The Bronze (2015)

Director: Bryan Buckley

Writers: Melissa Rauch, Winston Rauch

Composer: ???

Starring: Melissa Rauch, Gary Cole, Haley Lu Richardson, Thomas Middleditch, Sebastian Shaw, Cecily Strong, Dale Raoul

More info: IMDB

Plot: In 2004, Hope Ann Greggory became an American hero after winning the bronze medal for the women's gymnastics team. Today, she's living in her father's basement in her small hometown—washed up, largely forgotten, and embittered. Stuck in her past glory, Hope is forced to reassess her life when a promising young gymnast who idolizes her threatens her local celebrity status. Will she mentor the adoring, hopeful protégé, take her down, or both?

My rating: 9/10

Will I watch it again? YES!!!

I caught this at the world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival last Thursday night and I about lost my shit from laughing so hard.  The opening scene (no spoilers) sets the outrageous tone for the film and it is stupendously raunchy and funny as hell.  If that first scene doesn't make you laugh out loud then you should probably just walk away.  Hope (Melissa Rauch) is such a shit to EVERYONE that it's no surprise that the only friend in the world she has is her father, Stan (Gary Cole) and even his patience is wearing thin but you know he'll always be there for her regardless.  The cast is outstanding.  Really.  Haley Lu Richardson (as Hope's protege, Maggie) is so adorably likable that there's no reason to think she won't go anywhere in this industry but up.  She's delightful and the perfect opposite of Hope.  Thomas Middleditch fits his role of Ben, the co-owner of the gymnastics studio and burgeoning love interest of Hope (if that's even possible but it is).  And Sebastian Stan is hilarious as the good-looking former two time Olympic winner who has a history with Hope and is on track to steal Maggie away from her and get him into the spotlight.  There are too many actors to name that do a splendid job but these five are the ones we follow throughout the picture. 

It can't be said enough how raunchy and wrong (in the right way) Hope is.  Her personality is black but in that way that allows you to laugh and cringe at the same time.  When you break the story down to its basic elements, there's nothing all that new about it.  But it's how director Buckley handles it, the VERY funny script by Melissa and her husband Winston and the aforementioned talent in front of the camera that breathes severely entertaining life into a tired and reliable trope found in most sports movies.  There's a scene were two gymnasts get it on but in the way your wildest dreams would suggest considering their profession.  It's a close second to TEAM AMERICA: WORLD POLICE (2004) for being the funniest sex scene ever filmed.  WOW!  Tears, man, tears from laughing so hard.  The funny runs from start to finish and I do mean finish.  Listen to the lyrics Melissa sings in the closing credits song.  In the Q&A after the film (in the video above), they explain that Winston wrote the lyrics on the drive to the recording studio as they had just been informed that Melissa was invited to sing on the track.  It works beautifully and it's a great way to end one truly funny, FUNNY movie.  The worst part of seeing it this early is having to wait to buy it so I can see it again but more importantly turn my friends onto it and look like a rock star for doing it. 

Sundance Film Festival 2014 Summary

Well, it didn't look like I was going to be able to go this year but at least I had last year. Sundance 2013 was an amazing experience.  If I only had one chance to go, that would satisfy me.  27 films was quite a feat. This year I was late to the dance but I still caught 12 fantastic films, some of which I'll see again and a small handful I'm dying to show my friends.


Day 1 - Let the movies begin & party with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon!

Day 2 - Why a romance between a 28 year old and a 14 year old isn't as bad as it sounds and hanging out with future celebrities at the cast & crew party!

Day 3 - Killer cheerleader sex/murder scandal and the return of Nazi zombies!

Day 4 - The day I get a cold...oh, plus dope-addicted jazz pianists and serial killers make the best pals.

Day 5 - Kevin Smith is soooooooooooo awesome!!!

Day 6 - Awards, the day I got a second opinion & sci-fi dust!

Day 7 - Three films that made sweet, sweet love to me ending with the biggest climax I've had in a long time!

