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Sundance Film Festival · 2011

Sundance Film Festival 2011

Spotlight

Showcase of the best from other festivals around the world with a sprinkling of world premieres.

Programme

11 films · 7 reviews

Jump to a film

Attenberg

Sexually frank coming of age tale.

(Country: Greece; Year: 2010; Director: Athina Rachel Tsangari; Writer: Athina Rachel Tsangari; Stars: Ariane Labed, Giorgos Lanthimos, Vangelis Mourikis, Evangelia Randou)

US Premiere

Elite Squad: The Enemy Within (Elite Squad 2, Tropa de Elite 2 - O Inimigo Agora É Outro)

Review preview for Elite Squad: The Enemy Within

It struck such a chord in Brazil last year that it quickly became the biggest selling movie of all time.

Chris · 4 out of 5
Conflict ensues as Brazilian politicians and police officers try to solve the problem of gang violence and corruption.

(Country: Brazil; Year: 2011; Director: José Padilha; Writer: Bráulio Mantovani, José Padilha, Rodrigo Pimentel; Stars: Seu Jorge, Wagner Moura, Tainá Müller, André Ramiro, Maria Ribeiro, Milhem Cortaz, Sandro Rocha, André Mattos, Rod Carvalho, Fabricio Boliveira, Pedro Van-Held, Irandhir Santos) , Official site

Full review

International Premiere

Incendies

Review preview for Incendies

Though providing food for thought regarding the nature of conflict and how easy it is to tear a community apart, Villeneuve's heavy-handed approach to metaphor will not be for everyone.

Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
A mother's past sends her twin children on a Middle Eastern odyssey.

(Country: Canada; Year: 2010; Director: Denis Villeneuve; Writer: Denis Villeneuve with the collaboration of Valérie Beaugrand-Champagne, based on a stage play by Wajdi Mouawad; Stars: Lubna Azabal, Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin, Maxim Gaudette, Rémy Girard, Abdelghafour Elaaziz, Allen Altman, Mohamed Majd, Nabil Sawalha, Baya Belal, Bader Alami, Karim Babin, Yousef Shweihat) , Official site

Full review

In A Better World (Hævnen)

Review preview for In A Better World

The microcosm of the children's world is exceptionally well drawn.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
Two children form a bond that could spell trouble.

(Country: Denmark; Year: 2010; Director: Susanne Bier; Writer: Susanne Bier, Anders Thomas Jensen; Stars: Mikael Persbrandt, Trine Dyrholm, Ulrich Thomsen, William Jøhnk Nielsen, Markus Rygaard, Wil Johnson, Eddie Kihani, Emily Mglaya, Gabriel Muli, June Waweru, Mary Hounu Moat, Synah Berchet, Elsebeth Steentoft, Satu Helena Mikkelinen, Camilla Gottlieb) , Official site

Full review

US Premiere

Kaboom

Review preview for Kaboom

Squarely aimed at a student demographic, the entire affair plays out like an episode of Scooby Doo on acid with the added fuel of frequent sex.

Amber Wilkinson · 3 out of 5
Sexual awakening and conspiracy in southern California.

(Country: US, France; Year: 2010; Director: Gregg Araki; Writer: Gregg Araki; Stars: Thomas Dekker, Juno Temple, Haley Bennett, Chris Zylka, Roxane Mesquida. Nicole LaLiberte) , Official site

Full review

US Premiere

Letters From The Big Man

An artist and government hydrologist surveying a remote part of southwestern Oregon befriends a sasquatch man and must take bold steps to protect his privacy, as well as her own.

(Country: US; Year: 2011; Director: Christopher Munch; Writer: Christopher Munch; Stars: Lily Rabe, Jason Butler Harner, Isaac C. Singleton Jr., Jim Cody Williams, Fiona Dourif, Don McManus, Jeri Arredondo, Skyler Brigmann, Gregory Bennett, Quinton Fay, Jim Leske, Martin William Harris, Karen Black)

World Premiere

Meek's Cutoff

Review preview for Meek's Cutoff

Along with her eye for composition, Reichardt also deserves praise for the focus on the smaller period details.

Owen Van Spall · 3.5 out of 5
Drama tracks a wagon train on the 1840s Oregon Trail.

(Country: US; Year: 2010; Director: Kelly Reichardt; Writer: Jonathan Raymond; Stars: Paul Dano, Bruce Greenwood, Shirley Henderson, Neal Huff, Zoe Kazan, Tommy Nelson, Will Patton, Rod Rondeaux, Michelle Williams)

Full review

Old Cats (Gatos Viejos)

An old woman who realises that her mind is quickly deteriorating desperately tries to hide this condition from her daughter, who waits keenly for any sign of senility in order to take her apartment.

(Country: Chile; Year: 2010; Director: Pedro Peirano, Sebastián Silva; Writer: Pedro Peirano, Pedro Pierno, Sebastián Silva; Stars: Bélgica Castro, Claudia Celedón, Catalina Saavedra, Alejandro Sieveking)

Submarine

Review preview for Submarine

Ayoade’s aesthetic choices as well as his many cinematic nods make the film a genuine treat for the cinephile set, but not to the extent of alienating those who may not grab the references to Bergman, Roeg, or the French New Wave.

Andrew Grant · 4.5 out of 5
An imaginative 15-year-old is as interested in losing his virginity as he is in saving his parents’ marriage. Plus read our interview with Richard Ayoade.

(Country: UK; Year: 2010; Director: Richard Ayoade; Writer: Richard Ayoade, Joe Dunthorne; Stars: Craig Roberts, Yasmin Paige, Sally Hawkins, Paddy Considine, Noah Taylor)

Full review See: Interview with Richard Ayoade about Submarine , Sundance 2011 diary piece, capsule reviews of Terri, Ticket To Paradise and a chat with Richard Ayoade , Sundance 2011: Capsule reviews of Tyrannosaur, Project Nim, Submarine, Kaboom, The Music Never Stopped

US Premiere

Uncle Kent

A pothead cartoonist in Los Angeles spends a weekend trying to sleep with his visiting house guest – a woman from New York, who he met on Chatroulette.

(Country: US; Year: 2011; Director: Joe Swanberg; Writer: Joe Swanberg, Kent Osborne; Stars: Kent Osborne)

World Premiere