The Guardians of the Galaxy reunite for one final mission under director James Gunn before he abandons them permanently to head DC Studios. Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 picks up sometime after the events of Avengers: Endgame and Thor: Love & Thunder. Peter Quill aka Starlord (Chris Pratt) is still mourning the loss of his beloved Gamora (Zoe Saldana) who sacrificed herself to Thanos to save the other Guardians during the Infinity War. Though another Gamora exists in his timeline, she is a past version of herself with none of the memories that made her a Guardian and wants nothing to do with them. One day, Rocket (Bradley Cooper) is attacked by an all-powerful being on a mission (Will Poulter), and The Guardians are left with Rocket's life hanging in the balance. Nebula (Karen Gillan) enlists her sister Gamora to help find the people who did this to Rocket, once again throwing Peter in the company of his former love--a former love who doesn't share the same history or memories that he does. Yet he continues to hold out hope that one day she'll remember what made her fall for him, all while they race across the galaxy to save Rocket's life. Though the Guardians films are typically ensemble pieces at their core, a big part of the audience's investment in this film will be whether or not they care about learning all the details of Rocket's backstory. The film devotes a lot of screentime to revealing flashbacks about how our favorite wisecracking raccoon came to be. But even though Rocket typically acts as comic relief, his backstory, on the other hand, is pretty dark stuff--making for a lot of jarring tonal shifts as we jump back and forth through storylines. For me personally, this wasn't a plotline I found compelling, and every time the movie came back to it, it dragged to a halt. As for everything else going on, it was a mixed bag, with the biggest culprit being its bloated runtime. Aside from the film's initial inciting incident, it feels like it takes half of the movie before anything noteworthy happens to move the plot forward. The other Guardians are utilized well enough, but the interaction with Rocket is definitely missed throughout. I did appreciate Peter and Gamora's story, with Peter trying so hard to make something work that just isn't able to anymore. Meanwhile, Will Poulter's Adam Warlock felt like an afterthought. Ultimately the film ends on a bittersweet note for many of the characters, setting it apart from most of its Marvel contemporaries. Some of these endings feel a bit more natural and earned for some of the characters than for others...so you don't completely buy into the way things end for everybody. But overall, James Gunn leaves the story in a satisfying enough place, capping off his trilogy with his signature quirk and rocking soundtrack--and for some, that's all they need. RATING: 6/10

Coming-of-age films for girls are few and far between. Movies that tackle this specific age in a girl's life are basically non-existent. Lucky for girls and women everywhere, Judy Blume's novel explores just such a time from the young female perspective in Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret, and after fifty-three years since its publication, it has finally gotten a film adaptation. Writer/Director Kelly Fremon Craig (The Edge of Seventeen), bravely takes the task of bringing this story to the big screen and does it so effortlessly, that it feels like an instant classic. Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret follows a pivotal year in the life of our young heroine Margaret (Abby Ryder Fortson) as she adjusts to several new changes. She's just been uprooted from her familiar life in New York City to the suburbs of New Jersey following her father's new job. Marget is quickly welcomed by her neighbor into a very exclusive girl's club where they make silly rules like "no wearing socks" and spend lots of time gossiping about anything and everything. She confides her innermost thoughts and hopes to God, even though she was intentionally raised by her parents without a specific religion since they each have their own. Her teacher suggests she spend more time examining all religions as a research topic, to help her come to her own conclusions and she soon learns what a complicated topic it can be. For a story written in 1970, its themes are so timeless for young girls navigating their adolescence. Margaret is such a relatable heroine, due in large part to such an earnest performance by Abby Ryder Fortson. Seeing her journey play out feels so natural and true to life; it's so easy to recognize ourselves in her. She's aided by an amazing supporting cast with Rachel McAdams playing her mother Barbara, Benny Safdie playing her dad Herb, and a scene-stealing Kathy Bates as her Grandma Sylvia. McAdams, in particular, gives one of her most striking performances as a mother handling all of her daughter's changing wants and needs. All the young actresses playing her friends are stellar too, particularly Elle Graham as the too-eager-to-grow-up Nancy Wheeler. There's not a false note in the cast and they have a fantastic director working to get the most genuine performances from them. I really loved Kelly Fremon Craig's last directorial effort, The Edge of Seventeen, and once again (this time with the help of some fantastic source material,) she authentically creates the world of a young girl trying eagerly to fit in. Though the last time was through the lens of an older teenager in high school dealing with her own set of problems, this time we're taken back to all the growing pains of that age where we're not quite grown up, but we wish we were. Craig balances the innocence and curiosity of this age so perfectly, that it feels like you're reading the very real thoughts inside of a middle schooler's diary. Honestly, Are You There God? It's Me Margaret's existence feels like an actual miracle. I would have adored a movie like this to relate to growing up, but I'm so happy it exists now both for mothers and daughters alike. There's such a warm feeling of sisterhood to it--a rite of passage in growing up and understanding a more complex world than the comfortable one you were used to. It's not easy to leave that world behind and enter a new scary one, but it's so much easier when we know we're not alone and others have felt the exact same feelings we're feeling. RATING: 9/10

John Carney's fourth film, Flora and Son was my most anticipated film to debut at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival since I absolutely adore two of the director's previous films, Begin Again and Sing Street. Carney's last film, Sing Street was truly one of my favorite films I've ever had the pleasure of seeing at Sundance, and it's been a long seven years since without any follow-up. His talents have truly been missed and his return was long-awaited (by me). Add Joseph Gordon-Levitt to the cast and my expectations were sky-high. Flora and Son follows Flora (Eve Hewson), a feisty Irish woman whose been boxed in by her life choices--namely keeping her son Max whom she got pregnant with at 17. The two don't have the smoothest relationship, particularly when she forgets his fourteenth birthday. She tries to make it up to him when she gifts him a second-hand guitar, but he's more interested in hanging around his dad (Jack Reynor) than touching that piece of junk. Instead of letting the guitar go to waste, Flora decides to take up guitar lessons and makes an unexpected connection with her online guitar teacher Jeff (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). Flora and Son fits nicely into the John Carney catalogue. It features his unique brand of catchy music, silly humor, and a touching love story you can't help but root for. Eve Hewson perfectly nails the difficult role of Flora. She's funny and fiery--her performance totally carries the film. Her easy chemistry with a more reserved Joesph Gordon-Levitt is a real highlight of the film, and Carney frustratingly leaves you wanting more. In fact, my only complaint with the film is feeling like the ending snuck up on me to the point where it felt like the entire last act of the film was completely missing. I might make peace with the ending on subsequent viewings, but for now, my initial impression was that it was more of an ellipse and less of an exclamation point than the way his previous films have ended. But, even if I'm undecided about the film's conclusion, I still very much love the rest of it. All of the essential ingredients are there for Flora and Son to become an instant favorite, and it very much is. It's charming and laugh-out-loud funny in a way few movies are these days. Like all of Carney's films, it feels like a gem. While it's certainly more grounded and less idealistic than my personal favorite Sing Street, it's great fun all the same. I can't wait to watch it again. RATING: 8.5/10

Childhood friends Nora (Greta Lee) and Hae Sung (Teo Yoo) are torn apart when Nora's family immigrates from South Korea to North America. Twelve years later they reconnect, but the timing just doesn't feel right since Nora's life and goals are in New York and Hae Sung has plans elsewhere. Can the two connect again? Is there a future for these star-crossed lovers? Past Lives explores the pair's fateful meetings and partings at three different points throughout their lives, and how their choices would shape each other's destinies. From the very first scene of Past Lives, we immediately know we're about to see something special. From a distance, another couple speculates on the lives and relationships of our protagonists. Who are they, and what are they to each other? There's a closeness and chemistry that can't be denied, yet there's a mystery too. Immediately after that scene, we are taken back to the beginning of Nora and Hae Sung's story to witness it all unfold. Throughout the film, we learn how we got to where we are and witness the journey these relationships went through. It's a common framing device, but feels so fresh and perfectly executed here. Every missed opportunity is a knife to the audience's heart. Comparisons to the Before trilogy are inevitable for Past Lives, and while it similarly checks in on characters at different points in their lives who missed the opportunity at love, Past Lives has a different energy to it. Past Lives is less about the intellectual connection the two have than the unspoken love and yearning that's been there all along and has just become a part of them. It's about Nora completely leaving one life and fate for another