Writer-director Eugene Jarecki uses journey of Elvis Presley in The King as a way of showing us the rise and fall of the American Dream. It’s an interesting premise. The King isn’t an outright documentary of Elvis Presley. There are clips of Elvis as the singer was making his rise. We get a number of celebrities discussing Elvis while riding in his car. The film traces us through some of Presley’s locations. At the center…
"The King: Elvis Presley’s Life as An American Dream"Tag: Sundance Film Festival
Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot is carried largely on the heels of actor Joaquin Phoenix. The new film from writer-director Gus Van Sant tells the story of Portland cartoonist John Callahan (Joaquin Phoenix). The way the film tells Callahan’s story is alright but it could certainly have been improved. One moment, we’ll see him addressing a huge crowd. The next minute, he’s walking or bedridden in a hospital. I wouldn’t have minded…
"Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot"
Blindspotting is one of those films in which one knows that they are watching something magical take place and that’s the beauty of the Sundance Film Festival. The colorful film is the product of two friends who both share the same hometown and, as tends to be the case with many indie films, the road has been quite a few years in the making. Carlos López Estrada directs the film from a screenplay written by Rafael…
"Blindspotting Shines Light On Representation"
Eighth Grade is a film that perfectly captures the spirit and awkwardness of being a student in the final year of middle school. Kayla Day (Elsie Fisher) may be close to starting high school but before doing so, she must survive the end of eighth grade. It’s not easy for the smartphone-obsessed teenager. Even though she has a YouTube channel where she offers advice to others, she’s not the perfect person when it comes to applying…
"Eighth Grade captures Spirit, Awkwardness"
It was a sad day when we lost legendary comedian Robin Williams but a new HBO documentary, Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind, tells his story in his own words. Williams got his start during the 1970s comedy scene in Los Angeles. This led to various television appearances in the 1970s. None of those appearances were more notable than the time that he made his first appearance as Mork on Happy Days. The two-episode appearance…
"Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind"
Taking the battle to the frontline in Montana, Dark Money examines the consequences of the Citizens United v. FEC ruling. When the United States Supreme Court announced their Citizens United ruling, the effects were devastating for American politics. Once prohibited to donate to political campaigns, corporations were handed the free reign to spend as they pleased. It’s because of this that tax-exempt “organizations” set up shop without any requirement to record their donors. This results in money…
"Dark Money: A Thrilling Political Documentary"
Boots Riley’s Sorry To Bother You, one of the most buzzed about films at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, is one of the best feature debuts during the fest. The star-studded cast of Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Armie Hammer, Terry Crews, Steven Yeun, Omari Hardwick, Jermaine Fowler, and Danny Glover was one of the few films that showcased diversity with POC in leading roles. Much in the same vein as last year’s hit film, Get Out, Sorry…
"Sorry To Bother You is Wild and Bonkers"
Debra Granik’s third narrative feature, Leave No Trace, is a emotionally powerful film with a breakout performance from actress Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie. We first meet Will (Ben Foster) and his teenage daughter, Tom (Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie) in their fourth year of living in Forest Park on the outskirts of Portland, Oregon. It’s illegal to live in public land but the two of them have gotten away with living in the woods for so long. It’s not…
"Leave No Trace: An Emotionally Powerful Film"
Three Identical Strangers tells the crazy but true and sad story of Bobby Shafran, Eddy Galland, and David Kellman. The three of them were separated at birth when they were adopted by three different families. Bobby was sent off to live with the affluent Shafran family. Eddy went to the middle class Gallands. As for David, he went to live with the blue-collar Kellmans. All were adopted by Jewish families who had an older daughter living…
"Three Identical Strangers: Crazy, Sad, and True"
A wholly original film with a twist you never see coming, Damsel is a hysterical western from the minds of David Zellner and Nathan Zellner. Samuel Alabaster (Robert Pattinson) has tracked down the location of the woman he plans to marry, Penelope (Mia Wasikowska). As he sets through in his journey, he hires Parson Henry (David Zellner) to officiate the wedding when he finds his future bride in addition to a gift, a miniature horse called Butterscotch. Samuel…
"Damsel: A Wholly Original Western"