PARK CITY, Utah -- You take the good with the bad at Sundance, where this year, there was more of the former, thankfully.
While we didn't quite get a Whiplash- or Manchester by the Sea-sized blue-chip awards contender at the 2017 festival, the quality stuff prevailed.
SEE ALSO:Finally, a VR breakthrough: 'Dear Angelica' will fog your Oculus Rift with tearsMashableand Cinefixjoined forces in Park City to see nearly 30 films combined, mulled them over and ranked them, top-to-bottom. (And if you'd like to hear us talk about our favorites, check out Cinefix's Top 10 video, below).
Herewith are 20 films we loved at Sundance -- and seven we really didn't -- as reviewed by Mashableentertainment editor Josh Dickey, TV editor Laura Prudom, and Cinefix's Clint Gage and Ti Lovelace.
Credit: Sundance instituteRaw without becoming overwrought, sensual without being salacious, Luca Guadagnino’s adaptation of André Aciman’s 2006 novel became the talk of Sundance for good reason – it’s damn near perfect. Timothee Chalamet stars as Elio, a restive and precocious 17-year-old who quickly becomes fascinated by his family’s summer houseguest, Oliver (Armie Hammer), a confident American academic whose presence in Elio’s life will have a profound impact on both young men. As Mashable’sreview notes, "it's a coming-of-age tale, a love story, and a heartfelt mediation on intimacy and loss, all wrapped up in one lush, lyrical package." -Laura
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEDirector Dee Rees (Pariah) returned to Sundance with this American epic about two families -- one white, one black -- working the same farm in the post-World War II South. It's gorgeous to look at, laced with vital themes and energized by crackling dialogue ... but it's those performances that push it over the top. Jason Mitchell and Garret Hedlund share the film's most fascinating dynamic, but it's Mary J. Blige (yep, the one and only) who is so spectacular in her first weighty drama role that you'll forget it's her -- if you even recognize her in the first place. -Josh
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTETaylor Sheridan is quickly emerging as one of the most exciting storytellers in the game, and Wind Riverhelps to solidify that reputation. This film has a very simple story -- even simpler than Hell or High Water-- but the craft keeps you completely engaged, unfolding with beautiful symmetry. You might even find yourself leaning in toward the screen. Plus, this is the best Jeremy Renner has been since The Hurt Locker. -Ti
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEWhat if an obsessed stranger with the skills of Veronica Mars started stalking you? Aubrey Plaza plays a frighteningly unhinged mental patient who fixates on an Instagram star (Elizabeth Olsen) in this first-time feature from director Matt Spicer (who co-wrote with David Branson Smith) that is wild, terrifying, funny and yet totally plausible. O'Shea Jackson Jr. (Straight Outta Compton) makes the most of a small role as Ingrid's landlord, while Billy Magnussen (Kato Kaelin in The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story) is the most terrifying villain of Sundance. -Josh
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEI liked this movie a lot. I might have even loved it. This quiet, deliberate story dives deep into the afterlife of a man (Casey Affleck) whose spirit lingers in the home he shared with his partner (Rooney Mara), watching the world move on without him. It’s sweet, sad, beautifully shot and somehow convinces you to take seriously a guy wearing a sheet with eye holes cut out. It might not be the most commercially appealing movie to come out of Sundance, but writer-director David Lowery (Ain't Them Bodies Saints) makes extremely interesting choices and stands firmly behind them. -Clint
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEAl Gore is back, 10 years later, he's mad as hell, and he's not going to take it any- ... well, maybe he'll have to. This follow-up to the Oscar-winning An Inconvenient Truth is actually a better movie -- it plays like a political thriller, is beautifully shot and has real-world stakes -- with a better lead character. That'd be a globe-trotting Gore, who is at turns fired up to the point of anger, a version of the former VP you'd wish were around back in 2000. -Josh
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEStarting a band together isn’t the most obvious solution to saving a failing marriage. But that’s the premise of Band Aid, and the writer/director/star Zoe Lister-Jones manages to execute this idea in a charming, plausible (although sometimes slightly self-indulgent) way. Lister-Jones and Adam Pally have terrific chemistry together on-screen as the married couple. And indeed, their arguments are often too chilling a reminder of what it’s really like to be in a relationship. -Ti
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEThis is one of those movies with a premise that is impossible to explain without spoiling it. Let’s just say that Kyle Mooney and company do an impressive job of using a grim situation as the backdrop for comedy (with a lot of heavy, meatier moments and heart). In many ways, it’s a love letter to storytelling, to believing in heroes and to believing in good. -Ti