and who she would have been if she hadn't. It's as much about abandoning her heritage as it is about leaving her potential love and there's very much a Korean folktale feel about their story. The casting of Past Lives is pitch-perfect. Greta Lee is particularly incredible here and her chemistry with Teo Yoo, both through a computer screen and in person, is so lovely. They're like two magnets that can't help but be drawn to one another. Unlike many romance films with obstacles in the lovers' way, Past Lives stands apart because it actually humanizes one of these barriers. John Magaro's neurotic Arthur isn't an expendable 2D character as seen in countless romantic comedies, he feels like a real person in a committed relationship who loves their partner--which makes the situation all the more impossible. Past Lives is an achingly beautiful and wistful story of love and regret--about the chances we don't take and how they can haunt us. There's an evocative shot that closes out their childhood story--of separate paths laid out in front of two souls who long to be together, yet the two reluctantly and slowly go their separate ways. It stays with you and constantly makes you wonder about all that could have been. Such are the fortunes of Nora and Hae Sung; forced to always play those moments in their minds. Past Lives is an assured triumph from first-time writer-director Celine Song and is already bound to remain one of the year's best films by the time December rolls around again. When it comes out, see it as soon as you can. RATING: 9/10

I watched three more films yesterday and my watchlist is finally starting to dwindle down. I'm still planning on watching Past Lives and Flora and Son over the weekend, but I've now already broken my Sundance viewing record for films watched during a festival. Now let's recap what I saw yesterday: A Little Prayer, Scrapper, and Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls. A LITTLE PRAYER The patriarch of a tight-knit family struggles with what to do when he learns that his son is having an affair. Bill (David Strathairn) not only employs his son David (Will Pullen), but he also lets him and his wife Tammy (Jane Levy) live in their guest house on the property. Tammy is loved and revered as their own daughter; she truly has become a member of the family. When Bill suspects that his son hasn't been doing right by Tammy, Bill struggles with whether or not to get involved. A Little Prayer is a simple family drama with a lot of heart and relatability. In the midst of watching so many experimental oddball films this festival, A Little Prayer's sincerity and straightforwardness felt like a welcome change of pace. There's nothing flashy here and the performances are the star of the film--it must be said that David Strathairn, Jane Levy, and Celia Weston are all exceptional here. How these actors all play off one another here is truly great. There are scenes that I'm still thinking about and will continue to think about. It's a quiet and unassuming little film, but there is a lot of power in it. RATING: 8/10 SCRAPPER After twelve-year-old Georgie (Lola Campbell) loses her mother, she believes she can make it on her own and attempts to do so. When the father she never knew (Harris Dickinson) comes back into the picture to try to be her guardian, she discovers she has a lot of unresolved issues with resentment towards her dad, and the grief of losing her mother. Scrapper is a sweet film about accepting the life we didn't plan for. I wasn't totally sold on it until its final act (honestly mostly due in part to my very real festival fatigue right now), but in the end, it really won me over and I was feeling all the feels. Lola Campbell and Harris Dickinson are just wonderful here and share really great familial chemistry. Scrapper is a promising debut feature from writer-director Charlotte Regan and I'll be excited to see what she does next. RATING: 7/10 ONYX THE FORTUITOUS AND THE TALISMAN OF SOULS Onyx, as he prefers to be called, is a big fan of Occultist Bartok the Great. When he wins a coveted spot to participate in a rare ritual, he believes it to be too good to be true! But he soon discovers that things are not what they seem and that he and the other guests may be in danger. Could he be the chosen one to save them all from impending doom? Onyx is a horror comedy that unfortunately lacks in the comedic side of things. I saw a lot of comparisons to Beetlejuice beforehand and it's far more a Jared Hess joint than Tim Burton in his prime. It's hard to have a film revolve around a one-note protagonist whose schtick over and over just ends up feeling grating. It feels almost that any time the film is funny that it happened by accident. The plot is fine, and perhaps in the hands of someone with more comedic talents and overall capability, this could have worked. As is though, Onyx is somewhat amusing but pretty forgettable. Enjoyed the Barbara Crampton cameo though! RATING: 5/10