Overall and final thoughts: For my second time here, it's been fantastic. The people were friendly, the 1,800+ volunteers were amazing, the weather was fantastic (sunny skies and barely a breeze the entire time I was there) and the movies were even better than last year. There wasn't a stinker in any of the 12 films I saw (less than half of what I caught last year) and the last film of the last day (for me) was the best. I really hope some of these make it out to the public in the coming months. They need to be seen and several of them are screaming me to come back. It's been one hell of a great film ride this year. Bring on 2015!

Sundance Film Festival 2013 Summary

Hokey smokes! I'm going to the Sundance Film Festival!!! From January 17 - 26, 2013 I'll be freezing my walnuts off in Park City, Utah watching a shitload of movies and hanging out with people who want to hang out with movie stars.

The plan is to update the blog daily for those 10 days on everything I watch. I'm sure it ain't all going to be pretty but it'll be one helluva time. Look for updates to occur at the end of each day.

Day 0 - Arrival & Cocktails!
Day 1 - Opening night, cocktails, movie and dinner with Robert Redford!
Day 2 - Beatniks, Porn & Son-Swapping Horny Moms
Day 3 - El Mariachi with Robert Rodriguez, Bitches!
Day 4 - Steve Coogan & Hell Babies
Day 5 - THE WAY WAY BACK - best flick so far
Day 6 - Science, Good Girls & Deep Throatin'
Day 7 - Gay Sex, Divorce Is Funny & Booze
Day 8 - Maciste, Surreal Disney World and Revenge, Western Style!
Day 9 - Ramblin' Horror
Day 10 - It's over

Overview & Final Thoughts

Extra: Sundance Funny

Sundance - Overview & Final Thoughts

I had an incredible time.  I’m hooked.  It was my first time at Sundance and my first time to a film festival.  It won’t be the last.  Most of the movies were very good to excellent.  I met an awful lot of interesting people, most of which were in the movie industry.  There were a lot of laughs.  I saw a bunch of movies I probably would’ve never seen had I not attended the festival.

My one nitpick: The sound in most of the theaters was too loud and the top end (treble) was too hot.  It wasn’t just me, either.  I heard the same complaint from several others.

What surprised me most?  How FUCKING AMAZINGLY AWESOME the volunteers were.  I’ve rarely met such a large group of friendly, happy people.  And they weren’t getting paid!  It was a pleasure to meet them.

I also enjoyed getting to meet some of the film makers and seeing their Q&A’s.  All but two movies had them.

How many movies did I see?  27, and fewer than I hoped for but it's still an awful lot of movies.  I'm not complaining.

My favorites?  THEWAY, WAY BACK and ESCAPE FROM TOMORROW.  Those are the top two at least.

I love the independent film spirit.  It’s an environment of nurturing creativity and encouraging success unlike Hollywood that wants to stifle it.  My eyes are more open now than ever before, from the people I’ve met to the films I’ve seen and the artists whose careers I’ll follow.

I’m so grateful to my friend for this trip.  It might have changed my life (let’s just see what happens in the coming year).  It’s given me a boost of enthusiasm as a cinefile.  For years I’ve been wanting to dick around and make short films, fake movie trailers and stuff.   In the next couple of weeks I’m going to research and buy a good camera and equipment and go to town making shit that makes me laugh and is entertaining.  I’m not looking to say anything significant, just to entertain.  We’ll see.  I may fall flat on my face but at least I will have tried and had a great time doing it.  My Summer is looking wide open and I can’t wait to fill it with a passion project that’s been on the back burner for too many years.

Sundance Film Festival Day 10

Saturday, January 26 (Yeah, I know I'm posting this incredibly late)

I’m really bummed out I’ve come to the final day of my trip.  Fortunately, the last movie was a good one, IN A WORLD…. Afterward, I zip lined for the first time and in the snowy mountains.  It was fun but it kind of blows because it’s only a few seconds at a pop.  I did the short run, then a much longer run and the short run again.  The total time for the three was probably 1 minute of fun.  At least the scenery was beautiful, the weather was nice and I burned a few calories for all the walking uphill and downhill in the snow.  In total it was a two hour excursion.  I suppose there are worse ways I could have dropped fifty bucks.

