Day 4 - 23 January

The tally at the weekend's close

The screening pace has picked up and filmmakers are beginning to feel the pressure of their premieres as Sundance closes out it's first weekend with strong Dramatic Competition screenings alongside striking World Cinema. Many directors are feeling humbled by the responses they have had from sold-out houses, and while the 'big deal, bidding war' scenario hasn't happened yet, a few films are separating from the pack to stand out.

Britain's Simon Magus from Director Ben Hopkins and Spain's Butterfly's Tongue (La Lengua de las Mariposas) from Director Jose Luis Cuerda , both feature film debuts screening in World Cinema, showcase extraordinary talent from the two filmmakers who already have strong reputations in other arenas.

Simon Magus, which first screened at Berlin in 1999, has undergone a recent re-edit to create a more accessible story line. Initial audience reaction to the Sundance version has been good, although mainstream marketability for this dark character study appears nearly impossible. Still, Hopkins' strong theater background brings forth dynamically rich performances that may help carry the film.

Jose Luis Cuerda, most well known for producing Thesis, and Open Your Eyes (from Director Alejandro Amenabar who, in turn, scored Butterfly's Tongue), directed an exquisitely crafted tale of idealism and paranoid reality in Butterfly's Tongue, as seen through the eyes of a young boy attending school for the first time. Set in the turbulent Spain of the late 1930's, the film is arresting in its portrayal human fragility and fallibility at the precise moment youthful idealism is shattered beyond repair.

Cuerda, who was still shaky after overcoming his fear of flying to be present in Sundance, thanked the audience for their "curiosity" and shared the hope that they wouldn't feel their curiosity to be fraudulent by the end of the movie. To the contrary, the enormous talents of both lead actors -veteran Fernando Fernan Gomez and young Manuel Lozano- captivated the audience.

Also captivating was the Dramatic Competition screening earlier in the day of Director Jon Shear's Urbania. Early buzz had marked the film as one to watch, and the overflow crowd at the Park City Library clearly felt the advance word to be warranted, however nothing prepared them for the admission at the end of the screening.

Based on the play Urban Folk Tales by Daniel Reitz, who also shares screenwriting credit for Urbania with Shear, the film holds plot twists and surprises as near to it's chest as did The Crying Game albeit on a much more emotional level. Although the filmmakers are asking press not to reveal certain plot lines, Sundance Associate Director of Programming John Cooper suggested to the crowd that they simply "let the film happen to you." At the end of the screening, a tearful and emotive Reitz-obviously overcome by the viewing-told the audience the script was based on his own real-life story. A story, he admitted, that he had previously never shared with anyone, even with Shear as he prepared to direct the film.

Director of Photography Shane F. Kelly, and Editors Randolph K. Bricker and Ed Marx shot the film on Super 16, giving Shear a chance to experiment with the super saturated color as well as the documentary feel of the film stock. Using a method Shear pioneered, Urbania is the first film at a major festival to be finished without ever cutting the negative. His technical devices served his purpose well in the editing room as it gave him remarkable editing-room control unheard of previously.

The Urbania alter ego on Sunday was The Tao of Steve, a wickedly funny and sly take on the romantic comedy genre. Starring Donal Logue and Greer Goodman, The Tao of Steve outdistanced its hype to deliver a flawlessly executed film full of warmth and charm. "Rare is it that first features are assured," remarked Cooper about the film. "But Director Jenniphr Goodman has done just that. She has made great choices throughout this process."

Goodman, who co-wrote The Tao of Steve script with Greer Goodman and Duncan North (on whom the lead character is based) secured financing from Good Machine who admitted to a 2 million dollar budget for the film. Shot entirely on location in New Mexico, The Tao of Steve is, so far, the most accessible and wide-release worthy film screened in Competition at the festival.

The frenzied publicity antics on Main Street have become mere distractions and annoyances as filmmakers are now faced with the far more intimate (and emotionally costly) environment of audience reaction. A few deals are currently inking, but for short films, not features. Distributors have a 'wait and see' agenda as another group of industry and colleagues are slated to arrive on Monday. Audiences hungry for stronger films are filling the early morning screenings, which start at 8:30 am, and the lack of snow is keeping them sitting in the theaters through four or five films at a stretch.

Screening on Monday will be Miguel Arteta's (Star Maps) Chuck & Buck. Shot digitally, Chuck & Buck is the "proof" the industry has been waiting for as they contemplate the new media/medium exhibition and distribution paradigms. Also screening is Spring Forward from Director Tom Gilroy. A character study performed by two brilliant actors, Ned Beatty and Liev Schreiber, the film is produced by Jim McKay (Our Song).

Special Tributee Kevin Spacey arrives on Monday and will be honored with the Piper-Heidsieck Award to Independent Vision. Spacey, whose body of work includes such Sundance milestones as The Usual Suspects and Swimming with Sharks (among many other Hollywood films) is also starring in The Big Kahuna which plays Sundance as a Special Screening.

FilmFestivals.com reporter
Kathleen McInnis

Sundance