Day 7 is a wrap for Sundance as we get closer and closer to the end of the festival. Yesterday I watched four films, but as I fell asleep during Divinity, I'll only be reviewing three: Rye Lane, Landscape with Invisible Hand, and The Accidental Getaway Driver. RYE LANE A chance encounter leads to an unforgettable day between Dom (David Jonsson) and Yas (Vivian Oparah) in Rye Lane. Still heartbroken over the end of his six-year relationship, Dom unexpectedly meets the vivacious and carefree Yas who helps him see there's life after breakups. Rye Lane is a special rom-com in the vein of the Before films and (500) Days of Summer with an added British flair. It's sweet and unconventional. Simple, yet distinctive. I really enjoyed it, but do wish it had a few more tender moments of romance to really push it to the levels of the greats that it aspires to be. I also wish we could have seen the two characters connecting on more than just their pasts, but on an intellectual level as well. Still, Rye Lane's intentions mostly make up for what it lacks. The leads here are great and I love the journey we're taken on with them. It all feels like a natural progression of a day, despite so much happening. Rye Lane is a winsome romantic comedy as we see two people really connect and move past their pasts. RATING: 8/10 LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND Landscape with Invisible Hand portrays a future where aliens not only have made contact with earth but now control the spread of information and the economy. When teenage Adam (Asante Blackk) strikes up a friendship with his homeless classmate Chloe (Kylie Rogers), Adam invites Chloe and her family to stay in his house until they get back on their feet. Feeling the need to contribute to the household, Chloe comes up with the idea for her and Adam to receive credits from the aliens. The only catch is, they must broadcast their growing relationship for the aliens to watch since they're fascinated with witnessing human relationships. Landscape with Invisible Hand has some interesting ideas and commentary but bites off way more than it can chew. I was interested in exploring Adam and Chloe's relationship through the lens of an alien race watching and feeling the pressure to perform, but the film apparently had loftier ideas it felt the need to explore. As such, the film constantly feels like it's quickly moving from greener pasture to greener pasture completely going off the rails in the process. At some point, it went from somewhat intriguing to actively awful. RATING: 4.5/10 THE ACCIDENTAL GETAWAY DRIVER Late one night, an elderly cab driver named Long (Hiep Tran Nghia) takes a call that will change his life. He goes to pick up three men, who unbeknownst to him have just escaped prison. He's taken hostage and ordered to drive them wherever they need to go. His life hangs in the balance as he's fully aware he knows too much but senses that perhaps a bond with one of his captors might help his chances of survival. There are not a lot of surprises to be found in The Accidental Getaway Driver, and things unfold about how you'd expect. But the reason this is one of the more solid films I've seen in the last few days is due to the performances of the leads and the intimate scenes they share in baring their souls. This is no Ambulance, where the film is nothing but action-filled tension, but rather a discreet drama thriller. The pressure here comes with Long's quiet strength in avoiding the landmines of these three unstable men. What keeps the film from greatness is once again the length. The pacing gets away from itself, particularly in undercutting the ending to conclude on a more subdued note as opposed to a really impactful one. RATING: 7/10

We've still got plenty of festival left and friends, the fatigue is starting to hit. Maybe it has something to do with watching 6 movies yesterday. Day 6 was probably the most mixed-bag day yet for me. Some bright spots like You Hurt My Feelings, and the low of the festival Bad Behaviour. YOU HURT MY FEELINGS Julia Louis-Dreyfus plays Beth, a writer who happens to overhear her husband Don (Tobias Menzes) telling a family member what he really thinks about her latest book. Beth is betrayed and hurt, not knowing whether or not she can really trust her husband to be honest with her about anything. Meanwhile, Don seems to be having career problems of his own as he struggles with the dull monotony of his long-term profession as a therapist. You Hurt My Feelings is a breezy slice-of-life comedy about the lies we tell each other to spare each other's feelings. Louis-Dreyfus is really good here, just as I hoped and really makes her character's hurt feel real. What I love about her and writer/director Nicole Holofcener's collaborations is that they really feel like they're stories you're told by a close friend you know just venting about their life. They're relatable and honest, with lived-in characters. You Hurt My Feelings isn't groundbreaking stuff, but this dramedy felt like a breath of fresh air among some of the heavier offerings of the festival. RATING: 7.5/10 THE AMAZING MAURICE A cat, along with a rat colony have stumbled upon the ability to speak. So naturally, they use this new talent to travel around town by town to swindle people out of their money. The game changes though when precocious Malicia figures out their con and suddenly they find themselves on an adventure. The Amazing Maurice features gorgeous animation and really great performances from Emilia Clarke, Himesh Patel, David Thewlis, and Hugh Laurie. It also has an outlandish plot and a head-scratching