After hanging out at the house finishing reviews it was time for dinner and then the Sundance awards party.  Dinner was a joke (not at Sundance but at a regular restaurant).  $28 just for the entrée ($10 more for the salad).   It was at an expensive looking Italian restaurant.  I ordered rosemary garlic chicken.  The portion was tiny and I could have made that at home without much effort. 

And the awards party?  Only a select few were able to go to the actual awards ceremony.  What we attended was the party that followed.  Meh.  The highlight was getting to meet two of the lead actors from ESCAPE FROM TOMORROW, Roy Abramsohn and Elena Schuber.  They were very friendly.  I expressed my concern that I will never get to see it again as I’m sure the Disney lawyers will see to that.  They were pretty confident that the film would find a home on DVD.  That’s a relief. 

Sundance Film Festival Day 9

Now I'm really getting bummed out.  It's winding down.  After a nice and relaxing morning, I hit the surreal and not-completely-sure-what-the-hell-I-watched, THE RAMBLER at 2:30 and at 7 it was the ONLY horror movie (there are only two playing out of 65 films) I will have seen here, IN FEAR, and it was pretty good.  I'm back at the house writing up some movies nursing two fingers of bourbon.

I did get to meet Sam Elliott slumming it as a Sundance volunteer.

Just kidding.

I'm also getting a little bummed about only having one more movie left.  At 9 AM it's IN A WORLD....  After that I'm going to zipline down the snow-covered mountain, finish up the reviews and get ready for the awards party at 9:30.  Then it's over.  All over.  I need a drink.

Sundance Funny

I've seen a lot of movies here at the Sundance Film Festival and, as independent films go, there are a few of them that have nudity.  One thing I noticed early on is whenever there is an actress that gets nude (and mostly a popular actress that hasn't done or rarely does a nude scene) there is inevitably some guy (I didn't pay attention enough to see if it's the same person or just a random dude) in the audience that asks (the actress) during the Q&A with the cast and crew, something along the lines of, "What was the hardest part of making the film?" or "What were the biggest challenges you had with this role?".  You and I know damn well what they're getting at.  The response these people (and, yeah, I'm going there with "these people") want to hear her say, "Taking my clothes off."

Am I missing something here?  I suppose there are people that get off on hearing that or maybe trying to get the actress to feel uncomfortable.  So after seeing this happen easily 3 or 4 times this week, I bring it up in conversation with people I'm in line with, sitting next to, friends, whomever.   Last night was the world premiere of SWEETWATER, a Western with January Jones, Ed Harris and Jason Isaacs.  I told that story to a couple of friends of mine before the movie to kill some time and to make small talk. The movie starts.  At some point January Jones had no clothes on.  I leaned over  to my friend and said "I bet you the fourth question's going to be about this scene."  Sure as shit, the fourth question was to Jones about what her toughest scene to shoot was.  Classic.  And just like the other actresses, she didn't mention the nude scene.  Classy.

Sundance Film Festival Day 8

Thursday, January 24.

Two friends of mine are going to see BREATHE IN tomorrow.  I'm so envious. They get to see it for the first time.  I'm in tears telling them about it without spoiling it. I want to share it so badly.  I can't wait to discuss it with them.

Today was a great day.  I watched IL FUTURO (THE FUTURE) with Rutger Hauer and Manuela Martelli.  Wow.  Amazing.  Then it was ESCAPE FROM TOMORROW that fucking blew...me...away.  I wish you were all here to experience it with me.  After that screening, I got all fanboy over a film composer I had never heard of.  The score for that film was one of the finest I've heard in years.  His name is Abel Korzeniowski and I'm his new biggest fan.  I literally stood gushing in front of him, filling him full of praise. I cannot stress enough that I had never even heard of the guy.  All it took was one fucking amazing film with an even better score.  Of all the films I've seen here at Sundance, this one is most likely to never be seen in public again which makes me more desperate to own it.  Wait for my review and you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.  Then it was the big one (for me), SWEETWATER, a western with Ed Harris, Jason Isaacs and January Jones that has a conclusion that kicks all kinds of fucking Western ass.  What a great conclusion to a fantastic day of movie going.  I'm so glad this is happening late in the festival.

