Sundance Film Festival – Page 5

Sundance Film Festival 2014 Award Winners

^{[Ruby Hornet will be at Sundance Film Festival 2014 providing coverage of the festival's 30th year. Keep it tuned to Ruby Hornet this week as we share reviews, interviews, photos, and more at one of the country's largest film festivals.]}

Photo by Calvin Knight

Sundance Film Festival 2014 came and went like a flash. With over 100 films playing during the festival, many of which consisted of world premieres, it's hard to catch every single one. It was hard for myself to catch the dozen or so films I was able to cover, but I can't even imagine how hard it was for the juries to watch dozens of films competing in the U.S. Dramatic and Documentary Competitions, as well as the World Dramatic and Documentary Competitions. Then, of course, the categories get broken down even more amongst the other awards, including Audience Awards and recognition in directing, editing, cinematography, etc.

The festival's US Dramatic Award (and US Dramatic Audience Award) went to Whiplash, written and directed by Damien Chazelle, a dramatic film about a young drummer intent on becoming one of the best jazz drummers. The film's two stars, Miles Teller (The Spectacular Now) and J.K. Simmons (Spider-Man), received high praise for their roles. The World Dramatic Award went to To Kill a Man, which I found favorably well. Other special recognition awards include a Special Jury Award for Musical Score for Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter, and the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award for The Skeleton Twins.

You can find the full list of winners below.

U. S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic Whiplash
U. S. Grand Jury Prize: Documentary Rich Hill
World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic To Kill a Man
World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary Return to Homs

Audience Award: U. S. Dramatic presented by Acura Whiplash
Audience Award: U.S. Documentary presented by Acura Alive Inside: A Story of Music & Memory
Audience Award: World Cinema Dramatic Difret
Audience Award: World Cinema: Documentary The Green Prince
Audience Award: Best of NEXT Imperial Dreams

Directing Award: U. S. Dramatic Fishing Without Nets / Cutter Hodierne
Directing Award: U. S. Documentary The Case Against 8 / Ben Cotner & Ryan White
Directing Award: World Cinema Dramatic 52 Tuesdays / Sophie Hyde
Directing Award: World Cinema Documentary 20,000 Days on Earth / Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard

Cinematography Award: U. S. Dramatic Low Down / Christopher Blauvelt
Cinematography Award: U. S. Documentary E-TEAM / Ross Kauffman & Rachel Beth Anderson
Cinematography Award: World Cinema Dramatic Lilting / Ula Pontikos
Cinematography Award: World Cinema Documentary Happiness / Thomas Balmès & Nina Bernfeld

U. S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Breakthrough Talent Dear White People / Justin Simien
U. S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Musical Score Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter / The Octopus Project
U. S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Intuitive Filmmaking The Overnighters
U. S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Use of Animation Watchers of the Sky
World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Ensemble Performance God Help the Girl
World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Cinematic Bravery We Come as Friends

Editing Award: U. S. Documentary Watchers of the Sky
Editing Award: World Cinema Documentary 20,000 Days on Earth

Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award: U.S. Dramatic The Skeleton Twins / Craig Johnson & Mark Heyman
Screenwriting Award: World Cinema Dramatic Blind / Eskil Vogt
Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize I Origins

Short Film Grand Jury Prize Of God and Dogs
Short Film Jury Award: US Fiction Gregory Go Boom
Short Film Jury Award: International Fiction The Cut
Short Film Jury Award: Non-fiction I Think This is the Closest to How the Footage Looked
Short Film Jury Award: Animation Yearbook
Short Film Special Jury Award for Unique Vision Rat Pack Rat
Short Film Special Jury Award for Non-Fiction Love. Love. Love.
Short Film Special Jury Award for Direction and Ensemble Acting Burger
Short Film Audience Award, Presented by YouTube Chapel Perilous

by Geoff Henao

[Sundance Review] Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter

Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter
Directors: David Zellner
Rating: N/A
Release Date: January 20, 2014 (Sundance)

Films affect us in the most mysterious ways. For some, we find inspiration and influence in the art form. For others, we're absorbed into the universe and fall in love with the romantic notions of a cinematic life. There's no denying the effect art has on our everyday lives, but we can't succumb into the fictional universes infiltrating our minds. Exactly how far can we allow films to affect us?