villain. I never found myself invested in this, but it kept my almost 3-year-old daughter's attention well for her first-ever Sundance screening! The Amazing Maurice has lots of ideas, and will certainly teach children a lot about movie tropes, but ultimately it's nothing special. RATING: 5.5/10 MAGAZINE DREAMS Bodybuilder Killian Maddox (Jonathan Majors) dreams of having the perfect physique and gracing the cover of fitness magazines like his idol Brad Vanderhorn. He's obsessive to a fault, and aggressive when things don't go his way. He crushes on the cashier in his neighborhood grocery store, but as with anyone he comes across in his life, he can't find a way to connect in a natural way. If Killian can't find meaning in this life, his downward spiral can only continue and destroy anyone he comes in contact with. Magazine Dreams features one of the most incredible performances from anyone at the festival in Jonathan Majors' self-destructive turn as Killian. Kilian is terrifying and troubled all at once--a tortured, yet toxic soul. I only wish the movie around him was quite as worthy as his talents. His performance certainly elevates the film, but it's a bit overlong and repetitive. This type of character requires an unstoppable force type of storytelling ie Whiplash or Nightcrawler, and unfortunately, that type of pacing just isn't here. Far too often the film drags when it should be the type of story that you can't take your eyes away from. RATING: 7/10 BAD BEHAVIOUR Jennifer Connelly is on a quest for enlightenment in Bad Behaviour, a pointless, bumbling dramedy in writer/director and co-star Alice Englert's directorial debut. Aside from Connelly's dedicated performance here, this film is a massive misfire on nearly every other level. While there are some interesting mother-daughter scenes near the end of the film, it's too little, too late to get the audience to care. The film is bizarre, aimless, and tedious to watch. Bad Behaviour makes a good case supporting the idea of nepotism babies getting an unfair advantage in Hollywood. It's difficult to imagine not only how this film got made, but that Jennifer Connelly agreed to star...that is until you remember that Alice Englert is the daughter of Academy Award-winning director Jane Campion. Would this wacky, insipid screenplay receive the time of day from another nameless aspiring writer? I don't think so. While I really looked forward to this film, it not only is one of the worst films of the festival this year but one of the worst I've ever seen at the festival in the many years I've attended period. RATING 2/10 INFINITY POOL Novelist James Foster (Alexander Skarsgård) and his wife Em (Cleopatra Coleman) find themselves in trouble during their vacation at an all-inclusive resort. After striking up an acquaintance with a fellow guest of the resort Gabi (Mia Goth), Em and James find themselves plunged into endless nightmarish situations. Yet despite how bad things get, James continually finds himself drawn to Gabi, powerless to leave, even against his own interests. Infinity Pool's first half is compelling and fascinating. Unfortunately, the second half takes all the goodwill and potential that was set up before and throws it out the window in favor of being provocative and messy. A tighter edit might have helped the second half flow better, but unfortunately as is, it becomes a bit of a slog. Mia Goth is always fascinating to watch as usual though! RATING: 6/10 THE PERSIAN VERSION The Persian Version is all about Iranian-American Leila, and her fraught relationship with her mother. Leila constantly has to deal with not living up to her mother's very high expectations, which makes her feel like she's never anything more than a disappointment. When something unexpected happens in Leila's life, she's determined to know the real version of her mother, the one that she's never shared with her before, so that she can understand where her mother came from and how she sees the world. The Persian Version attempts to tell both of these women's stories over several decades but perhaps bites off more than it can chew. The Persian Version feels fresh and fun, but it is immediately clear it's trying to tackle too much. Leila breaks the fourth wall constantly, and she's a fun hostess throughout the story...but all the jumping around really lacks cohesion. When we're finally shown her mother's backstory, it is so tonally jarring from what came before that it almost completely halts the film. Also, it's a minor gripe, but the younger actress cast to match the mother looks nothing like her and really took me out of it. This story actually attempts to cover so much ground that when someone inevitably realized it needed an ending, everyone agreed upon the tidiest and most rushed option possible. There are so many questions left unanswered here, but the movie is content with a happy ending so go home. RATING: 6.5/10

