SundanceFilmFestival2009 Tagged Articles at Cinematical

The latest edition of the Sundance Film Festival came to an end today. But when can we see the movies everyone was talking about? At least 17 films, listed below in alphabetical order, have some kind of distribution deal in place, including Doug Pray's doc Art & Copy, which was just announced today. Title links will take you to Cinematical reviews. Catch up with our of all coverage -- including 20 more reviews -- via the Sundance hub at Moviefone.

Sundance 2009 - Films with Distribution:
500 Days of Summer (comedy; Fox Searchlight; 2009 - July 24).
Adam (romantic comedy; Fox Searchlight; 2009 - TBA).
Adventureland (comedy; Miramax; 2009 - March 27).
Art & Copy (doc; Arthouse Films; 2009 - TBA). Announced today, per Variety.
Black Dynamite (blaxpoitation comedy; Sony Pictures Worldwide; 2009 - TBA).
Brooklyn's Finest (police drama; Senator entertainment; 2009 - 4th quarter).
Burma VJ (doc; HBO; TV rights only; 2010).
Dead Snow (Nazi zombie horror/comedy; IFC Films; 2009 - TBA).
An Education (coming of age romance; Sony Classics; 2009 - Fall).
Humpday (relationship comedy; Magnolia Pictures; 2009 - VOD; August theatrical).
In the Loop (comedy; IFC Films; 2009 - TBA).
Moon (science fiction; Sony Classics from Sony Pictures Worldwide; 2009 - June).
Rudo y Cursi (drama; Sony Classics; 2009 - May 8).
Sin Nombre (drama; Focus Features; 2009 March 20 ).
Spread (comedy; Anchor Bay; 2009 - TBA).
Tyson (doc; Sony Classics; 2009 - April 24).
The Winning Season (sports comedy/drama; Lionsgate; TBA).

Things really slowed down on Saturday. That may have allowed some people to catch up on films they'd missed earlier in the week, but left very little to report on, not even -- sorry to say -- in the blogs. Call this "Sundance in 30 Seconds." The festival concludes tomorrow.

Deals. Nothing reported. Zero. Nada. But that doesn't mean negotiations aren't continuing on various films. Here's hoping that a few more interesting titles in the coming weeks will get picked up for distribution of some kind (whether theatrical, online, download, VOD or DVD), and not just disappear.

News. Sundance handed out a slew of awards tonight, and Elisabeth Rappe posted the list of winners as they happened. As indieWIRE pointed out, the big winner was Push: Based on a Novel by Sapphire, which snagged "the Dramatic Jury Prize, the Audience Award, and special acting prize for Mo'Nique. Lee Daniels' drama is still seeking U.S. distribution, as is U.S. Documentary Grand Jury Prize winner We Live in Public.

Reviews. Jay DiPietro's relationship movie Peter and Vandy features Jason Ritter and Jess Weixler as "young New York City lovers," Erik Davis wrote in his review. "it's a quieter character piece about the complexities of love." Scott Weinberg flipped for The Cove, Louie Psihoyos' documentary about the slaughter of dolphins in Japan. Scott says: "This is easily one of the most powerful, heartfelt, and (yes, I'll say it) important 'nature' documentaries I've ever seen." Not so coincidentially, the film also won the U.S. Documentary Audience Award.

The second Friday at Sundance is a day when many observers have returned home. But the festival is not over, and our intrepid crew remains on the scene.

Deals. The sight of Ashton Kutcher 's naked gigolo butt evidently convinced Anchor Bay Films that David Mackenzie's Spread was the movie for them. Eugene Hernandez at indieWIRE reports that the sister company of Overture Films paid nearly $4 million for US and Australian rights. Kutcher served as a producer on the film, which also stars Anne Heche, Rachel Blanchard, Margarita Levieva, and Sonia Rockwell.

Speaking of Rockwells, Brian Brooks (also of indieWIRE), says that Sony Pictures Classics will distribute the Sam Rockwell-starring Moon, the science fiction flick directed by David Bowie's son, Duncan Jones. Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisition Group pre-bought the film's rights before the festival. Sony Classics plans a June 2009 release. James Rocchi reviewed it for Cinematical last week.

