What’s hot at Sundance 2012


By
 in ,

The 2012 Sundance Film Festival kicked off Thursday with tons of films that sound both promising and intriguing.

The films that premiere in Sundance are eventually released in the United States toward the fall – that’s hoping they find a distributor there, if they don’t already have one – and usually sparks become game changers for awards season. Like Crazy, last year’s Sundance charmer, didn’t quite find love when the film was released in October, but previous films such as Precious and Winter’s Bone have successfully kept their fire burning all the way up toward the Oscars.

Bridesmaids was a critical and commercial success and could potentially gain an Oscar nomination for Best Picture, considering its Producers Guild of America nomination. Bachelorette is a similar film, focused on a group of women embarking on a self-destructive journey, though initial word is that it’s not necessarily a knockoff, because the idea was in place before Bridesmaids. The film stars Kirsten Dunst, Isla Fisher and Lizzy Caplan in what could be this summer’s big comedy film.

Spike Lee is back into filmmaking mode with his latest independent film, Red Hook Summer. The film is his first narrative film in four years, in which the character of Mookie is said to return. The film still doesn’t have distribution, however, he should have no problem with this one.

Andy Samberg and Rashida Jones team up in Celeste and Jesse Forever, a film that pairs them together as former high school sweethearts who are going through a divorce. The potential here is that Andy Samberg will have a lead role to shine in, providing us with hopefully some heartbreak and humor.

Elizabeth Olsen and Josh Radnor made waves at last year’s Sundance with Martha Marcy May Marlene and happythankyoumoreplease, respectively. They will now star together in Liberal Arts, a film that centers on a 35-year-old man who falls for a college student when he returns to his alma matter. Elizabeth Olsen is a promising star and this film could potentially show us her in a different light.