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Review by Sean Boelman
A still from Shortcomings by Randall Park, an official selection of the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.
Randall Park has had his hand in some of the funniest projects in film in television in the past decade, so his directorial debut, Shortcomings, was quite an exciting prospect. While Park proves that he’s a pretty fantastic comedy director here, the script struggles to balance its edginess with satisfying storytelling.
The movie follows a young theater manager who is forced to confront the implications of race in modern dating when his longtime girlfriend decides to move across the country and wants them to “take a break.” Written by Adrian Tomine from his popular graphic novel, the film purports to be the antithesis to the saccharine, crowd-pleasing forms of representation we have seen in mainstream movies in recent years. There is an episodic structure to the film lent to it by the source material. It’s nice that Tomine was able to adapt his own work, and therefore ensure that his artistic vision was preserved, but it’s also frustrating because you can literally feel the gaps in the movie that are the start of a new segment. The film poses some interesting questions about Asian-American identity, but it ends up feeling overstuffed. Again, this is likely a quality that was lost in the translation from page to screen. While these individual themes might have worked well through the panels in a graphic novel, they lack the cohesiveness and flow that is necessary to make a romantic comedy work. It’s also somewhat surprising that the movie does not have a more pronounced visual style given that it is adapted from a graphic novel. Of course, Tomine’s visual style emphasizes realism, but the film leaves something to be desired by being shot much like the types of studio rom-coms that it directly ridicules. Still, Park does one hell of a job directing his actors, getting performances out of them that fit the bill perfectly. The thing about Shortcomings that is likely to divide its viewers most is that its characters are rather unlikable. It’s certainly intriguing to watch a romantic comedy where you can’t really root for either of the characters because they’re both very selfish. Obviously, the characters’ arcs are realizing their selfishness and (hopefully) growing out of it, but it does begin to feel frustrating at times. That being said, there is one character that is infectiously charming: the protagonist’s best friend played hilariously by Sherry Cola. Cola’s comedic timing is absolutely impeccable and consistently gets the biggest laughs in the movie, and she also has the perfect personality to be a wonderful foil to Justin H. Min’s curmudgeonly “hero.” Shortcomings is often funny, but it is held back from becoming a new rom-com classic due to a script that is too incohesive to be fully immersive. It’s a work of passion for all involved — and it shows — but there’s no denying that it falls short of its full potential. Shortcomings is playing at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, which runs January 19-29 in-person in Park City, UT and January 24-29 online. Rating: 3.5/5
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Review by Sean Boelman
Emilia Jones and Nicholas Braun appear in Cat Person by Susanna Fogel, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.
Lots of people have tried and failed to make films capturing the terrifying dating scene that Gen Z faces, but few have managed to capture these anxieties properly. Cat Person is a rare exception, a romantic thriller inspired by a true story that takes the audience along for a wild ride that is equal parts hilarious and distressing.
Based on a short story by Kristen Roupenian that appeared in The New Yorker, the movie follows a college student who begins a relationship with an older man, only for things to take a sinister turn when she decides to break things off. It’s a film that really strives to make the viewer feel uncomfortable and awkward, and it does so without a hitch. The movie is not subtle whatsoever on its commentary on the fragility of the male ego and how dangerous it has become. And while the film fails to really interrogate the issue or the elements of our patriarchal society that allowed the male ego to reach such a dangerous point, it does a good job of pointing out something to which many people are still unfortunately oblivious. Part of what makes the movie so interesting is its character development. Michelle Ashford’s screenplay does an excellent job of making the audience feel charmed by Robert and Margot at first, only for them to both reveal their true colors as the story unfolds. We definitely know where the story is heading, but the writing is strong enough to make us question whether our perception is right. 
Geraldine Viswanathan and Emilia Jones appear in Cat Person by Susanna Fogel, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.
The two central performances are both pretty fantastic. Nicholas Braun shines with a performance that requires a great deal of range, particularly in the third act when the dichotomy turns into something with much less pronounced lines. Emilia Jones is also extremely charming here, apart from a few scenes in which she goes a bit too big.