I'd like to take a moment and talk about how wonderful the more than 1,800 member volunteer staff is. I have never in my 44 years come across a more delightful and pleasant group of people.  Every single volunteer has far exceeded any expectation I could ever have for any event.  They have been nothing short of   kind, generous and helpful at every single step of the way.  I want to smother all of them in smooches.

For the last flick I had an extremely fun conversation about movies with Heather and David (they weren't together but knew each other) who were directly in front of me in line.  What an enlightening conversation we had for close to an hour and a half.  That's one of the things I dig most about this festival is the people you meet in line.  I fucking love Sundance.  I've been here for more than a week now and it has yet to get stale.  I really feel like I could do this for weeks on end. I'm in heaven, however you define it.  Tomorrow it's the penultimate day for me that starts with THE RAMBLER, IN FEAR (a nice horror flick from what I'm told) and a midnight showing of KINK.  I'm getting sad that this is almost over.  I've been riding on a cloud for more than a week and I don't want this to end.  I'm choking up now so I'll stop for the night.  I'm really going to miss this.  I can't believe I'm getting so emotional right now.

Sundance Film Festival Shorts Program 3

More info: Sundance

I love to watch short films.  Why?  Because if they suck you don't have to wait long for the next one.  Seriously, though, having a program of short films gives you a variety of subjects, style and talent...plus you don't have to wait long for the next film if the one you're watching bores the piss out of you.  Unfortunately, this was the only one of the 5 shorts programs this year I could make.  I love these things.  Only one of the shorts I saw are on the below video.

KARAOKE! - On a night out in New York City, a young man tries to avoid his problems.

6/10 - This one has a great looking opening sequence in a Chinatown alley.  I got what the film maker was saying, I just wasn't engaged.

THE DATE - Tino’s manhood is put to the test in front of two women when he has to host a date for Diablo, the family’s stud cat.

8.5/10 - Hilarious!  I loved the juxtaposition of the cats having sex with the courting of the two young people.

RECORD/PLAY - War, fate, and a broken Walkman transcend time and space in this sci-fi love story.

7/10 - Very well done and interesting sci-fi. There wasn't a dull moment.  The film makers announced afterward, during the Q&A that it's being developed into a feature.  I'm not sure how they can stretch it out to feature length but I'm keen to see it.

#POSTMODEM - A comedic, satirical, sci-fi pop musical based on the theories of Ray Kurzweil and other futurists, #PostModem is the story of two Miami girls and how they deal with technological singularity, as told through a series of cinematic tweets.

7/10 - The MegaMega Upload song is catchy as hell. This one is just a few expanded clips joined by the "Vortex" device but they're entertaining and co-writer/co-director Jillian Mayer looks fabulous naked and strapped into a hydro pack!

THE COMPANION - On the outskirts of Lima, a young prostitute tends to his father, a fallen-from-grace artisan. However, the young man feels that his efforts are never enough. He tries to break free, but his father’s dependence is stronger than his son’s will.

4/10 - Nicely shot but dull.  There was way too much wasted space.  I would have enjoyed it a lot more, I think, if it were a great deal shorter.

THE ROPER - A black man with hip-hop and zydeco roots hard-grafts through the local, all-white rodeo circuits in the Deep South as he dreams of competing in the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas.

6.5/10 - An interesting documentary short.  I liked the topic and the subject.  I would have liked to have seen more.

MAGNESIUM - A talented gymnast makes a life-changing discovery as she prepares for an important tournament, which is her last chance to reach the top.

