Sundance Film Festival 2022 – Recap (Part 3)

We are still very much knee-deep in the thick of the Sundance Film Festival at home and here is part 3 of our recap capsule reviews (find part 1 here and part 2 here). We’ve seen many highlights and even a few disappointments, but hey, that’s the nature of a film festival.

Find our part 3 recap below and stay tuned for one more part very soon.

Living

(directed by Oliver Hermanus)

A remake of Ikiru that features a heartbreaking Bill Nighy, delivering what is the best performance of Sundance 2022 (so far). A poignant look at the capabilities we all have to change the world around us, with seemingly small gestures that have a long-lasting impact. 

Oliver Hermanus directs with a delicate warmth that captures the grandeur of it all, pulling the heartstrings in a way that never feels saccharine, but totally genuine. Every scene is a lovely portrayal, but it’s Nighy that will devastate and break your heart. He is worthy of every award in the book.

Nighy is a fucking treasure, man.

[8.4/10]

Nothing Compares

(directed by Kathryn Ferguson)

A tribute to the bold career and life of Sinéad O’Connor but the format of the documentary felt very cold and lacked narrative cinematic heft. This is a shame as her life definitely deserved a telling that didn’t feel surprisingly rudimentary and rather plain. There is a lot to chew here with such a fascinating career of up and downs, it just doesn’t quite put it all together with more cinematic muster.

[5.8/10]

Good Luck to You, Leo Grande

(directed by Sophie Hydeme)

A perfect example of what a great screenplay can do. The immaculate direction deftly captures a witty and smart charming screenplay and the two magnetic performances from Emma Thompson + Daryl McCormack.

Its contained play-like nature is a strength. It has an attuned observational look at sexuality, truthfulness, putting your real self out there, and life gestures, both big and small. 

Its contained play-like nature is a strength. That final shot is something else. A brave performance in many ways from Thompson.

[7.8/10]

Dual

(directed by Riley Stearns)

Riley Sterns has a specific style, like a mix of Yorgos Lanthimos meets Jared Hess in a world full of line readings fit for Jesse Eisenberg (which made him a perfect fit for Sterns’ last film The Art Of Self-Defense.

With Dual, Karen Gillan matches Eisenberg’s energy, finding a hint of rage within the sadness, fully embracing Sterns’ weird neurotic feeling of unease and hilarity (as does Aaron Paul in support). This is desert dry dark humor, it certainly won’t be for everyone. But it moves at a pace of its own and really goes for it. While not perfect, I was totally locked in and with it.

[7.0/10]

Resurrection

(directed by Andrew Semans)

A psych-horror journey that mostly works thanks to the incredible performance from Rebecca Hall. She has a nearly 10-minute monologue that will blow your mind. 

It builds towards a final act that lost me a bit, but the journey to get there was still worth it, with an uneasy tension that roots you into the character where you are not quite sure what the next move is but you’re with her lockstep. Not to mention, an always phenomenal Tim Roth.

[6.5/10]

Meet Me in the Bathroom

(directed by Will Lovelace + Dylan Southern)

A documentary about the early 2000s rock scene that is quite literally made for music nuts like myself. Lots of wonderful archive footage but as a cinematic experience, it felt lacking in a clear statement or showing us much new. 

It does what it needs to but could have been so much more. Especially considering how crucial this time period was for indie music and how it really hasn’t quite come close ever since.

[7.0/10]

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