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTETells the story of an overweight white girl from "Dirty Jersey,” who has dreams of hip-hop stardom. The twist? She’s actually good. Like, reallygood. Patti Cake$manages to address the issue of cultural appropriation in hip hop with honesty and insight. Rather than succumbing to the common pitfall of mocking or dismissing rap by approaching it from the outsider perspective, it celebrates hip hop as art, and encourages the viewer to celebrate its artists. Even if the artist’s last name is “Dombrowski.” -Ti
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEA delightful gem of a 90-minute modern rom-com, trapped in a two-hour-plus movie. That about sums it up for everything touched by Judd Apatow, who produced this Sundance hit. Written by Silicon Valleystar Kumail Nanjiani and his real-life wife (played here by Zoe Kazan), this is the largely true story of the clashes within an inter-cultural relationship. It's gut-bustingly funny, poignant, incisive, real, melancholy, generally wonderful ... and at least 30 minutes too long. -Josh
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEOnly Deadheads will seek out this four-hour epic documentary about the greatest touring band rock 'n' roll will ever see -- which is too bad. Never-before-seen archival video, insightful interviews, bone-shaking musical interludes and some of the most dazzling editing of any documentary I've seen anywhere add up to one hell of a story: the absolutely definitive accounting of the Grateful Dead's wild and magical 30 years on the road. And it doesn't shy from the crippling darkness of Jerry Garcia's sad downfall. -Josh
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEThe first (but hopefully not last) horror anthology to be entirely directed and written by women, XXfeatures four shorts of varying impact, each anchored by a female protagonist, with haunting stop-motion introductions crafted by Sofia Carrillo. The films -- Jovanka Vukovic’s The Box, Annie Clark’s (aka St. Vincent)The Birthday Party, Roxanne Benjamin’s Don’t Falland Karyn Kusama’s Her Only Living Son –interrogate the anxieties of womanhood. Thematically, Clark’s Birthday Partyis the strongest; a pitch black comedy that eschews jump scares in favor of scathing social commentary and wicked laughs, while Vukovic’s chilling Boxlingers long after the credits roll. -Laura
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEFirst time director Janicza Bravo (coolest name at Sundance, btw) has made a bizarrely dark comedy that’s honestly hard describe. On the surface it’s about Isaac (a struggling actor played by Brett Gelman) who’s just trying to find some happiness in his life. Underneath there are as many hints of Wes Anderson as there are of Adult Swim, with Bravo alternating between dry, modern anti-humor and genuinely touching moments. It also boasts one of the funniest casts in recent memory, with Michael Cera, Judy Greer, Gillian Jacobs and Martin Starr. -Clint
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEYoung Han Solo (Alden Ehrenreich) and Cyclops (Tye Sheridan) anchor a harrowing war movie based on the 2013 novel by Kevin Powers, portraying young soldiers grappling with the shifting moral terrain inherent in war. Under the artful direction of Alexandre Moors, Ehrenreich commands the screen with conflicted charisma that stands him in good stead for his upcoming stint in a galaxy far, far away, while Sheridan’s sensitive portrayal lends the movie its heart. The Yellow Birdsshines during its kinetic action sequences in Iraq, but a disjointed narrative and meandering third act prevents Birdsfrom soaring. -Laura
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEJeff Baena’s raunchy romp about a trio of eccentric nuns in Medieval Italy is more reminiscent of Monty Pythonthan Sister Act-- but as questionable as their habits may be (pun very much intended), the offbeat comedy still manages to tap into something divine.Aubrey Plaza, Alison Brie and Kate Miccuci gleefully lead viewers on a surreal jaunt through a litany of sins when an insatiable young servant (Dave Franco) turns up at their convent. The chaos that ensues is batty and blasphemous, but also a blast to watch. -Laura
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEA well-crafted but ultimately pedestrian glimpse into the disturbing world of fraternity hazing, first-time director Gerard McMurray (who co-wrote with Christine Berg) fails to offer much insight into the motivations driving a crop of masochistic pledges to endure a relentless torrent of humiliation -- or much insight into the characters themselves. This is territory that has already been well-trodden (most recently and more effectively by Goat), and what remains is a handsome but shallow exercise, whose observations are only skin-deep. -Laura
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEAlternate title: How Hulk Hogan, Secretly Funded by a Weird Silicon Valley Billionaire, Bankrupted Gawker. Which would be a nifty movie all by itself, except that it's terribly one-sided, depicting Gawker as the innocent victim. Then, halfway through, it veers into the shady sale of the Las Vegas Review-Journalto a local gambling magnate, and saves the last 30 minutes rah-rah'ing about the First Amendment and hissing at Donald Trump. Good causes all, but I'd have ranked this higher if it were a little more ... fair and balanced (gulp). -Josh
