Audi, AFI has responded to an economy that's been particularly unkind to film festivals with free tickets that have ensured capacity attendance to most, if not all, of their screenings at the Mann's Chinese Theaters in Hollywood. Even the more obscure titles that Koehler and his team have programmed, like Philippe Grandrieux's "The Lake" or the Spanish Berlinale winner... MORE »
Fantastic Fest: Uwe Boll, Auteur
By Matt Singer on 10/05/2009
Filed under: FestivalsTwo things spread quickly at film festivals: upper respiratory tract infections and buzz. And the buzz spreading around Fantastic Fest last week was that the impossible had happened: that Uwe Boll, the infamous director of notoriously (and, at times, enjoyably) terrible films like "Alone in the Dark" and "BloodRayne," had made a good movie. Film School Rejects declared Boll's new film "Rampage" "sick, violent, and fun"; /Film called it "not just good in comparison to the rest of his filmography, but a good movie in its own right." Usually Boll's movies aren't just bad, they're splendidly bad. They're lazily plotted,... MORE »
Fantastic Fest: And the Hits Keep Coming...
By Stephen Saito on 10/02/2009
Filed under: Festivals"'Ninja Assassin 2' will be in 3D with Sprayarama," director James McTeigue joked before the premiere of the first and so far only "Ninja Assassin" at the Alamo Drafthouse on Tuesday. And there were copious amounts of blood sputtered in the film that followed, a gory but too often creatively bloodless affair that stars Korean pop star Rain as Raizo, a warrior trained from birth in the ninja way before turning against his clan after the death of a female colleague. How you'll feel about "Ninja Assassin" will depend on your inherent interest in the masked men (and in this... MORE »
NYFF: Lost Control
By Matt Singer on 09/29/2009
Filed under: FestivalsCinema have produced some memorably bad mothers -- Faye Dunaway's wire-hanger-wielding Joan Crawford in "Mommie Dearest" springs to mind -- but I'm hard-pressed to think of a meaner mom in movie history than Mary, from director Lee Daniels' "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire," a hateful, bitter woman who manages to be the most abusive parent in a family where the father has sired two children with his own daughter. This mortal-lock-for-an-Oscar-nomination of a performance comes from Mo'Nique, the comedienne who I previously knew best as the host of a reality television show that placed her name in... MORE »
NYFF: Drunk on Cinema
By Alison Willmore on 09/28/2009
Filed under: FestivalsBeing unfamiliar with "The Incident," the novel by Christian Gailly on which "Wild Grass" is based, I like to imagine it this fine-boned, New Yorkeresque tale of lonely Parisians brought together by coincidence. If that's the case, Alain Resnais' high-strung film is something like happens when you get that story drunk and it lurches around the house, knocking things over and hitting on your host's wife. In the New York Film Festival's opening night selection, mad flourishes are daubed all over moments that don't seem like they demand any particular emphasis, peculiarities abound and characters ramp up to and back... MORE »
Toronto 2009: The Feminine Mystique
By Stephen Saito on 09/22/2009
Filed under: FestivalsIt seemed appropriate that "The Young Victoria" closed out Toronto this year, considering that the festival turned out to be a coronation for women in film, in addition to being a celebration its host metropolis (a series of pre-screening clips from Toronto-based films honored the city's 175th anniversary). Besides showcasing upcoming femme-centric fall releases as "Bright Star," "An Education," "Whip It!" and "Fish Tank," the festival ended up bestowing audience awards upon the coming-of-age drama "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire" and the doc "The Topp Twins," which focuses on a pair of lesbian sisters and musicians who... MORE »
Toronto 2009: "Bad Lieutenant" On Duty
By Stephen Saito on 09/21/2009
Filed under: FestivalsThe last shot of "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans" has Nicolas Cage with his back against the wall of an aquarium tank, letting out a slight guffaw before the screen turns black. Werner Herzog's explanation? Clearly, it's a reference to the final self-portraits of Rembrandt and Goya, who immortalized themselves laughing at their own reflections. "It has such a mysterious chuckle at the end," Herzog told the crowd at the Elgin Theatre. "You don't know where it comes from." There's little use in explaining most of what transpires in "Bad Lieutenant." It has little to do with Abel... MORE »