The Festival is now officially halfway over, but we've still got a lot more films to recap before we're done! I've had a great festival thus far and discovered so many good films. Yesterday I watched four movies: Theater Camp, Eileen, Cat Person, and Talk To Me. THEATER CAMP When the owner of a beloved, but flailing theater camp, Joan (Amy Sedaris) unexpectedly falls into a coma, it's up to her inept son (Jimmy Tatro) not to run things into the ground while she's gone. Meanwhile, the eccentric teachers at the camp (Ben Platt and Molly Gordon) decide to write a play for the kids to perform in Joan's honor in hopes of reviving both Joan's health, as well as the camp as a whole. Can they succeed in creating the perfect musical before Troy gets convinced to cut his losses and sell the place? Theater Camp is told in the style of a Christopher Guest mockumentary. Its humor is dry yet very funny, but also for a very specific niche audience. I enjoyed the film, but couldn't help but think that this story would work much better told in a long-form way, such as a television show (ie The Office, or Parks & Recreation. There's so much more you can do with these characters, and plotlines that it almost feels a shame to have them just for one movie. RATING: 7/10 EILEEN Thomasin McKenzie plays the titular Eileen in this oddball coming-of-age with a twist. Eileen is a quiet introvert who yearns to explore her sexuality. She catches herself fantasizing about the men she comes across throughout the day as she works at her boring job at the local prison. When the lovely Rebecca (Anne Hathaway) starts working as the prison psychiatrist, Eileen's world is turned upside down in the hopes that Rebecca might have some interest in Eileen as well. Eileen's reception has been polarizing. I knew to expect that it would take a sharp turn narratively, and still, the film caught me off guard as to where it decided to go. I'm sure the progression is better foreshadowed in the book, but it didn't work quite as well onscreen. Still, I'd love to see it again now that I know where the movie is headed to see if I can pick up on clues I'd missed before. Anne Hathaway and Thomasin McKenzie are both very good here and do their best to ground the film when it heads off the rails. I kind of admire it for what it attempts, I'm just not sure it succeeds. RATING: 6/10 CAT PERSON Young college student and movie theater employee Margot (Emilia Clarke) awkwardly hits it off with Robert (Nicholas Braun) one night at the cinema. Soon the two start exchanging texts and can't seem to get enough of talking to each other. The romance escalates, but Margot finds herself constantly doubting Robert's intentions and looking for red flags. Will she find them, or is it all in her head? Cat Person is an excellent portrayal of the minefields women experience while navigating the complex and dangerous world of dating. We've all heard horror stories, so it's only normal for our minds to constantly picture the worst possible scenarios. Cat Person attempts to juggle multiple tones, constantly making the audience question what's real and what's not. The film mostly succeeds thanks to a winsome performance once again from Emilia Jones (proving to be a new Sundance MVP) and her awkward chemistry with Nicholas Braun. Though I think it could use another round of trimming and streamlining the middle and final act, I did really enjoy its unique style and what it had to say. RATING: 7/10 TALK TO ME Talk To Me introduces the audience to a reality where young adults have discovered an intense new way to get high--that is, to allow your body to be possessed by spirits. It's all safe, so long as you impose a strict time limit, and have your friends pull you out before your time's up. What could possibly go wrong? Sundance has been in a bit of a horror rut the last couple of years without any huge standouts like the likes of Hereditary, The Witch, or The Babadook. Talk To Me breaks that streak and is absolutely fantastic. It must be said that the makeup here and the look of all the dead spirits is extraordinary. It's films like these that make me so mad at the over-reliance of CGI in horror nowadays when this film is proof that convincing makeup really is so much more effective. Talk To Me introduces a simple concept and executes it in a perfectly horrific way. The stakes are high and the tension feels unbearable. I cannot rave about it enough. Please make many more of these. RATING: 8.5/10

The first weekend of Sundance is now in the books and the movies keep coming! I watched five movies yesterday, so it's been a bit more challenging to keep up with the blogging. But now I can scratch off Aliens Abducted My Parents and Now I Kinda Feel Left Out, Other People's Children, Fairyland, Polite Society, and In My Mother's Skin from my Sundance watchlist. ALIENS ABDUCTED MY PARENTS AND NOW I KINDA FEEL LEFT OUT Itsy (Emma Tremblay) and her younger brother Evan (Kenneth Cummins) have just moved to a new town with their parents in the middle of nowhere. It's a big change from their life in the city, and teenaged Itsy would do anything to get back to her old life. When new classmate Heather suggests they team up to write an article for a chance at a scholarship to NYU, Itsy can't agree too fast. The only catch is that Itsy befriends the weird kid in town Calvin (Jacob Buster) who believes his family was abducted by aliens. While Itsy is initially skeptical of Calvin's claims, she can't help but be drawn in by his sincerity and warmth, and the two become very close. Calvin's sure he can prove his story to Itsy and authenticate the existence of aliens since the comet he believes attracts them