Kumiko (Rinko Kinkuchi) is a loner with no real direction in life. While the rest of her co-workers genuinely love their positions as office workers, she doesn't find the same joy out of the monotony of her day-to-day life. Even her Mother constantly rains doubt onto her, badgering Kumiko about her lack of drive and interest in marrying and starting a family. There are only two beams of light in Kumiko's life: her bunny, Bunzo, and a delusional plan to unearth the buried treasure in The Coen Brothers' Fargo. Exactly how far Kumiko lets her delusions take over could represent the turning point she desperately needs in her life, no matter the ramifications.

Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter is set up as a road film, with the first half of the film taking place in Japan and the second taking place in Minnesota. The main source of conflict in the film harkens to the ideals of the Japanese social structure and how Kumiko simply doesn't fit into it. The rigors of finding a good job, a good husband, and beginning a family at a young age carry over Kumiko's head like an unrelenting raincloud. She finds her escape through the Coen Brothers classic, both figuratively and literally, ultimately falling down the rabbit's hole on a journey that, for better or worse, is heartbreaking in how delusional her psyche really is. Kinkuchi, best known for her role as Mako Mori in last year's Pacific Rim, deftly carries the weight of the film on her shoulders, her physical and emotional vulnerability complementing her character's.

Another high point of Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter is not found in the film's plot or acting, but in its soundtrack. Indie/electronic band The Octopus Project scored the film with its airy, atmospheric music matching Kumiko's quiet journey from Japan to Minnesota. The film received a Jury Award for their Musical Score, and it's not hard to see why.

Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter is a sad character study. Every break in which you expect to find Kumiko snap out from her fantasy world is shattered whenever she makes a self-assured decision to continue on her journey. Yet, in spite of acknowledging that the journey won't end well, you can't help but cheer her on and hope that somehow, someway, there really is a treasure underneath that X.

by Geoff Henao

The Raid 2 Berandal Cast at The Sundance 2014 Premiere Party by Virgil Solis

[Sundance Video] The Raid 2: Berandal Q&A, Iko Uwais pencak silat demonstration

In a festival full of film premieres, The Raid 2: Berandal was arguably one of the biggest films to screen at this year's Sundance Film Festival. The first film in the franchise, The Raid: Redemption, was a sleeper hit introducing many to the wonderful martial art, pencak silat, as well as a new style of action film that is actually prioritizes action over narrative. Following the film's premiere last week, the cast and crew of The Raid 2: Berandal gathered together to answer a short fan Q&A, as well as a pencak silat demonstration by the film's star, Iko Uwais. Enjoy the videos, and keep it tuned to Ruby Hornet as we wrap up our Sundance Film Festival 2014 coverage throughout the week!

by Geoff Henao

[Sundance Review] To Kill a Man (Matar a un hombre)

To Kill a Man (Matar a un hombre)
Director: Alejandro Fernandez Almendras
Rating: N/A
Release Date: January 17, 2014

How far would you go to protect your family? With our backs to the wall and facing a large threat, I'd imagine the answer would be, "Whatever it takes." However, not everybody can truly be prepared for the ramifications of their actions, even if it's in the name of safety and protection. In Alejandro Fernandez Almendras' To Kill a Man, an unassuming, middle-class husband and father of two is prodded and pushed to the brink until he takes matters into his own hands. However, the consequences of his actions are too much for him to bear for long.

Jorge (Daniel Candia) is a passive man who falls victim to bullying from some neighborhood scumbags led by one man, Kalule. When Jorge's son, Jorgito, decides to defend his father, things escalate when Kalule shoots him, then shoots himself to stage an act of defense. However, Kalule is sent to prison for a small period of time; upon his return, tensions escalate as he stalks and threatens the entire family until Jorge simply takes matters into his own hands.