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEThis film attempts to tell the story of Queensbridge MC Roxanne Shante, but the events portrayed leave you with a distinct lack of resolution. The plot becomes increasingly meandering, and we never really get the sense that Shante is an active participant in her own story. Rather, Shante is thrust into various situations, and in some of those instances, her undeniable skills on the mic are a factor. Other times, they are not. In the end, the way in which this story is told makes it feel like, perhaps, this story wasn’t necessarily worth telling. -Ti
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEThere’s not much of a beginning, middle or end to this German film by first time director Helene Hegemann, who adapted the screenplay from her own novel. What it does have is a chaotic portrait of a hard partying teenage girl in Berlin. With non-linear storytelling and an exceptionally rad soundtrack, Axolotl Overkillis, if nothing else, a very compelling world to live in for an hour and a half. -Clint
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEThis deep dive into the 78 set ups and 52 cuts in Psycho’s famous shower scene features a ton of interesting interviews. Peter Bogdanovich, Guillermo Del Toro, Eli Roth, even Elijah Wood (for some reason) weigh in on the cultural significance of the scene. Where the cinephiles will get their money’s worth, though, is in the technical dissection of the scene. Editors, most enjoyably the legendary Walter Murch, tear the scene down to its building blocks to examine the meaning of each frame. -Clint
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTELargely wasting a charismatic cast -- including Michael Cera and Abbi Jacobsen -- Dustin Guy Defa’s self-indulgent comedy meanders through a day in the life of several New Yorkers (some connected, some not), and ends up getting lost inside its own navel. While ostensibly concerned with exploring the minutiae of everyday life, the monotony soon becomes overbearing -- the characters too eccentric to be relatable and the plotting too inconsequential to be memorable. All that might’ve been forgivable if the film was, you know, funny. -Laura
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEOK, stop me if you’ve heard this one before: A soap salesman and a fake monk walk into a left-for-dead industrial town in Northern China … . Chinese director Jun Geng’s latest starts out with that dryly comedic premise, but quickly becomes an almost silent tale about a handful of bad guys that aren’t really all that bad. Offering basically nothing to pay off the story told around these characters, Free and Easyplays more like a fable that forgot to include the lesson. -Clint
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTETo the Boneis a chapter in the life of Eli (Lily Collins), a young woman suffering from anorexia, as she enters yet another treatment facility. We learn that the doctor in charge (Keanu Reeves) has a somewhat unconventional approach, but it quickly becomes clear that his revolutionary methods are just tough love. It fails to offer any understanding of who Eli is (or thinks she is), nor what she wants (or, perhaps, what she doesn’t). It feels as if Eli isn’t participating in her own story, and thus, it never feels vital. -Ti
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEThis adaptation of the stage play had the potential to be something truly unique -- Jon Hamm as a hologram! -- but unfortunately it does nothing to turn the play into something cinematic. What we’re left with is people sitting around, talking. Themes of love, death, and familial obligations are all explored; but, in the end, this film is a missed opportunity to have done something special. -Ti
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEI was unashamedly stoked to see a movie about a drunk (Anne Hathaway) who discovers she’s in control of the Kaiju that’s attacking Seoul -- a goofy and effective metaphor for alcoholism. But when the real-life half of that metaphor moves into some darker territory, the whimsy of the Kaiju half becomes almost offensive and the movie gets pretty difficult to watch. -Clint
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTEMore like Bush League. Logline says it’s a “comedy about Brooklyn becoming a war zone as Texas tries to secede from the union.” This movie is not a comedy. It also is not good. It tries to deal in issues plaguing the current social and political climate, but it does so without providing any insight or thoughtful commentary. Bushwickmakes the Purgefranchise seem cerebral. Based on the current and future state of U.S. politics, there was a real chance here to be poignant, and it was squandered. -Ti
Credit: SUNDANCE INSTITUTE"Ugh, these people are all awful"is all I could think during writer/director Gillian Robespierre's follow-up to Obvious Child, whose quirky, relatable and troubled characters had the opposite effect. This time, Jenny Slate plays a young woman living in the '90s (hammered home via a constant stream of EXTREMELY NINETIES props and references) who's grown bored of her whiny, ineffectual fiancée (Jay Duplass) and whose parents (John Turturro and Edie Falco) are having their own marital meltdown. Throw in one very darkly bratty, selfish, sex-and-drugs-experimenting teen sister (Abby Quinn) and you have a recipe for please-get-me-out-of-here. -Josh
