2019 Sundance Film Festival Announces First Wave Of Films; Here Are 10 We’re Looking Forward To
By Ben Pearson/Nov. 28, 2018 3:30 pm EST
Below, read about the 10 notable movies we’re looking forward to, and see the full list of what’ll be playing at the festival.
One of the exciting things about Sundance is that most of these films are brand new: no one has seen them yet, so we have no idea what to expect. We only have a synopsis, cast list, and maybe a photo to judge at this point. That can result in some duds when we’re picking out 10 movies that sound especially interesting – last year, I put The Catcher Was A Spy in this section and it ended up being one of my least favorite films at the festival. But here goes nothin’: in no particular order, here are 10 movies I’m especially interested in checking out at the next Sundance Film Festival. (All photos courtesy of the Sundance Institute.)
Honey Boy / U.S.A. (Director: Alma Har’el, Screenwriter: Shia LaBeouf, Producers: Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, Daniela Taplin Lundberg, Anita Gou, Christopher Leggett, Alma Har’el) — A child TV star and his ex-rodeo clown father face their stormy past through time and cinema. Cast: Shia LaBeouf, Lucas Hedges, Noah Jupe. World PremiereWhy I’m Excited: This is an intensely personal drama from Shia LaBeouf, who wrote the screenplay based on his own life and plays a version of his own father in this film. It seems like it’ll be a cathartic experience for him, but will the final product reframe him as an artist to be taken seriously? The presence of Lucas Hedges (Manchester by the Sea) and Noah Jupe (A Quiet Place) probably won’t hurt, either.Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile / U.S.A. (Director: Joe Berlinger, Screenwriter: Michael Werwie, Producers: Michael Costigan, Nicolas Chartier, Ara Keshishian, Michael Simkin) — A chronicle of the crimes of Ted Bundy from the perspective of Liz, his longtime girlfriend, who refused to believe the truth about him for years. Cast: Zac Efron, Lily Collins, Haley Joel Osment, Kaya Scodelario, John Malkovich, Jim Parsons. World PremiereWhy I’m Excited: This one has another strong cast, and it’s from the director of Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 and the Paradise Lost trilogy. But really, all you need to know is that it has Zac Efron playing infamous serial killer Ted Bundy. A former Disney Channel staple playing a guy who viciously murdered dozens of people and performed sexual acts with their corpses? This is definitely going to be…well, interesting.Late Night / U.S.A. (Director: Nisha Ganatra, Screenwriter: Mindy Kaling, Producers: Ben Browning, Howard Klein, Jillian Apfelbaum, Mindy Kaling) — Legendary late-night talk show host’s world is turned upside down when she hires her only female staff writer. Originally intended to smooth over diversity concerns, her decision has unexpectedly hilarious consequences as the two women separated by culture and generation are united by their love of a biting punchline. Cast: Emma Thompson, Mindy Kaling, John Lithgow, Paul Walter Hauser, Reid Scott, Amy Ryan. World PremiereWhy I’m Excited: The premise, the writer, the cast…this one looks like it could be the most mainstream hit when it inevitably gets picked up after the festival as a throwback to a type of mid-budget comedy movie we don’t often see these days.The Report / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Scott Z. Burns, Producers: Steven Soderbergh, Jennifer Fox, Scott Z. Burns, Danny Gabai, Eddy Moretti ) — The story of Daniel Jones, lead investigator for the US Senate’s sweeping study into the CIA’s Detention and Interrogation Program, which was found to be brutal, immoral and ineffective. With the truth at stake, Jones battled tirelessly to make public what many in power sought to keep hidden. Cast: Adam Driver, Annette Bening, Jon Hamm, Ted Levine, Maura Tierney, Michael C. Hall. World PremiereWhy I’m Excited: Burns, who has become a go-to writer for Steven Soderbergh with screenplays for films like The Informant!, Contagion, Side Effects, and the upcoming The Laundromat, directed one other movie more than ten years ago, but The Report will be his biggest directing effort yet. Yes, there’s always the danger of this ending up being a by-the-numbers political drama that causes the audiences’ eyes to glaze over, but with a stellar cast like that, I’m betting this one will turn out to be a winner.Sweetheart / U.S.A. (Director: JD Dillard, Screenwriters: JD Dillard, Alex Theurer, Alex Hyner, Producers: Jason Blum, JD Dillard, Alex Theurer, Alex Hyner, Bill Karesh) — Jenn has washed ashore a small tropical island and it doesn’t take her long to realize she’s completely