Sundance Film Festival 2004

ruggedmarlin15 said:The Sunshine State should finally hit the screens tonight (Saturday) at midnight over at the MM Gallery. Is this our third lucky break? 😉

ruggedmarlin15

And I’m finding this out at the absolute eleventh hour. Literally.😁

Honestly, I wouldn't even risk it. Last year, I went to MM specifically to catch that Chinese flick, The Postman. The subtitles ended up being a total disaster, which basically rendered the whole movie useless.
I officially give up😁

The Sunshine State - totally mediocre. It’s just a cliché. A bit blandly charming, sure, but they ruin every single potentially fun scene with some super cheesy trope. There is nothing worse than an average movie.

In the future, I should probably pray for anything else before going to the theater. Just please, anything but mediocre.

Honestly, it’s absolute garbage. Sure, the opening is mildly amusing—the first half is even somewhat tolerable if you catch a few decent bits here and there—but once the big shot meets that obnoxious brat... 🙂

Every single greasy, paper-thin scene from every bottom-of-the-barrel rom-com ever made featuring those insufferable characters is right here, cranked up to eleven. I spent more time staring at the wall than at the screen because, frankly, I was embarrassed just being in the same room as it. I can't believe I actually walked into a theater for this piece of junk, and what's even harder to wrap my head around is how anyone could even attempt to compare this trash to Lost in Translation or—God forbid—Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind! 😕

Hey, at least the soundtrack from The Shinsa was decent.🙂

Reading through these comments, I’m actually glad I skipped that trip to New Jersey... 😁

What's everyone's take on "Amazing Grace"?

All things considered, after attending the entirety of the film festival (an ordeal that left me with some rather prominent dark circles under my eyes), I would rate the whole experience a solid four out of five, though I couldn't help but let out a heavy sigh and wonder: wouldn't it be just wonderful if we had this much energy and this many people gathering in SC every single week?

goldberry said:All in all, looking at the whole festival (which I hit up constantly until I had permanent dark circles under my eyes), I’d give it a solid four out of ten—with a heavy sigh, thinking about how nice it would be to have that much energy and movement in SC every single week.

Literally what my buddy and I were talking about last night.🙂

Oh, it’s all so terribly confusing...
Adding four is just the same as subtracting four, isn't it?

And, by the way, I’ve heard from some very reliable sources 😁 that SC doesn't really organize anything there anymore because they say it bothers the neighbors—apparently, there were quite a few complaints... though if someone actually wants to rent out the hall (which, let's face it, happens all too rarely), they will allow it...

On another note—I honestly find the Sundance Film Festival much better than what they have going on in Napa Valley... then again, perhaps Napa Valley was similar back when it was smaller (since I never attended), so maybe the Sundance Film Festival will also experience a bit of an ego boost as it grows... but regardless, I still prefer it over the festival in Boston!

steelstag4 said:But that's why Supersize Me was on at 4 today👍

Was it Bill?
Ah crap-.

Otherwise, Blind Window totally deserved the Grand Jury Prize.
Some of the films were incredibly similar in terms of cinematography and themes.
All in all, a decent festival for Washington, D.C.
Finally.

Carol Jackson45 said:What’s the consensus on "Amazing Grace"?

Personally, I thought it was excellent.
I’m really hoping it gets a proper theatrical release so more people can actually see it.

I’ve tended to gravitate toward films that tackle heavy, gut-wrenching subject matter—think things like documentaries about the Taliban regime, "Amazing Grace" dealing with the drug trade and poverty in Colombia, or "The Unfinished Story" looking at illegal immigration. What I appreciate is how they all managed to steer clear of cheap sentimentality and those tired old clichés.
Maybe it's because they weren't churned out by the "Hollywood dream factory."😉

And yeah, Justin Patel, there was "Supersize Me," and you could catch it for free.🙂
But this one will definitely hit theaters.