Susanna Fogel directs the film very sleekly, with colorful yet claustrophobic cinematography and a soundtrack that features some really fun needle drops. A few of the movie’s more ambitious elements, like the breaking of the fourth wall, are a bit overused, but they are shot quite effectively nonetheless. The shit really hits the fan in the last thirty minutes, but even for the first two acts, it keeps viewers engaged. Even if the suspense is built in ways that could be considered unearned — like the creation of threats that aren’t really there — it will constantly keep viewers on the edge of their seats and laughing uncomfortably. Cat Person has gotten a very divisive reception out of Sundance, but for the target audience of younger viewers, it’s likely to be an entertainingly awkward watch. It’s not perfect by any means, but it’s genuinely entertaining despite its many flaws. Cat Person is playing at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, which runs January 19-29 in-person in Park City, UT and January 24-29 online. Rating: 4/5
Review by Sean Boelman
A still from Drift by Anthony Chen, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
Anthony Chen is an acclaimed Singaporean director, and for his English language debut, he helms an adaptation of Alexander Maksik’s novel, A Marker to Measure Drift. Led by performances and direction that are wonderfully subtle, Drift will go down as one of the best movies of the festival even if it isn’t one of the flashiest.
The film follows a refugee who, having left her life of privilege in her war-torn home country after a horrible tragedy, begins a friendship with an American tour guide on a Greek island. It’s an extraordinarily humanistic version of this story, lacking the melodrama that often drives films about this theme. Chen’s direction utilizes the gorgeous scenery of the Greek islands in a fascinating way. Although Crystel Fournier’s cinematography is stunning, it is used to create a facade that allows the movie’s darker themes to create a stark juxtaposition against the idyllic landscape on which they are explored. Cynthia Erivo’s performance in the leading role is absolutely breathtaking, and somewhat against type for her. Up to this point, Erivo has made her career giving performances that are big and showy — not surprising given that she started on the stage — but the lack of dialogue in much of the film requires her to use her mannerisms and facial expressions to communicate emotion rather than her voice. Also playing against type is Alia Shawkat, who gives an unexpectedly tender performance opposite Erivo. Although this is firmly Erivo’s movie, Shawkat seems to recognize that, radiating a warmth in her role that allows Erivo to do her best possible work. It’s a refreshingly unfussy supporting turn in a festival that is full of scene-stealers. The film works best when it explores the unorthodox friendship that forms between the two characters. The flashbacks to the protagonist’s past, detailing her experience as a refugee, aren’t as well-developed, culminating in a third act that, while harrowing, is a bit more expositional than it needs to be. Indeed, the best parts of the movie are those which are more subdued and less overt. Much of the first hour, we follow Erivo’s character as she struggles as a refugee in a strange land, haunted by her trauma, and what makes it stand out from other immigrant stories is its restrained approach. The finale is certainly emotional, but it trades the poeticism and subtext for distressing brutality. Although the final act may not feel entirely earned, extraordinary performances by Cynthia Erivo and Alia Shawkat and beautiful direction from Anthony Chen allow Drift to resonate deeply. Its quietly contemplative nature may be too slow for some but will linger in one’s mind long after the credits roll. Drift is playing at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, which runs January 19-29 in-person in Park City, UT and January 24-29 online. Rating: 4.5/5
Review by Sean Boelman
A still from Cassandro by Roger Ross Williams, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.
Filmmaker Roger Ross Williams won an Academy Award for his documentary work, so his narrative debut, the biopic Cassandro, was highly anticipated in this year’s Sundance lineup. Although the film has some moments that feel overly conventional, Williams’s keen eye as a director makes it memorable nonetheless.
