THE KIMBALIANO SUNDANCE REPORT: DAY 7

The Reel Rhino in real life is a Crime Scene Investigator.  Crime happened, which is why the odd hour of this post.  Due to my extremely tired state, I regret to say, there will only be the pictures provided by KIMBALIANO.  And for now, I cut right to the chase...

KIMBALIANO: Hello! It's the beginning of day 7 here at Sundance and I'm currently waiting in the volunteer line for my 11th movie of the festival! (THE GUARD, supposed to be quite good, and already purchased by Sony Pictures) Here's a couple I have liked that you should look out for:

LIKE CRAZY - what a lovely movie this was! The long distance love story of Jacob (an American) and Anna (a Brit), separated by immigration red tape after Anna violates her visa to stay in the US an additional summer. Their love is infectious and believable and I adored this movie. So did Paramount Pictures, who've purchased it for $4 million. I've heard rumors of a March release date, so keep your eyes open. As a side note, Jennifer Lawrence - Sundance alum who was just nominated for Winter's Bone, plays a small supporting role in this film.

1st in Line for the Volunteer Entrance for
Perfect Sense

My other love of the fest so far has been PERFECT SENSE. Not because I have an obsessive crush on Ewan McGregor (which I do) or that he's a little bit naked in the film (which, ladies, he is) but because this is an amazing, emotional movie. It's the story of a couple (played by Ewan and Eva Green) who fall in love while a strange pandemic breaks out around the world. It starts with an overwhelming moment of loss and grief, then an unexplainable loss of smell. Eventually the entire world is effected. As this strange illness unfolds the human reaction, both on a global level and in the intimate details of the couple's relationship, are presented. The not-knowing in this movie will make you uncomfortable, but the story is too compelling not to watch. It hasn't been picked up yet, but I really hope it does. On a sad note - Ewan did not make it to the festival for the Q and A, but did film a video, which has been posted on the Sundance website.

As with most Sundance movies, these two don't exactly wrap themselves up in a pretty bow at the end, but that's what I find most enjoyable about them.



The Drive from Park City to SLC

And I couldn't finish this post without a shout out to the Oscar's! ALL of the nominated documentaries showed at Sundance last year - plus BLUE VALENTINE, THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT, and WINTER'S BONE were from last year's Fest! (Winter's Bone actually won the Dramatic Prize last year - I did catch it then, and while it's masterfully acted and presented, it's a very slow, character driven movie and wasn't one of my favorites). Hurrah for Sundance and good luck to all these independent films come ceremony time!

THANKS KIMBALIANO!!  Keep the great stuff comin'!!!

And now for a few kind words from THE KID IN THE HELMET!  He will be my movie going partner for the KANSAS CITY Premiere of RED STATE...only if...

For those of you who don't know me I am a huge Kevin Smith fan (the origins and many tales of this love are far too long to tell here but will make a good blog posting of their own). In fact I get my screen name from a very obscure moment in the already obscure Clerks: The Animated Series. So I have been following Red State for years now, dating back to when it was an untitled horror movie that Kevin was tossing around in his head and occasionally mentioning at q&a's. Kevin has had a passion for many projects that have fallen by the wayside for a litany of reasons (see: Superman Lives, Fletch Won, The Green Hornet) so when it appeared that this film would be too dark and heartless to find funding let alone a distributor I prepared myself for the fact that I might never seen my favorite writer/director stretch into a new genre. But here we sit a day after the film premiered at Sundance and Kevin announce he would self distribute under the banner of SModcast Pictures and take the film on a road tour before an eventual theatrical release. Quite the journey for this little picture that could and I couldn't be more excited that it's coming to my beloved hometown at the Midland Theater.

I tell you all that to tell you this. My wife is pregnant with our first child and she is due on March 15. Red State shows at the Midland on March 12. I'm going to take the risk of purchasing a ticket in the hopes that my unborn child shares the same love for Silent Bob as her father and will quietly stay nestled inside her mother until her father has seen the movie he has been following since before he met her mother. That said if she decides that day is the day I will happily sell/forfeit my ticket to Rhino and allow him to take someone who will appreciate the opportunity. And worst case scenario I will leave mid-flick if necessary. But I can promise you this: baby Jill will never hear the end of it :- ) So what if I have seen Kevin live 4 times and shaken his hand, not to mention I can see the flick again in October (at a much cheaper price)...it's Red State damn it!

Good stuff all around KID!  I know that Jillian will have her Papa's back and we will see Red State in all its glory!!

Stay tuned for more from Sundance from the always wonderful KIMBALIANO!!