is coming back to earth imminently. Aliens is a surprisingly sweet and sincere teenage rom-com. There are a few scenes toward the end that had so much heart and emotion, I actually found myself getting choked up. The ending keeps the film from being great because it settles for something pretty goofy, while the rest of the tone had been so grounded. Emma Tremblay and Jacob Buster were both delightful though and did a great job at selling some of the more difficult scenes. Overall, Aliens Abducted My Parents and Now I Kinda Feel Left Out was delightfully refreshing. RATING: 7/10 OTHER PEOPLE'S CHILDREN Other People's Children is the story of a woman named Rachel (Virginie Efira) whose years have gotten away from her. She finds herself at 40 years old, wanting to be a mother but seeing her window closing very rapidly. When she begins dating single parent Ali (Roschdy Zem), his four-year-old daughter Leila (Callie Ferreira-Goncalves) becomes a big part of Rachel's life. Rachel finds herself happily taking on all the motherly responsibilities for Leila, and discovers the role suits her. But Rachel finds that performing the duties of a mother without being one, leads to a lot of investment without the same reward. Other People's Children feels like a breezy French film about a woman thrown into parenting until it becomes something much deeper. I didn't realize how invested I was in it until it broke my heart. Virginie Efira gives a magnetic performance and wears so much emotion in her expressions. Rachel's story feels common, messy, and deeply sad. It's a story that rings true for many women and it is carefully and beautifully told. RATING: 7.5/10 FAIRYLAND Fairyland tells the tale of Alysia Abbott, a young girl (Nessa Dougherty) whose mother unexpectedly passes away in a car crash. It's the 1970's and Alysia's father Steve (Scoot McNairy) decides with his wife's passing that now is the time for him to live freely as a gay man and moves him and his daughter to San Francisco. He spends much of Alysia's childhood absent, hooking up and doing drugs while trying to teach his daughter some independence and to be accepting and loving of everyone. Later, an adult Alysia (Emilia Jones) must examine and reconcile the complicated feelings she has about the upbringing she wished she had, with knowing who her father is and what he could handle. Fairyland overcomes a bit of a slow and repetitive start to become a solid coming-of-age tale, even if at times it feels a little predictable. I do feel that I wish more introspection had been given and a more nuanced conclusion given than what we were shown with regard to Alysia's childhood. While we can give grace to our parents for doing their best, we can still recognize when they made mistakes and the film feels like it absolves Steve a lot when the situation is far more complex. Still, Emilia Jones and Scoot McNairy give great performances here and make Fairyland worth watching. RATING: 7/10 POLITE SOCIETY Two sisters are torn apart when older sister Lena gives up her dreams of being an artist to marry the handsome and rich Salim. Younger sister and aspiring stunt woman Ria, knows there's no way this could be true love since the two have only been dating a month and she tries to make Lena come to her senses. Lena is determined to pursue the relationship, so Ria makes it her personal mission to stop at nothing to sabotage the wedding and save her sister from herself. Polite Society is wildly funny and an absolute blast. I was hooked right from the start with its Scott Pilgrim vs the World-type antics. Yet the film has a humor and style all its own. The film is almost always captivating, save for losing a bit of steam midway through. But it bounces back with one of the most hilarious and entertaining finales in recent memory. Performances all across the board are excellent and the direction is top-notch for everything this film tries and succeeds in accomplishing. See it as soon as you can! RATING: 8.5/10 IN MY MOTHER'S SKIN A young daughter seeks the help of a deceptively evil fairy in the horror selection In My Mother's Skin. With her mother violently sick and her father nowhere to be found, Tala is hopeless about her and her brother's fate and seeks a miracle. When she comes across this fairy, Tala trusts her to heal her mother and make their family whole again. But little does Tala know, this fairy does not have her best interests at heart and only seeks to destroy everything that Tala holds dear. In My Mother's Skin is a hauntingly nightmarish dark fairy tale in the vein of Pan's Labyrinth. Its pacing is very slow, which coming off the heels of watching Polite Society was very jarring. I admit that watching the two of them back to back may have affected my viewing here and I'm eager to watch it again later in the year when it's released to a wider audience to see if my opinion of the film softens. The film's imagery is disturbing and visceral, yet I had a hard time feeling drawn in or invested in the characters, even if I felt the story was a good one. For some reason, I just failed to connect to this on a deeper level. Still, the atmosphere throughout is endlessly creepy--it's the stuff of nightmares and I won't be forgetting about it anytime soon. RATING: 6.5/10

