Sundance 2010 Update #1

It's day five at the Sundance Film Festival here in Park City. I've seen three films so far. They were all very different.

The first film I saw was Friday evening, called Please Give. It's about a mother (Catherine Keener) who has a problem giving money to homeless people on the streets of New York. She'll give up $20 to a homeless man, but won't give her daughter money to buy a pair of jeans. Oliver Platt is the husband who seems like he has everything, but ends up having an affair with the neighbor's granddaughter (Amanda Peete).

REVIEW FOR PLEASE GIVE: Definitely an interesting plot, but not sure it will go to the big screen. View a clip here.

The second film I saw was on Saturday evening, called Buried. This film is set entirely in a coffin. Ryan Reynolds is a truck driver who is delivering army supplies to a base camp. Him and several other trucks are ambushed by a non-terrorist group. He is taken hostage, buried in a coffin, and left nothing but a cell phone, glow sticks, a flash light, and a letter with his ransom note on it. He is to make a ransom video that will be posted on every major news channel. The U.S. will need to pay $1 million before they tell them where he is buried. He isn't buried too far beneath the ground because he can hear the prayer call over the loud speaker, and he has cell reception in most areas of the coffin. He gets a hold of a hostage negotiator located in Iraq (because this is something that happens quite frequently).

REVIEW FOR BURIED: Because this film is so interesting, and the part for Ryan Reynolds was different, this might be something you see on the big screen in a few months. I went to this film with my friend, Amy. She came up with a great question to ask at the Q&A...except it was about 7 hours too late. Her question was: There is obviously a lot of hidden meaning behind this film regarding the U.S. government. What do you want your audience to get from this film? Great question! After you see the film, you'll understand! View the trailer here.

The third film I saw was yesterday afternoon, called The Dry Land. This film is about a soldier (Ryan O'Nan) who returns home to his wife (America Ferrera) and family, only to realize that he has Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

REVIEW FOR DRY LAND: Good story, good ending, overall good message. But that's it. Just good. Again, not sure if this film will go to the big screen.

I am going to see Mother & Child this evening, and my final film, The Romantics, on Wednesday. More reviews to come!