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Day
7 - 26 January
Packed
premieres: The Big Kahuna,
Boiler Room
Thus
far there is still no break out film of either Shine
or Blair Witch proportion at Sundance. Although
Two Family House got picked up by Lion's Gate and
Girlfight was acquired by Screen Gems, there have
been no massive bidding wars commanded by Miramax. In 1999, Miramax
reportedly paid $10M for the rights to Happy Texas,
while in 1998, Miramax coughed up a similar amount for The
Castle. So far in 2000, one of the biggest money winners
is Groove which was snagged by Sony Pictures Classics
reportedly for $1.5M. This year, high profile star-packed premieres
like the Kevin Spacey showcase The Big Kahuna and
the Ben Affleck flick Boiler Room are dominating
the festival.
Two Family House directed by Raymond Defelitta is
the story of a working class guy based in Staten Island New York
during the 1950s. Its an exploration of a life riddled with the
frustration of a failed crooner. The film co-stars Scottish actress
Kelly MacDonald (Trainspotting, Elizabeth).
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Karyn
Kusama, a protegee of John Sayles and Maggie Rienzi directed Girlfight.
New comer Michelle Rodriguez gives a dynamic performance in an
intense drama that explores the life of a female boxer brought
up in the similar socio-economic circumstances which produces
contemporary professional male boxers.
Greg Harrison worked as a film editor for 10 years prior
to directing Groove. His credits include Six
Degrees of Separation, The Perez Family,
as well as Jerry Garcia's final music video. Groove
is an exploration of the underground rave scene in San Francisco.
Although the film is considered a low-budget Nashville
of generation x subculture, Groove will invariably
be compared to Go--the hit rave flick from 1999.
There's a compelling list of documentaries this year. The
Eyes of Tammy Faye is directed by the team of Fenton Bailey
and Randy Barbato who made a splash at Sundance a couple of years
ago with the grisly yet entertaining Party Monster.
The infamous drag queen RuPaul narrates the story of Tammy Faye
Bakker Messner and the scandal that destroyed one of the leading
U.S. tele-evangilists in the early 1990s. Legacy,
directed by the Emmy Award-winning Tod S. Lending is another noteworthy
documentary. Legacy is an extraordinary exploration
of an undereducated and disadvantaged extended family who reside
in one of Chicago's toughest housing projects.
FilmFestivals.com
reporter
Rita Johnson
Sundance
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