To Kill a Man is a character study analyzing the effects a murder can have on a man. One of the most prevailing themes found in the film is the idea of masculinity and gender. Early in the film, Jorge's masculinity is ridiculed and taunted by the neighborhood scoundrels. His passive manner isn't exactly the most masculine, especially in Latino cultures. Even at his breaking point, Jorge isn't a hyper-masculine being; rather, he's still unconfident and unsure of his actions, even after the line is crossed.

As with most character studies, To Kill a Man is a quiet, slow-moving film. Because of this, there's a tendency for the film to plod and move too slowly at times. There may not be enough driving action to keep certain audiences engaged. However, those that do hang on will enjoy Jorge's journey and Almendras' exploration into the mind of a man desperate to do right by his family.

by Geoff Henao

[Sundance Review] Cooties

Cooties
Directors: Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion
Rating: N/A
Release Date: January 18, 2014

Everybody growing up remembers cooties. At one point in time, we've all received a cootie shot after the patented "circle, circle, dot dot" prescribed to us by our caring friends. In a way, the cootie shot was a rite of passage to protect us from the other sex until, well, we began thinking about sex. However, imagine if "cooties" were real, and the virus ended up being something much much worse than getting boy/girl germs on you?

Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion's Cooties addresses this very idea, albeit in a dark, and twisted manner. The "cooties" in Cooties are nothing more than an exaggerated result of diseases meat getting eaten by a young girl who falls ill. As her sickness manifests in something much more sinister, spreading across an entire school full of summer school children, it's up to the teachers, led by Clint (Elijah Wood), an aspiring writer who subs in for a sick teacher at his childhood elementary school, his childhood friend, Lucy (Alison Pill), her boyfriend, Wade (Rainn Wilson), and the other fellow teachers, played by Jack McBrayer (30 Rock), Rainn Wilson (The Office), Leigh Whannell (Saw III), and Nasim Pedrad (SNL), to attempt the school with two young survivor before they become another cafeteria meal.

Cooties is like a zombie film, with the zombies played solely by children. The added wrinkle is kind of fun, with a handful of current/former teachers at my screening referring to the film as "cathartic." There's something fun about seeing adults attack little kids, albeit with the added caveat of them becoming monsters. However, beyond that dark twist (and what it says about our enjoyment in seeing kids being beaned with high speed baseballs and sliced with katanas), Cooties otherwise feels very run of the mill.

While the film starts on a high note and ends on an exciting level, the entire second act of the film just drags on and halts all the progression and energy up to that point. Some of the jokes don't really stick during the second act, either. Despite a cast full of sitcom stars and comedic actors, Cooties was sorely lacking in the humor department. A minor role played by LOST's helped keep the film on a good, humorous tone, but ultimately, the laughs simply weren't there.

Cooties presented a twist to the typical zombie film, but only by a minimal margin. There's a sense of social commentary behind the outbreak, but again, it's nothing out of the ordinary that we've come to expect from the genre. It's fun, light, and could find a cult following from fans of the actor and genre, but everybody outside of those circles might want another cootie shot.

by Geoff Henao

Tintype Photographs of Celebrities at Sundance

Photos by Victoria Will

It's that time of year again, when the Sundance Film Festival takes Park City, Utah by storm. Every year, the fest brings crowds of cinema enthusiasts, filmmakers, photographers, actors, and the like, and this year is no different. Photographer Victoria Will has been covering Sundance for a few years now, and she has never failed in creating great photos of celebrities who attend. This year, she went with a different approach by creating Tintype portraits, a challenging photographic process that dates back to the late 19th century.

With help from fellow photographer Josh Wool in the darkroom, she has graciously shared her images and they are nothing short of amazing. Take a look and see who you recognize. Then find more familiar faces from her set here.

[Via Esquire]

by Angela E. Mejia