Reviews/Interview. Our man James followed up his review of the doc We Live in Public by talking with director Ondi Timoner and subject Josh Harris. James also discovered Noah Buschel's The Missing Person, starring Michael Shannon; James says the film "isn't merely a clever, cool spin on the classic private eye story, but it also works as a private eye story." Finally, James got An Education from suddenly hot actress Carey Mulligan, director Lone Scherfig, and scripter Nick Hornby; the film's evocation of 1960s England struck James as "superbly constructed, yes, but those elements also connect." Be sure to catch up on all of Cinematical's coverage via the Sundance hub at Moviefone.

Blog Talk. Continue onward, brave reader, for a few more quotable quotes.

Sundancers enjoyed unseasonably warm weather (41 degrees in the afternoon) as the festival headed toward its concluding weekend.

Deals. After picking up the Nazi zombie flick Dead Snow, IFC Films added another comedy to its roster, acquiring Armando Iannucci's In the Loop just hours before its premiere, according to Mike Jones at Variety. The film stars Tom Hollander, Peter Capaldi, James Gandolfini, and Steve Coogan. A 2009 theatrical release is planned, per indieWIRE. But where's the bidding wars for docs? A. J. Schnack of All these wonderful things writes: "For the first time in anyone's recent memory, the first half of the fest had come and gone without a major doc sale."

Reviews/Interviews. Would-be comedy Paper Heart is "partially built around Charlyne Yi's persona," says Eric D. Snider, "and I find her persona boring." Oh, dear. The "typically hilarious" Michael Cera also appears. James Rocchi was busy, interviewing the great Kevin Spacey about Shrink and talking with actor / director / writer John Krasinski about Brief Interviews with Hideous Men. James also reviewed Ondi Timoner's documentary We Live in Public, which he called "incisive, exciting and thought-provoking."

Prison drama Bronson, from Pusher trilogy director Nicolas Wining Refn, has created a fair amount of buzz, and Scott Weinberg knows why, describing it as "raw, blistering, harsh and compelling." Scott also took a bemused gander at Bobcat Goldthwait's World's Greatest Dad, with Robin Williams essaying the titular role of a father dealing with life after his teenage son "dies while masturbating." Yes, folks, it's a comedy! To end on a musical note, Erik Davis caught The Carter, a doc about rapper Lil' Wayne, "a passionate, talented man who's slowly losing himself." You can check out all our coverage at the fabulous Sundance hub at Moviefone.

Blog Talk. After the jump: Woody Allen's soul, Bobcat's schedule, and Paris Hilton.

Wednesday featured a fight between a film critic and a producer's rep that became physical -- detailed by Erik Davis -- which doesn't sound as much fun as a celebrity food fight would have been. Oh, to see Jim Carrey and Ewan MacGregor hurling cherry pies at Paris Hilton!

Deals. Norwegian Nazi zombie comedy Dead Snow proved irresistible to IFC Films; indieWIRE reports that the distributor picked up US rights. Gregg Goldstein of Movie City News noted that IFC plans a 2009 release. A little later in the day, Goldstein assessed the scene: "The reality is that by Wednesday at any Sundance, bidding wars are replaced by wars of attrition." He says that, though most buyers are heading home, "people seem happy the films are good ... slower sales will mean better deals on films likely to have legs with audiences."

Reviews/Interview. James Rocchi talked to Ratatouille voicer Patton Oswalt about his starring role in Robert Siegel's sports drama Big Fan, which Erik Davis, an admitted "die hard Giants fan," says is more about fandom than football; it's "full of real life and complicated characters." As to John Krasinki's Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, our not-hideous-at-all man Scott Weinberg thinks it's an "aimless, pretentious mess," so Krasinski should probably keep his day job at The Office. Scott much preferred Scott Sanders' blaxploitation spoof Black Dynamite ("Feels like one of those eminently quotable comedies that frat guys and movie geeks will come back to time and again"). Check out all of Cinematical's coverage at the Sundance Hub on Moviefone.

Blog Talk. You want to hear more about the fight, don't you? Plus critical reactions to a baby movie, texting during Indiana Jones, and more.