Toronto 2009: Neil Jordan Dives Into "Ondine"
By Stephen Saito on 09/18/2009
Filed under: FestivalsWhen Neil Jordan was wondering what to do during the writers' strike last year, all he had to do was look out his window. Although the director of "The Crying Game" and "Breakfast on Pluto" has filmed in his native Ireland before, he had never shot the rolling hills or seascape, which provide the backdrop for his new film, "Ondine." The film tells the lovely tale of a fisherman named Syracuse (Colin Farrell) who discovers in his net a young woman (Alicja Bachleda) that his daughter strongly believes is a selkie. Strange things begin to happen in the presence of... MORE »
Toronto 2009: "Micmacs"' Charming Arms Race
By Stephen Saito on 09/17/2009
Filed under: FestivalsWhy there were a few scattered empty seats left at the world premiere of "Micmacs," I don't know. This is Jean-Pierre Jeunet, dammit, and after putting the excess of "A Very Long Engagement" behind him, he arrived in Toronto with a leaner and meaner comedy that seems to have been designed as a playground for his visual ingenuity and boundless imagination. His partner in crime, the French star Dany Boon ("My Best Friend"), stars as Bazil, a video store clerk who's introduced to us playfully mouthing along to the dialogue in "The Big Sleep" before a freak gun accident leaves... MORE »
Toronto 2009: Edward Norton Talks to Himself
By Stephen Saito on 09/16/2009
Filed under: Festivals"I walk around talking to myself anyway," Edward Norton told the packed Ryerson Theater after Monday's premiere of "Leaves of Grass" at the Toronto Film Festival. "Maybe this was just the way to get paid for it." Although the "Fight Club" star's played a few characters with dual personalities, this new comedy from Tim Blake Nelson marks the first time Norton has played two distinct characters. The Kincaid twins have gone their separate ways in life -- Bill is a well-liked philosophy professor at Brown, while Brady is a deceptively smart hydroponic weed dealer. The brothers reunite when the straitlaced... MORE »
Toronto 2009: "Soul Kitchen"'s Chaotic Warmth
By Stephen Saito on 09/15/2009
Filed under: FestivalsGerman helmer Fatih Akin's latest, "Soul Kitchen," is a lark, but an enjoyable one. The film sees the director of "Head On" and "The Edge of Heaven" doing schtick for the first time -- not as odd a transition as one might think from his previous dramas, which have in common a deeply felt human touch and sense of interconnection. In fact, Zinos (Adam Bousdoukos) wishes he were a little less connected at the start of "Soul Kitchen" -- his brother Illyas (Moritz Bleibtreu) is out on conditional probation and needs a job at his restaurant, a high school acquaintance... MORE »
Toronto 2009: "Chloe" is Heated, "Whip It" Whips It Good
By Stephen Saito on 09/14/2009
Filed under: FestivalsSome may disagree, but I think there's something pretty cool about Toronto's mayor David Miller coming out to declare how proud he is of Atom Egoyan's new erotic thriller "Chloe." Of course, Miller was more likely taking pride in the depiction of his fair city than the film itself, which opens with Amanda Seyfried putting on a lacy black brassiere and never looks back. Egoyan has never shied away from the erotic -- it's the thrills part that has eluded his work for mainstream audiences, and when we meet Catherine (Julianne Moore) at the start of "Chloe," she, too, is... MORE »
Toronto 2009: "Up in the Air" Flies High
By Stephen Saito on 09/12/2009
Filed under: FestivalsFour years ago, a friend of mine came home from Toronto disappointed by the premiere of "Elizabethtown," Cameron Crowe's ill-fated, deeply personal story of a man coming home to bury his father. The director of "Almost Famous" and "Jerry Maguire," Crowe was a true heir to Hal Ashby when it came to making melancholy and emotionally moving mainstream entertainments, yet when his cut of "Elizabethtown" (that was ultimately trimmed down in running time) failed to win over audiences here, it was hard to imagine when someone would attempt tp do so again. "Up in the Air" will be easy to... MORE »