We're now three days into Sundance 2023, so let's keep the reviews coming! Yesterday I was able to see three films and all happened to be quite good. Here are my quick reviews on Fair Play, Birth/Rebirth and Radical. FAIR PLAY A young couple's relationship is pushed to its limits in Fair Play. Luke (Alden Ehrenreich) and Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) have a bright future in front them--they just got engaged, and a promotion for Luke seems to be in the cards at the company where the two of them work. Despite the engagement, the two have never gone public with their relationship at work for fear of losing their jobs. The two work at an aggressive hedge fund, where everyone is always fighting their way to the top and neither of them ever want to risk being on the chopping block. When Emily unexpectedly receives the promotion over Luke, tensions start to rise. Jealousy gives way to resentment and soon everything the two of them have worked for, both professionally and personally, are at stake. Fair Play takes a simple premise and executes it beautifully. What starts as an understandable disappointment in feeling slighted, slowly begins to drive a wedge further and further into the relationship. Alden Ehrenreich and Phoebe Dynevor both give excellent performances here playing two sides of an impossible situation. Ehrenreich's Luke struggles to balance being the supportive partner while managing his sadness over losing out on his dream job, while Dynevor's Emily is fighting against corporate sexism to prove she deserves a spot at the table and that her merits to the role are not just based on her looks. The deeper the hurt and envy go, the more the relationship starts to come apart at the seams. I am blown away that this is a debut feature from writer-director Chloe Dumont. It's so self assured in its narrative from beginning to end--Dumont makes it look easy. While the characters go on a huge journey from where they start from the beginning, she makes the character progressions seem natural and believable; we understand why both see things the way they do--and how their relationship self-destructs. Fair Play is very very good, and its ending is pitch perfect. RATING: 8/10 BIRTH/REBIRTH Fate brings two very different women together in Birth/Rebirth. One, a grieving mother who must deal with the sudden and tragic death of her daughter, and the other--a woman determined to push the limits of medicine and science to once again make the dead come back to life. Though this setup has all the makings of a great horror film, Birth/Rebirth is not traditional horror. Writer-director Laura Moss isn't concerned with terrifying her audience with jump scares--this horror is far more psychological. Instead she presents us with a modern day Frankenstein--this time a cautionary tale about the lengths a mother will go to for the sake of her child. Birth/Rebirth is very deliberately paced though I was invested in the story all throughout. At first the women's gambit to re-animate the child seems self-sustained, but when the two women realize they'll have to get their hands dirty to keep her alive, the moral quandary over what they're doing gets increasingly difficult. Judy Reyes and Marin Ireland are both very good here and each completely sell their roles; Reyes as desperate mother Celie and Ireland as the mad scientist Rose, respectively. It's easy to get frustrated during the runtime that more isn't happening, especially when one expects a certain level of Pet Sematary mayhem that just never occurs. From a horror perspective you want certain things to be explored, but the film isn't interested in that. Once you get to the film's ending, everything all makes sense. For me, the finale brings adds a much needed punctuation to the film and truly makes it complete. RATING: 7/10 RADICAL It would be easy to dismiss Radical as a run of the mill, "inspirational" teacher story. In fact, I almost did. But Radical has a beautiful earnestness that sets it apart from other films that tell similar stories. Radical tells the story of Sergio (Eugenio Derbez), a teacher determined help the kids in his class achieve a future that no one, not even themselves, believe is possible. Sergio's methods are unorthodox, and everyone around him--from the principal to fellow teachers, and the students--have no idea what to make of them. Sergio isn't concerned with tests, but rather preparing the kids to create the future they want and to be successful in obtaining it. Sergio is the type of figure every child needs in their life. A person who not only sees potential, but does everything in their power to make everyone else see that potential too. The time spent with Sergio in his class is optimistic and full of joy. But when the students go home to their realities, in the contrast between his world and theirs becomes more stark. Each of their individual circumstances make it hard to picture a future for them. The cards are stacked against these kids and Sergio's dreams for these kids become too painful to even hope for. Eugenio Derbez shows his wide range here in a role that requires a certain depth and strength. He really shines and it truly feels like the part was made for him. The final act of the film brings the emotional weight and the film is all the stronger for it. RATING: 8/10