Jason and I attended the Sundance Film Festival again this year. This annual indie binge has been a tradition of ours for well over a decade. The Sundance Film Festival’s unpredictability is gripping. You never know who is going to show up, and you never know if you’re going to see the next Napoleon Dynamite or something that just blows like dynamite. We saw four films this time, none exploded on us.
The Price of Everything
Joined by our friends Dan and Monica, we began our Sundance experience via calculating The Price of Everything. This documentary took a complex topic, how the perceived value of paintings and sculptures is warped through auctions, and explored it from multiple perspectives. Many of the issues addressed were relevant to society as a whole. I’m no art buff, but that didn’t taper my enjoyment of The Price of Everything. There was a Q&A afterward with the director and various other members of the crew. Q&As are my favorite thing about Sundance; they are deliciously-detailed heroin for the cinematically curious.
Dark Money
This was probably my favorite film we saw this year at Sundance, though there were some other close contenders. Dark Money, which won the Sundance Institute/Amazon Studios Producers Award, examined the consequences of the Citizens United decision- the bribe money now funding our politicians under the sacred umbrella of “free speech.” This documentary was disturbing but eye opening. The fascinating Q&A after the film was followed by a lengthy discussion at Impact Hub. Dark Money will be distributed by PBS later this year; I’d recommend checking it out even though it will make you despise politicians even more than you already do.
Puzzle
I loved that this film didn’t portray saints, just people. The characters were all flawed and complex, like real human beings. Afterward, the director showed up for an interesting Q&A.
Damsel
This quirky movie was an irreverent tribute to and satire of Westerns. While it had its difficult-to-watch moments, I enjoyed it as a whole. Jason and I always go to Sundance with indie expectancies- slow and absurd are all part of the experience. So, we weren’t surprised to find both traits in this film. We saw this flick with my brother and his wife; I don’t think they had their expectations calibrated correctly for indie viewing because they weren’t overly impressed.
Jason and I went through an array of reactions at the Sundance Film Festival this year, from dismay to delight. We learned some, laughed some, hung with friends some… and became completely disenchanted with America’s so-called democracy. Okay, maybe that’s being a little dramatic, but isn’t drama a key element of film?