The movie tells the story of amateur luchador Saúl Armendáriz, who rises through the ranks of the Mexican lucha libre circuit and to international stardom after forming an “exotico” personality by the name of Cassandro. Sports biopics are a dime a dozen, but lucha libre is the type of niche sport underrepresented within the genre, allowing it to be somewhat distinctive even in its familiarity. The biggest success of the film, without a doubt, is its visual style. Costume designer María Estela Fernández does an extraordinary job capturing the colorful and flamboyant world of lucha libre. Just as impressive is how Williams shoots the lucha scenes themselves, with a visual kineticism that lends the movie a great deal of energy. It’s nice to see a biopic that so openly addresses the identity of an LGBTQIA+ icon. Although the film otherwise sticks to the standard, traditional beats of the biopic genre, it engages so deeply with the subject’s identity and his role in the LGBTQIA+ community, allowing it to stand out. Gael Garcia Bernal’s performance in the leading role is nothing short of exquisite. Bernal plays the role in a way that never feels like a caricature. It’s a balance that is undeniably challenging to pull off, given that Cassandro’s persona is all about his flamboyance, but Bernal manages to capture that while still keeping in touch with the core humanity of the role. That being said, the movie does struggle with going beyond the external challenges faced by the character. We see a lot of how others in the lucha libre community attempt to hold Cassandro back, and it’s inspiring to see him overcome the odds to achieve success and fame, but it would have been worthwhile to see how this affected him on a more personal level. Perhaps most disappointing, though, is how it largely wastes its supporting cast. Raúl Castillo has the most prominent supporting role, playing another luchador who enters into a relationship with Bernal’s Cassandro. Unfortunately, he is absent for significant stretches of the film, yet Castillo has too strong of a presence to feel insignificant. Reggaeton superstar Bad Bunny also has a bit part, but seems there for the name recognition more than anything else. Cassandro benefits from strong direction and an amazing lead performance, elevating it beyond its occasionally standard approach to the genre. Hopefully people remember this biopic well into the year, as it is sure to compare favorably to plenty of other biopics focusing on more mainstream figures. Cassandro is playing at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, which runs January 19-29 in-person in Park City, UT and January 24-29 online. Rating: 3.5/5
Review by Sean Boelman
A still from Eileen by William Oldroyd, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
William Oldroyd’s romantic drama/thriller Lady Macbeth was wickedly fun, and was a large part of what kicked off the career of fan-favorite actress Florence Pugh. Those hoping for the same type of sinister thrills from Oldroyd’s newest film, Eileen, will be sorely disappointed, as it’s a largely dull crime drama with weak narrative momentum.
Based on the novel of the same name by Ottessa Moshfegh, the movie follows a woman working at a prison facility who forms an unusual friendship with a new coworker. Many people went in expecting this to be some sort of erotic thriller, and it’s very much not that, with Oldroyd’s charged direction bordering on queerbaiting. For the most part, the pacing is absolutely glacial. It’s a film full of unrequited tension that ultimately doesn’t build into much of anything. In a way, it almost feels as if the movie is spinning its wheels to reach an ending that promises to be totally unhinged — but it simply isn’t enough to make the film feel compelling. Eventually, the movie takes a drastic shift heading into the third act that comes out of left field. Perhaps this development worked better in novel form, where there was more time to build up to the conclusion, but it simply doesn’t feel like that was where the film was heading. On its own, the third act is quite compelling, but it feels rather underdeveloped in context. The movie is perhaps most successful on a technical level, thanks to an aesthetic style that is wonderfully atmospheric. Cinematographer Ari Wegner is without a doubt the MVP of the film, creating a grainy look that replicates the crime genre perfectly; however, the work of costume designer Olga Mill and production designer Craig Lathrop should also not be ignored. The main reason that many people will be seeing this movie is for the performance by Anne Hathaway, and she delivers a performance that — while kitschy and over-the-top — is completely engrossing. Especially in the third act, which embraces the more pulpy aspirations of the story, Hathaway is the only aspect of this film that keeps it energetic. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Thomasin McKenzie’s performance is less consistent. It’s clear that she is meant to be a subdued foil to Hathaway’s extravagance, but instead, her performance simply feels rather cold. On top of this, the Boston accent that she attempts is thoroughly unconvincing, drawing the viewer out of the story. Eileen is a solidly-crafted movie and features yet another show-stopping performance from Anne Hathaway, but the script meanders and leaves something to be desired. It’s disappointing to see a film that has all of the pieces in place end up feeling so unmoving. Eileen is playing at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, which runs January 19-29 in-person in Park City, UT and January 24-29 online. Rating: 3/5 |