Day Three | Sundance 2021
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Concise opinions about the films I watched during Day Three of Sundance 2021, including links to the respective reviews.
Movies present in this article:
Prime Time
Mass
Marvelous and the Black Hole
Together Together
Land
Prime Time
Full Review
Prime Time boasts an intriguing premise and an extremely engaging first act, but it loses this initial energy as time runs by, ending with a predictably fitting yet underwhelming final act. Despite the good performances from the cast, Jakub Piątek and Łukasz Czapski’s screenplay places the three characters at the center of the story, but they lack compelling and more in-depth development, making it challenging for the viewers to establish any sort of connection with the protagonist(s). Its message is more than clear, and it’s quite satisfying, especially considering it indirectly builds that final moment. However, the path that the viewers need to walk to get there might not be as entertaining and thrilling as one would expect.
Mass
Full Review
Mass is undoubtedly one of the most emotionally challenging viewings I’ve ever had to face. Fran Kranz’s feature directorial debut tells an unbelievably heavy story through four actors who dive deep into their characters, all delivering career-best performances. Everyone is an incredible standout: Jason Isaacs, Ann Dowd, Martha Plimpton, and Reed Birney deserve a massive campaign to receive every acting award there is. The cast drains every single ounce of emotion within the viewers, transforming a tiny little room with impactful mise-en-scène that tells its own story into an extremely tense, heart-wrenching, almost unbreathable environment. Dozens of meaningful matters and challenging feelings are addressed in the span of little less than two hours, creating a truly devastating film that left me sobbing. It’s utterly impossible for someone not to be affected by this movie, even if it’s in a negative way. It’s one of those films that I’ll recommend to everyone and support throughout its eventual release, but I can’t deny this might have been my one and only watch of such a brutally demanding, authentic story.
Marvelous and the Black Hole
Full Review
Marvelous and the Black Hole is a massive surprise, being one of my absolute favorites from Sundance so far. Kate Tsang’s feature directorial debut is a huge success that definitely places her as a filmmaker to pay close attention to in the following years. With a remarkably subtle, detailed screenplay, Miya Cech and Rhea Perlman spread their sparkling chemistry across the screen, delivering two of the most entertaining performances I’ve seen in the last few days. A heartwarming story that begins with the impact of the loss of a mother and finishes with an emotionally powerful, uplifting, magic(al) show that I’ll remember for quite a while. The young protagonist is so relatable that I couldn’t help but drop a couple of tears by the end.
Together Together
Full Review
Together Together possesses such a humorously clever screenplay that its joyful, fun aura passes to its own title, which carries more meaning than what it looks like. Ed Helms and Patti Harrison boast sincere chemistry, delivering two charming portrayals of characters who are emotionally worthy of investing in. Nevertheless, Nicole Beckwith deserves all the compliments for her lovely take on such a formulaic topic while educating viewers on surrogacy at the same time. From the genuine, realistic dialogues to the surprisingly efficient humor (I wasn't expecting to laugh as much as I did), I couldn't be happier. I know the ending is purposefully abrupt, but I'm not sure it fully works for me.
Land
Full Review
Land is an outstanding feature directorial debut from Robin Wright, who also delivers one of my favorite performances of hers. An incredibly inspirational film that relies on its unforgettable visuals and an extremely engaging score to present me with one of my favorite movies of this year’s Sundance. Without the shadow of a doubt, it’s one of the most gorgeously shot films I’ve seen in quite a long time. Every single scene is filled with an awe-inspiring landscape in the background that took me to the beautiful snowy mountains in such an emotional manner. Thank you, Bobby Bukowski, for your jaw-dropping cinematography, but it’s Ben Sollee and Time For Three’s score that elevate the overall picture in a way that without their music, the storytelling would suffer tremendously. Demián Bichir also deserves as much praise as Wright when it comes to their acting displays. Jesse Chatham and Erin Dignam’s screenplay isn’t groundbreaking, but Land breaks my personal tendency of feeling that this type of movie lacks replay value. I’ll rewatch this sooner or later, and I recommend everyone to do the same.