Here’s my rundown of the films from the festival. This whole thing gave me such a massive headache and kept me up all night that I can barely even string a coherent sentence together. When you're watching movies that are scheduled to start at midnight... By the final day, I looked like a voluntary blood donor who didn't know how to say NO. Anyway:

Bruce Lee: Watch Out for the Son's Hand
The info desk told me to just show up on time at the MM Center—said there were no reservations and all that. So I get there, only to find out the screening was moved to the SC theater, and you had to pick up tickets at a box office that was celebrating being closed for an hour already. Three hours of my life wasted. I thought, "Fine," turned on my heel, and went home. The next day, I ran into a guy who said you could have gotten in without a ticket anyway.

Trip
A Czech film. Basically: warm family humor played out through a slow pace, despite the characters' problems. The experience was ruined by people who are way too easily amused; they were laughing at absolutely everything, even though the film isn't actually that funny. That's why I prefer screenings where I make up a double-digit percentage of the audience. A movie you watch on your couch.

Czech dream
Two directing students filming a documentary for their thesis about consumerism in the Czech Republic, so they just invent a hypermarket and advertise it like it's real. The doc is a bit too long, and while it's unfinished, it could have been filmed in any other similar country.

Films Kill a Child and Stray Dogs I intended to see, but my head felt too heavy and my legs were too weak.

My Brother Vampire this movie
This film has everything a real movie needs: lifelike dialogue, convincing actors, weird humor, sex, violence, and some moronic thirty-year-old who insists on calling himself the Prince of Darkness. The director plays with details and manages to wrap up this beautiful story, though it's definitely not something you want to watch with your grandma. Best film I saw at the 2nd Sundance Film Festival and one of my top 20 overall. It feels fresh despite the gloomy visuals on screen. Anyone got this on Divx? 🙂

Song for Raggy Boy
At first, I wasn't a fan of the "retro" directing style—the kind you used to see 20 or 30 years ago—but the approach actually made sense since the plot takes place before WWII. And yeah, this film has violence and sex (simultaneously 😬) as well as subtle humor (the written part at the end). You can forgive certain gaps where the viewer might wonder what a specific character was doing when they weren't on screen. The character selection is excellent, especially those two thugs and the main guy at the boarding school.

New Jersey
Why is this considered some "American art cinema hit"? I saw much more interesting directorial choices in the Czech film Trip! At first, I thought this was about some junkie whose life just drifts along without him noticing the turns, but then it turns out to be a movie you can invite a dumb girl to, where you spend more attention on her than the film itself. The supporting characters all talk the exact same way, like in Gilmore Girls, but these are more washed-out, chewed-up, and nowhere near as interesting as the side characters Woody Allen would write or Steve Buscemi would act. My preconceived notions about Zach Braff simply ruin the film's credibility. Maybe his thoughts should have merged with the events or provided environmental commentary; then maybe the film would have had a soul. Natalie Portman gives the film some quality, but even she could have looked cuter. Two older guys sitting behind me were definitely from the easily amused category, which just made the viewing even worse. The film isn't actually bad, but I expected more, thanks to the comments from some Forum users.

Supersize me
I would've watched it, but I only looked at the first page of the schedule and missed it. I'll probably just catch it on Divx; I assume it's a hit. An American spends a month eating at McDonald's and gains 20kg and some other disease. McD. discontinued the Supersize menu after the movie came out.

Regarding the organization…
I get it—they had 50 movies to juggle and screenings scattered across five different venues, so technical glitches happen. But I don't get why they bother putting out an info number if nobody actually picks up the phone. I tried calling at noon, 2 PM, and 5 PM during the last festival, and absolutely nothing. Then there's the website; they post screening updates less than seven hours before the actual showtime. I’m planning to catch a film earlier in the lineup, and honestly, I might even want to meet up with a friend before things start. Seriously, people, I could practically do their jobs for them next year for minimal compensation… Say, two VIP passes (you probably noticed I don't attend the paid screenings anyway?) and some ice cream with popcorn.

Carol Jackson45 said:What are your thoughts on "Amazing Grace"?

I really must quote a friend of mine here:
In terms of execution, it was excellent, but as far as themes go, it felt rather exhausted.

There is absolutely no need to worry yourselves; "Supersize Me" isn't nearly as phenomenal as all the hype would lead you to believe... I found myself quite disappointed during my time in Napa Valley... I actually found the Czech dream to be much, much better (which was a total surprise during the screening there)!