The dam finally burst and a flood of deals were unleashed today in Park City, Utah. (Please note: for the purposes of this article, we define "a flood of deals" as three (3)). But don't worry, America: Sundancers stopped to watch the inauguration live on TV.

Deals. (1) Fox Searchlight got things rolling with a worldwide deal for Max Meyer's romantic comedy Adam, starring Hugh Dancy, Rose Byrne, Peter Gallagher and Amy Irving; a 2009 release is planned. indieWIRE has the details. (2) Sony Pictures Classics picked up big buzz title An Education, Lone Scherfig's coming of age romantic tale, "after a heated bidding war," says Anne Thompson of Variety. Sony Classics reportedly paid $3 million for North American and Latin American rights and is eyeing an awards campaign launch in the fall. Thompson describes the film's star Carey Mulligan as a (the?) "Sundance 'It Girl.'" (3) Lionsgate acquired James Strouse's comedy/drama The Winning Season, starring Sam Rockwell as a high school girls basketball coach, for North America and the UK, per Gregg Goldstein at Movie City News.

Reviews/Interview. James Rocchi caught the "surprise," work-in-progress screening of Steven Soderbergh's The Girlfriend Experience and interviewed Paul Giamatti about Cold Souls. Meanwhile, Erik Davis saw Michael Cera * Jesse Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart in Adventureland, "a sometimes subtle dramedy that's more touchy-feely than it is funny." Scott Weinberg slammed the Brett Easton Ellis adaptation The Informers as "nearly unwatchable" but thought the doc Good Hair was "well-crafted and consistently entertaining" and says the drama Five Minutes of Heaven proved to be "refreshingly humane and hopeful." (All of our Sundance coverage can be found at our Sundance hub at Moviefone.)

Blog Talk (after the jump). Why tonight's unexpected screening of The Girlfriend Experience frustrated one veteran journalist.

Deals. Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group picked up Scott Sanders' Black Dynamite for a reported $2 million. The salute to 70s blaxpoitation pictures premiered at 11:30 p.m. on Sunday; negotiations continued into the "wee hours" of Monday morning, according to indieWIRE. The film will be released in theaters later this year. Late Monday night, Variety reported that Magnolia Pictures nabbed worldwide rights to Lynn Shelton's Humpday after a "protracted bidding war." Magnolia plans to launch it via video on demand "before an August theatrical opening." Erik Davis says that "its well-written script remains grounded with the type of real-people humor we've grown to adore over the years."

News. Five films playing at SXSW in March, including Joe Swanberg's newest, Alexander the Last, will also screen via IFC's Festival Direct on-demand platform, Scott Macaulay of Filmmaker Magazine covered the morning announcement and Q&A. In the afternoon, the nominations for the 2nd Annual Cinema Eye Honors for Nonfiction Filmmaking were announced; Israeli animated doc Waltz With Bashir led the way with seven nominations. A.J. Schnack has the complete list of nominees at his site.

Reviews. Scott Weinberg checked out the music doc When You're Strange (archival footage of The Doors: "fascinating," the narration, not so much: "Doors for Dummies") and explained how Zooey Deschanel broke his heart (again). James Rocchi was "enthralled" with the fashion doc The September Issue. And Eric D. Snider says the premise of Push: Based on a Novel by Sapphire is so "unsettling and bleak" that you might hesitate to see it, but if you do, "you'll find that it's compelling and artistic, punctuated with warm humor and masterful performances, and ultimately triumphant and hopeful."

All of our coverage can be found at the Sundance hub at Moviefone. After the jump: what other blogs are saying.

Sunday may be a day of rest, but not for the intrepid Cinematical crew, who cranked out reviews and posts between screenings and interviews. They weren't the only busy ones, of course!

Deals. Nothing closed, but Gregg Goldstein of Movie City News reported (very early) that David Mackenzie's sex comedy Spread, starring Ashton Kutcher and Anne Heche, excited distributors because of its commercial appeal. The Jim Carrey "gay prison love story" I Love You Phillip Morris premiered tonight and distribs are expected to be circling.