7/10 - I really liked the story and the young girl but the incessant close up camera work throughout the entire film annoyed me.  I wasn't given an opportunity for my eyes to breathe.  I totally get that the director made that choice to show how personal and intimate this was for the girl but it was simply too, too much for me.

Sundance Film Festival Day 7

Wednesday, January 23

Man.  I've been here a week already and I've done so much and I've seen an awful lot of movies.  I've got three days left with seven movies to go.  I just know it'll all be over much too soon.

Today was OK.  We kicked it off at Noon with the James Franco flick, INTERIOR. LEATHER BAR.  I still don't know what I saw.  The hardcore gay sex didn't bother me.  It's just that I'm still trying to figure out what the point was.  A.C.O.D. was friggin hilarious.  Great cast and lots of fun.  It was definitely the bright spot today.  Then came BIG SUR, the Jack Kerouac flick.  Great performances but slow.  Kerouac's words were great to hear.  Nice cadence.

Tomorrow I'm really excited.  There's the Rutger Hauer flick, THE FUTURE, a highly rated drama/fantasy, ESCAPE FROM TOMORROW and a Western with Ed Harris called SWEETWATER.  That last one is my most anticipated flick at Sundance (because it's a Western).  After that there's only 4 more movies left.  Sigh.  I've got a big break tomorrow between the first two films so I should be able to get caught up on the film reviews.

Sundance Film Festival Day 6

Tuesday, January 22

Not much sleep last night, maybe 5.5 hours.  That's alright.  It's for a good cause.  Today started off with a program of several short films which, as expected, was a mixed bag of good and not so good.  I took a break from watching movies for a little while to catch a panel on science and the movies which was fun and interesting.  The panel consisted of Paula Apsell (senior executive producer of NOVA), Jon Amiel (director of the Charles Darwin film, CREATION), Scott Burns (writer of CONTAGION), Dr. Andre Fenton and Dr. Lisa Randall (both super smart science-y types, LOL).  I really enjoyed that.

Next I was off to a two-fer at the Eccles Theatre with the not so hot VERY GOOD GIRLS (I think my testosterone levels were too high to enjoy this one) and LOVELACE, a dark film about Linda Lovelace, the star of DEEP THROAT.  After that it was back to the house to type this up.

Except for the Q&A folks, I did spot Jennifer Carpenter (Deb on DEXTER) in the audience at the premiere of LOVELACE and scrummy Jamie Lee Curtis at the premiere of VERY GOOD GIRLS.

Tomorrow it's INTERIOR: LEATHER BAR (sounds like fun), A.C.O.D. (which has super-cutie, Amy Poehler) and ending the day with BIG SUR (about Jack Kerouac).

Sundance Film Festival Day 5

Monday, January 21
5 days down, 5 more to go.

It was nice to get 7 hours of sleep last night.  8 would have been better but who's complaining at this point?  After checking up on a short film I saw the night before (THE CUB) it turns out it was funded by Kickstarter.  If I had known I would have thrown this guy a handful of dollars to support the picture.  I'm going to try to get with the guy before Sundance is over to talk about his next project and see if I could contribute to it.  This guy's got talent.

Today was a very nice late start.  I had a nice Mexican lunch and I was able to bang out enough reviews today to be caught up until the midnight show.  The first flick of the day was THE WAY WAY BACK which is now my favorite film at Sundance then I was bored with the Shia Labeof vehicle, THE NECESSARY DEATH OF CHARLIE COUNTRYMAN.  I had a nice beer at some joint and hammered out the last of the reviews to get ready to put up and then it was a midnight world premiere of ASS BACKWARDS which had some great laughs but not enough for me to recommend.  The two female leads were full of comic energy and talent but many of the jokes fell flat.

Tomorrow it's an hour and a half of short films, VERY GOOD GIRLS at 6:15 and then it's the premiere of  LOVELACE about the star of the 70s porn blockbuster DEEP THROAT, Linda Lovelace.  No sightings today outside of the Q&A's.

Sundance Film Festival Day 4

Sunday, January 20.