While the concept itself is certainly strong, the actual delivery falls incredibly short of the reputation it carries.

goldberry said:Thematically speaking—it’s played out.

😕

The tragedy of drugs in Colombia...
Young people in Colombia find themselves without any real future, trapped by broken and messy family lives which—since there isn't anything better on the horizon—force them to choose between being exploited in low-wage jobs or getting mixed up in the drug trade, often choosing the latter.
Then there is the idea of America serving as the ultimate promise of a better life.

The subject matter has been explored from yet another angle—specifically, a story revolving around a good, honest, and decent poor protagonist who, somehow without even realizing it, gets pulled into a life of crime, alongside a confused but bright and principled young woman struggling to find her footing in the wide world....

There is even more to it than that... but, you get the point!

Regardless, all these themes are handled beautifully. That is why the film is technically superb (from the truly brilliant acting right down to the cinematography)—it is simply excellent!

I honestly don't get why people label *Garden State* as just "average." For me, it was absolutely fantastic—one of those movies that just sticks in your head for the longest time. There’s this incredibly sincere, warm dimension to the story that really stays with you long after the credits roll. Why does everyone focus so much on the flaws when the heart of the film is so palpable?

It isn't cliché at all. In fact, I think it communicates the generational experience better than almost any other film we've seen in a long time—maybe even more than most films ever do. Perhaps it’s just a matter of being willing to actually recognize ourselves in it?

It’s really about that internal shift—that messy, uncomfortable process of actually growing up and learning to embrace who you’re becoming. I keep thinking about how much we evolve, and how much weight we put on things like friendship, the deep need for connection, and even that strange, hollow feeling of distance between people. It makes you realize how much our mindset shapes everything; how the way we think dictates the trajectory of our lives, our ambitions, and how much our environment ultimately molds us. But more than anything, it hits on that universal tug-of-war between belonging and alienation. It’s a reflection of that entire 90s generation—how we navigated the world through the music we loved and the stories we told ourselves. Honestly, I don't think any other film has managed to capture that specific intersection of music and memory quite this effectively. There’s a raw, unfiltered truth there that most movies just miss entirely.

It’s not just some cliché love story between two people—there is so much more depth to it than that. And the soundtrack? Honestly, it’s incredible. It doesn't just sit in the background; it truly completes the film. I really think the music is a vital part of what the story is trying to communicate to us.

I really think *Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind* is more than just a great movie—it’s a masterpiece. And honestly, the comparison between that and *New Jersey* actually holds some weight if you think about it. While *New Jersey* might feel like a more "universal" film in terms of its reach, *Eternal Sunshine* does something much deeper. It focuses intensely on the connection between two people, sure, but it also manages to pull off this incredibly effective analysis of an entire generation's psyche and the messy trajectory of human lives. It's much more than just a romance, isn't it?

The notification about the screening was posted less than seven hours before it actually started. I was planning on catching another movie earlier in the lineup, and I also wanted to coordinate meeting up with a friend before the show.

I mean, how are we supposed to post an update online about a schedule change before the change even happens? For instance, the decision to move New Jersey from Thursday to Friday was made around 3:00 PM on Thursday. It took five minutes after that for the news to hit the website.

I realize that when the schedule shifts, it messes with everyone's plans, but sometimes these changes are just unavoidable.

ruggedmarlin15

Potala said:And yeah, Justin Patel, it was Supersize Me, and it was free.🙂
But it’ll hit theaters eventually.

Yeah, everything was free for me.
Doesn't matter, there are plenty of people here who can survive on the MCU.

A few movies could end up in theaters, at least at an AMC Theatres.

Spoon said:I don't get why New Jersey is just—average.

eh, if it were actually average, I’d be satisfied.

The movie has this sincere, warm dimension that really sticks with you.

unless you were busy shitting yourself during the screening.

It isn't half-baked at all. I think it communicates with its generation in a way that hardly any other film has done in a long time. Maybe people just need to recognize themselves in it.

It talks about personal change and embracing it, growing up, the weight of friendship, connection versus distance, the human psyche and how that shapes different paths, individual ambitions and the pull of one's environment, but above all—that sense of belonging and alienation and a reflection of the 90s generation—through music and storytelling—which no other film has managed to tackle as effectively on screen.