Cinematical Reviews, and An Interview. Erik Davis says Marc Webb's 500 Days of Summer, with Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon Levitt, is "an anti-fairytale" romantic comedy. (Did you watch the teaser trailer? Fox Searchlight will release it in July.) Erik was super impressed by the teen detective antics of the Derrick Comedy troupe in Mystery Team, which he calls "a silly, stupid, ridiculous comedy." Paul Solet's Grace inspired the inimitable Eric D. Snider to opine: "If you are the sort of person who might enjoy an effed-up gore-fest about a woman [Jordan Ladd] who delivers an undead baby, you can rest assured that Grace lives up to its potential." Scott Weinberg wrote about killer trees, Nazi zombies, and a cool celeb .

James Rocchi interviewed Antoine Fuqua, director of Brooklyn's Finest, a few hours before the film sold to Senator Entertainment. James was cool toward Doug Pray's doc Art & Copy ("essentially, an ad for advertising") but warmed up to Sophie Barthes' Cold Souls, with Paul Giamatti giving "what may be his best performance" as an actor who stores his soul. James also saw a "French-style ... transgendered revenge comedy," and lived to tell about it.

Blog Talk. My favorite quotes of the day, if you have a few more seconds, after the jump.

Packed with screenings and the beginnings of buzz on several titles, Saturday kept Sundance visitors hopping.

Deals. Antoine Fuqua's police drama Brooklyn's Finest , starring Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, and Ethan Hawke, was in play after its Friday night debut as a "work in progress," with several distributors making offers (per THR). Gregg Goldstein at Movie City News dubbed it "Friday Night Fever." Senator Distribution closed the deal for North American rights on Saturday night, according to indieWIRE, with a fourh quarter 2009 release planned. Lynn Shelton's 'two straight guys decide to make a gay porno" Humpday has motivated four buyers to actively engage in talks to acquire it, Mike Jones reported for Variety at his blog The Circuit.

Our Coverage. Humpday is a "quiet, unassuming festival film" says Erik Davis of Cinematical. He also describes it as "uncomfortable," "awkward," and "often laugh-out-loud funny," which means this sucker better get picked up by somebody and released in theaters pronto. Scott Weinberg loved Sam Rockwell in Moon and reported on two people fainting during horror flick Grace. And Eric D. Snider complained about getting ripped off ... by another blogger. You can catch up with all of our coverage via the convenient Sundance hub at Moviefone.

Elsewhere. Though Brooklyn's Finest has drawn mixed reviews, Moon and Humpday continue to generate great buzz across the Internets (especially the latter, with even Karina Longworth of Spout succumbing to its charms).

More blog talk after the jump.

The first full day of screenings began on Friday, and by the evening Park City had claimed its first victim, a very knowledgeable and well-liked friend of Cinematical who slipped on some black ice and ended up bloody and bruised. It's dangerous out there, folks! Mind your step as we present the day in a whirlwind 60 seconds.

Deals. Despite the general downturn in the industry, two new distributors have bravely stepped forth into the arena. Austin-based B-Side Entertainment aims to distribute 10 films in 2009, according to Variety, "through an array of theatrical, nontheatrical, and ancillary outlets." And filmmaker Randall Miller, who couldn't find a distributor for his film Bottle Shock at Sundance last year and ended up doing it successfully himself, has formed Consolidated Pictures Group to distribute up to four movies per year. Movie City News has the press release, and their web site is already up.

Reviews. Moon, featuring Sam Rockwell and the voice of Kevin Spacey, has garnered good word of mouth; you can read James Rocchi's review of a "science fiction film that's not about aliens but instead about alienation." Erik Davis sat through Humpday and described it (via Twitter) as "the best straight gay male porn" he's ever seen.

Blog Talk. It was an early wake-up call for Sundancers who trudged out to see James Toback's Tyson at 8:30 a.m. (But it must have been an easy walk, since The Bagger claimed in the NYT: "There are noticeably fewer flacks and fewer film executives walking the streets of Park City.") The doc, which was acquired by Sony Pictures Classics in pre-festival business, prompted Neil Miller of Film School Rejects to call it "a one-sided puff piece."