I can't believe this keeps getting better every day.  Left the house at 8 AM and just got back at 2 AM.  Watched the new Steve Coogan flick, THE LOOK OF LOVE at 9.  Great flick, especially for Coogan fans.  I gave up my ticket for a friend to see a movie with his dad so I had a 3.5 hour break.  I FINALLY got a decent meal for a change instead of snacking or not eating.  Had some good Mexican food and banged out a few reviews (those are coming after I get some sleep).  Back to the Eccles Theatre for THE EAST, the latest from Brit Marling.  I liked it (more later).  Then I was right back in line for Chan-Wook Park's newest, STOKER.  While in line for that one I was next to the CEO of IMDb again.  I was between him and the head casting director for Disney.  Unbelievable.  Next thing I know I'm at the top of their 'pay-no-mind' list and I'm a ghost.  STOKER was good but I need some help.

That steak I've been wanting for the past 4 days happened after STOKER.  We took the shuttle to downtown and ate at some fancy pantsy restaurant.  The food was good but not worth what we paid.  I hate paying large dollars for something I can make just as good at home.  I'm not complaining.  It was well worth it.  After that it was a quick ride to the Library theatre for the midnight premiere. A FUCKING HILARIOUS horror/comedy called HELL BABY.  I thought I was going to piss myself with that one.  Every show today had a Q&A with the cast and crew. Nicole Kidman is tall.  Ellen Page is still short and Steve Coogan couldn't make it because he's a couple of days away from beginning shooting on the Alan Partridge movie (YEAH!!!).

I already gave up my ticket for someone for TOY'S HOUSE which means my first movie tomorrow starts at 3:30, plenty of time to catch up on reviews of everything I've seen so far.  There's another midnight show for me tomorrow with ASS BACKWARDS and before that I'll see THE WAY WAY BACK (Sam Rockwell) and THE NECESSARY DEATH OF CHARLIE COUNTRYMAN (Shia LaBeouf).

Sundance Film Festival Day 3

Just to clarify this is for Saturday, January 19.

Today started with TOUCHY FEELY which wasn't a bad way to start the day.  But then it was BREATHE IN with Guy Pearce and Felicity Jones.  GREAT flick but it will make a lot of folks uncomfortable.  Uncomfortable seems to be a theme at this year's festival.  While I'm in line to see it I strike up a conversation with a British gentleman standing next to me.  We talked for probably 15 minutes before I exchange introductions. When I asked him if he was here as a fan or if he was in the industry he told me he was the co-founder and CEO of IMDb!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  How fucking cool was that?  We kept on chatting until it was time to be let into the show.  Then there's the movie and I loved it.

Fortunately the first two movies of the day were at the same theater but you still don't have any time to leave if you want to grab a bite to eat.  The food and drink offerings vary with the theater.  I'm not eating well and I often go a long time either without anything or eating shit.  I already feel like I've lost a couple of pounds in the four days I've  been here.  I'm not opposed to dropping the weight but it's not how I want to do it.  I feel like I need to eat a fat steak or something substantial. Anyway, after BREATHE IN it was off to the Egyptian Theater a few miles away for EL MARIACHI (1993) with Robert Rodriquez in attendance.  They didn't have anything but candy, cookies, sodas, water and beer so I had to keep starving.  The Q&A with RR was a blast.  I love that guy.  More on this hopefully soon when I get a chance to write up about the movies I'm watching without losing even more sleep than I am just to do this update.

Then we head over to the last flick of the night (I really wanted to go to the midnight premiere of KINK but I've got the Steve Coogan flick, THE LOOK OF LOVE, in the morning at 9), BLACKFISH.

Tomorrow (Sunday) it's THE LOOK OF LOVE, a decent meal for a change instead of seeing AIN'T THEM BODIES SAINTS (which I'll catch next week instead), THE EAST (Brit Marling's newest picture), STOKER (Chan-Wook Park's latest) and then a near-midnight screening of HELL BABY.  It's going to be another long day.  I'm lovin' it!