I honestly don't even know what to say to that. Maybe you seriously haven't seen a single other "generational" movie, but stuff like Singles, Slacker, Reality Bites, Love and Other Catastrophes, and countless others have tackled these themes with at least a shred of originality and way more style (okay, maybe not Reality Bites, but it has Janeane Garofalo 😍). New Jersey, on the other hand, is just a collage of cookie-cutter characters and tropes—predictable as hell, shallow, and totally basic. I can't find myself or anyone I actually know in it because this movie about "real" 20-somethings doesn't say anything at all. The characters in New Jersey are just beautified caricatures that don't exist in real life, and the dialogue is banal and completely predictable because it's so formulaic. I'm still waiting for a film that will speak to this generation in an intelligent way without holding back.

It's not just some half-baked love story between two people—there's much more to it. And the soundtrack is... truly great. It adds so much to the film. I think it's a vital element of what the movie is trying to communicate.

the soundtrack is just okay (for God's sake, Coldplay!), and it's used poorly to ramp up the excessive melodrama in most of those "serious" scenes. It's basically just a key tool for the producers to lure in as many naive indie kids as possible.

Yeah, I think Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is more than excellent—and in a way, the comparison holds up. Even though New Jersey might be a more global film—the primary focus is the connection between two people, but alongside that, it effectively analyzes the state of an entire generation and various human fates.

Man, seriously. It’s like someone trying to argue that *Cool Runnings* and *Citizen Kane* are basically the same movie just because they both feature dreams. Like, give me a break...

Unfortunately, what else can I expect? I really don't agree with anything you've written here. I actually thought the movie was quite approachable, but now it’s becoming clear to me that you need a certain mindset to truly grasp and accept it.

I still maintain that New Jersey has more depth than the other little comedies or Ben Stiller films you listed. I honestly don't see why you're bringing all that up. And looking at your list, it feels like you didn't even catch what the movie was actually trying to portray.

I don't know what kind of values you live by, but the story told in New Jersey is more honest, more meaningful, and—in every sense of the word—more lived-in than so much of the stuff being sold out there right now.

Try to be a bit more open-minded. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a more universal film—I think that's exactly why so many people love it. Is it better? Sure, maybe, but that's not the point.

New Jersey is a smaller film, made for a smaller group of people—people who likely build their relationships in different ways. Ways that, to someone like you, probably seem silly, childish, or just plain stupid.

I saw myself in this movie. It spoke about the individual condition and those specific kinds of human connections, the mindset, and the distance between us, in such an honest way that I think anyone could find a piece of themselves in it. But then again, maybe that requires a bit of actual reflection—reading between the lines, so to speak.

It's important to notice those small, cozy moments—like the scene in the hospital waiting room where she offers him her headphones while she's listening to Shinse. He hears it too. He doesn't know what they're listening to, so he asks.
And no, that isn't idealism. It isn't being childish. It's connection—the kind we don't see very often.

My own relationships have almost always been built on those kinds of connections. On those tiny, seemingly insignificant situations. Maybe on acting like fools, too. But this isn't a "romance" movie.
The film is about the openness of the human psyche. So perhaps that mental openness is exactly what’s required to actually appreciate it.

I'm not sure what you're getting at with that reference to Kissing on The Mouth. Honestly, I don't think it fits at all and has nothing to do with this discussion. The entire point of generational films or social commentary isn't necessarily to be an attack or a negative portrayal of society or a specific generation. There is a dimension to people that we feed on every day—something that transcends all the hardships and attacks of daily life. And New Jersey shows one of those dimensions. Life isn't perfect for Andrew, Sam, or their friends, but it's a reflection of a community that is confused in its own way, yet somehow still belongs.

Kissing on The Mouth has its place, but be careful about where you're applying it; you have to distinguish between the two.

One more thing.
I can't stand Coldplay, but having USPS, Shinsi, Remy Zero, and Colin Hay on the tracklist is enough for me to call the soundtrack relatively good.

I'm not a child anymore, and I don't live in some perfect utopia, nor am I trying to pretend I do. But I do know that within many of us—even if it's hidden away—there is a personality similar to Andrew and Sam's.

Don't try to categorize everything based on unfounded subjectivity.