Toronto 2009: "Jennifer's Body" Could Use Some Work
By Stephen Saito on 09/11/2009
Filed under: FestivalsEven though Telluride stole a little of Toronto's thunder with a sneak premiere of Jason Reitman's "Up in the Air," the foremost film festival in North America is not about to let anyone forget that it was the place where "Juno" debuted two years ago. All three "Juno" principles -- Reitman, screenwriter Diablo Cody (with "Jennifer's Body"), and star Ellen Page (the lead in "Whip It!") -- are back up north with new films, and the most direct descendent, the Reitman-produced and Cody-penned "Jennifer's Body," was the first of the three to premiere in the midnight madness section on Thursday.... MORE »
Comic-Con: "Iron Man 2" and Other Funny Business
By Stephen Saito on 07/27/2009
Filed under: FestivalsUsually, it's the crowds at Comic-Con who are calling "bullshit" during the panels, but it was Robert Downey Jr. who pulled the BS card on Jon Favreau when the director introduced footage for "Iron Man 2" and presented what looked like a cheesy commercial for a used car lot blowout with glimpses of the new film. "What was that unadulterated garbage I just saw?" Downey complained as he walked onto the stage to huge cheers. "You showed me better stuff in the editing room." Though Favreau protested that "Iron Man 2" only wrapped a week prior and nudged Downey into... MORE »
Comic-Con: Wild Things, "Hex" and Miyazaki
By Stephen Saito on 07/25/2009
Filed under: Festivals"This is getting weird...I like it," Josh Brolin said midway through the audience Q&A of Warner Bros.' presentation of "Jonah Hex." Sitting alongside director Jimmy Hayward and co-stars Michael Fassbender and Megan Fox a mere 48 hours after the film wrapped production, Brolin was clearly enjoying the moment, teasing the audience that the only comic book he read as a kid was "Richie Rich" when asked if he was a fan of "Hex"'s source material and smirking after five minutes of footage showed his scarred cowboy twirling six-shooters and tossing pickaxes at anyone who mocks his appearance. As Brolin emphasized,... MORE »
Comic-Con: Musings from the Back of the Twiline
By Stephen Saito on 07/24/2009
Filed under: FestivalsEveryone likes to pick out trends each Comic-Con, but at this year's four-day geek bacchanal, where the film panels once again have equal (if not greater) priority to comic books, there seems to be a genuine one developing as the faceless franchises that usually reign over the convention have given way to the some of the world's best directors pushing the limits of their craft. Sure, "Twilight" fans camped outside the San Diego Convention Center (forming what our own Matt Singer dubbed the "Twiline") for a glimpse of Robert Pattinson yesterday, and Saturday's "Iron Man 2" panel, said to include... MORE »
Subject Versus Approach at Cinevegas
By Matt Singer on 06/18/2009
Filed under: FestivalsThe "Pioneer Documentaries" program of the CineVegas Film Festival claims to highlight films that capture "subjects who defy odds and expectations." And that's an appropriate enough description for the seven docs featured this year, whose focuses range from poker to the anti-aging industry, but it's also one that could be applied to over half the nonfiction films on the festival circuit today. A good subject can make a documentary, but it's how a film presents and treats that subject that sets it apart, as two films in the line-up with thematically similar subject matter and extremely different approaches demonstrate so... MORE »
A Heart-Stopping (Literally) Premiere
By Stephen Saito on 04/30/2009
Filed under: Festivals, InterviewsIn a horror film, it's usually the audience that's freaking out, but that wasn't the case Saturday night at the Tribeca Film Festival, when Michael Cuesta's "Tell Tale" made its world premiere. Right as the stylish retelling of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart" reached its climax, one audience member's heart literally stopped, at least momentarily, as the film was suspended and an ambulance was called. (Though Cuesta initially suspected it might be a stunt on the part of Ridley Scott's production company, Scott Free, the director was later told it was likely a fainting spell or a transient ischemic... MORE »