Sundance Film Festival Day 2

Today was a late start day as the movies we were catching didn't begin until 3:30 with KILL YOUR DARLINGS followed by DON JON'S ADDICTION and ending with TWO MOTHERS.  All of these were world premieres that had Q&A's with the film makers.  The first picture had me sitting in the very back which sucked because the Q&A had Michael C. Hall, Jack Huston, Ben Foster and Daniel Radcliff on stage.  I got smart on the next two and made sure I got in line a little earlier getting myself a nice spot second row center to see Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Julienne Moore, Tony Danza, Glenne "HUBBA HUBBA" Headly and Naomi Watts get up on stage to talk about their films.

Saturday starts at noon and includes TOUCHY FEELY, BREATHE IN (with Guy Pearce), EL MARIACHI (with a Q&A by Rodriquez) and BLACKFISH, a documentary about a killer whale that's got a human body count.

Sundance Film Festival Day 1

Man, what a day (well, half a day).  The festival officially started at 4 with a cocktail party for special guests. I was among them along with my friend who made this all possible for me.  The drinks and Hors d'oeuvres were flowing in a dark setting (very black) with installation art and films projected onto the walls.  There was one room that had a domed enclosure with video playing on the inside ceiling of undersea coral.  It was interesting but only for a few seconds until I got a little queasy.  Apparently it has that effect on some people and I was one of them.  The Cosmopolitan was nice, though.

There were lots of people with interesting faces, the kind of faces that looked like they belonged to artists or people in the film industry.  I didn't notice anyone famous but someone did point out Christine Lahti.  I looked her up on IMDb and found nothing that I would have seen her in although I do know her name somehow.

Finally we're shuttled to the Eccles Theater for the world premiere of Cherien Dabis' film (in which she also wrote and stars), MAY IN THE SUMMER (2013).  The theater was packed.  I thought I saw Dennis Hopper until I remembered he died a couple of years ago.  That was anticlimactic.  After the film the cast and crew hopped up on stage and did a half hour Q & A.  So that was my very first world premiere.  Neat-O.

That's Bill Pullman second from the right and Dabis in black with the microphone.

We're back in the shuttle buses for dinner, an event called AN ARTIST AT THE TABLE.  The film maker at our table was James Ponsoldt.  The table next to us had Robert Redford (with Nancy Pelosi seated) and the table next to his had Joseph Gordon-Levitt.  Those were the biggest names in attendance.  There were more cocktails and wine before dinner, then the meal and music entertainment by Will Calhoun and Yotam Silberstein.  The whole affair from start to finish lasted a good 7 hours.  I was hoping to go to a party after that but after all of that AND I barely got any sleep the night before I was too bushed to go.  Everyone else in the group crapped out, too.  It wasn't much of a loss as apparently the party would be mostly attended by Sundance volunteers and not by Gordon-Levitt or anyone of that note.  I'm sure I'll hear about it tomorrow how Christopher Walken (who's been spotted here) showed up and did a song and dance routine.

 If it's not obvious, that's Robert Redford.  What a shitty picture that turned out to be.

And here's Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

I do need sleep after not getting much last night.  Tomorrow I'm definitely going to see the premieres of KILL YOUR DARLINGS, DON JON'S ADDICTION (directed and starring Gordon-Levitt) and TWO MOTHERS and hopefully THE SIGHTSEERS.

Sundance Film Festival Day 0

HOLY CRAP!  I'm in Park City, Utah!!!  In 18 hours I will be attending a cocktail party with all the hotshots, then we'll watch the premiere of MAY IN THE SUMMER, after which there will be a high-falutin' dinner and then it's more cocktails.  What's more, there's another party after that!  This is just too cool. I can't believe I'm here.

Each stack of tickets (in the pic above - that's me, ScoreTheFilm, Esq.) represents one film and of those, I'm going to see at least 29 over the next ten days.  Woof.

That's right, it's 20 F degrees outside and this is how I dress.