alone. She must spend her days not only surviving the elements, but must also fend off the malevolent force that comes out each night. Cast: Kiersey Clemons, Emory Cohen, Hanna Mangan Lawrence, Andrew Crawford. World PremiereWhy I’m Excited: Dillard previously directed the low-budget film Sleight, and it sounds like he’s back with a fun midnight movie here with Sweetheart. Kiersey Clemons has been solid in projects like Dope and Hearts Beat Loud, and I enjoyed Emory Cohen’s just-the-right-amount-of-cheesy performance in Brooklyn. For a movie that’s ostensibly about a woman who’s completely alone, there’s a decent-sized cast here, so I wonder that that “malevolent force” could be…The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind / United Kingdom (Director and screenwriter: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Producers: Andrea Calderwood, Gail Egan) — Against all the odds, a thirteen year old boy in Malawi invents an unconventional way to save his family and village from famine. Based on the true story of William Kamkwamba. Cast: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Maxwell Simba, Lily Banda, Noma Dumezweni, Aissa Maiga, Joseph Marcell. World PremiereWhy I’m Excited: Oscar-nominated actor Chiwetel Ejiofor is making his feature directorial debut with this true story, and Netflix has already scooped up the distribution rights. I’ve interviewed him a couple times over the years and he’s always struck me as a particularly smart and intense guy, so I’m fascinated to see if he’s as effective behind the camera as he has often been in front of it.Velvet Buzzsaw / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Dan Gilroy, Producer: Jennifer Fox) — A thriller set in the contemporary art world scene of Los Angeles, where big money artists and mega-collectors pay a high price when art collides with commerce. Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo, Toni Collette, Zawe Ashton, Tom Sturridge, Natalia Dyer. World PremiereWhy I’m Excited: One word: Nightcrawler. One of the best movies of 2014 is all the reason I need to be excited about Jake Gyllenhaal re-teaming with his Nightcrawler director Dan Gilroy. Netflix has also snagged the rights to this one, so hopefully it won’t be too long until it’s widely available. (For the purposes of this piece, let’s all temporarily forget that Roman J. Isreal, Esq. ever happened.)MEMORY – The Origins of Alien / U.S.A. (Director: Alexandre O. Philippe, Screenwriter: Alexandre O. Philippe, Producer: Kerry Deignan Roy) — The untold origin story behind Ridley Scott’s Alien – rooted in Greek and Egyptian mythologies, underground comics, the art of Francis Bacon, and the dark visions of Dan O’Bannon and H.R. Giger. A contemplation on the symbiotic collaborative process of moviemaking, the power of myth, and our collective unconscious. World PremiereWhy I’m Excited: Philippe directed 78/52: Hitchcock’s Shower Scene about the famous Psycho scene, and now he’s turning his lens toward another iconic filmmaker and one of his most famous works. Will he be able to uncover stories and insights about Alien that haven’t surfaced before?Native Son / U.S.A. (Director: Rashid Johnson, Screenwriter: Suzan-Lori Parks, Producers: Matthew Perniciaro, Michael Sherman) — In this modern reimagining of Richard Wright’s seminal novel, a young African-American man named Bigger Thomas takes a job working for a highly influential Chicago family, a decision that will change the course of his life forever. Cast: Ashton Sanders, Margaret Qualley, Nick Robinson, KiKi Layne, Bill Camp, Sanaa Lathan. World PremiereWhy I’m Excited: I’m not familiar with this director or screenwriter (yet), but look at that cast: Ashton Sanders (Moonlight), KiKi Layne (If Beale Street Could Talk), Margaret Qualley (The Leftovers), Nick Robinson (The Kings of Summer), Sanaa Lathan (Love & Basketball), and Bill Camp (Molly’s Game). I’m in.The Farewell / U.S.A., China (Director and screenwriter: Lulu Wang, Producers: Daniele Melia, Peter Saraf, Marc Turtletaub, Chris Weitz, Andrew Miano, Anita Gou) — A headstrong Chinese-American woman returns to China when her beloved grandmother is given a terminal diagnosis. Billi struggles with her family’s decision to keep grandma in the dark about her own illness as they all stage an impromptu wedding to see grandma one last time. Cast: Awkwafina, Tzi Ma, Diana Lin, Zhao Shuzhen, Lu Hong, Jiang Yongbo. World PremiereWhy I’m Excited: Awkwafina had a huge year in 2018, breaking out in both Crazy Rich Asians and Ocean’s 8. Now the rapper/actress is headlining an indie which sounds like it’ll give her an opportunity to prove she can do more than just crack jokes and play the fun best friend.
Here’s the full line-up:
