CINEMACY is excited to be returning to Park City, Utah to cover the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, kicking off a new year in cinema. Realizing that many of the movies seen here won’t get a release until later in the year, here’s a compiled list of 10 related movies from the directors you love that we recommend you watch while you wait. The titles in bold are the ones to watch (or re-watch) while the titles in parentheses are their corresponding Sundance releases!
Fed Up (2014) (Under the Gun, Stephanie Soechtig)
Soechtig returns to Sundance this year with an evocative gun control documentary Under the Gun. Prior to this, she teamed up with Katie Couric to produce Fed Up, an expose on the food we consume and the mega corporations responsible for directing the way we eat. The biggest culprit of them all is sugar, but her documentary offers insight on all kinds of food matters: cheese, diet beverages, and other harmful processed foods. Anyone who eats food in America (that probably means you) can benefit from seeing this insightful documentary.
Fed Up is currently streaming on Netflix
Blue Ruin (2013) (Green Room, Jeremy Saulnier)
Blue Ruin is a straightforward thriller, a genre that sees a handful of entries a year, but in terms of effectiveness, this is one of the absolute best. The first 15 minutes are all about setting up the intrigue and mystery of what exactly happened, but by 20 minutes in the stakes are raised significantly, and from there they keep getting higher and higher until reaching a breaking point. Newcomer Macon Blair plays the lead role of the film, and because he’s a new face he continually surprises us along the way. One of the highlights is the state of Virginia as the setting: we get to see all kinds of elements of the state, and it’s a beautiful, haunting backdrop for this movie. The director and lead actor have re-teamed for another movie at Sundance this year: here’s hoping they keep the streak alive.
Blue Ruin is currently streaming on Netflix
Amy (2015) (Ali and Nino, Asif Kapadia)
One of Morgan’s Top 10 of 2015, Amy, is a haunting cautionary tale of the tragic life that singer Amy Winehouse lived. Told entirely through archival footage, rare for a modern documentary, master documentarian Asif Kapadia captures both the brilliance and tragedy of the pop star. While his next film is a departure from the documentary genre, we hope he can duplicate his craft on full display here in the world of narrative film.
Amy is available to rent on iTunes
What We Do in the Shadows (2014) (Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Taika Waititi)
Included in Jasper’s Top 10 list for 2015, this zany mockumentary perfectly satires the world of vampires through a handful of memorable and hilarious characters. No vampire trope is left untouched, yet there isn’t any bit of this movie that feels unoriginal. The resulting laughter that ensues from watching this movie speaks for itself. Before director Taika Waititi tackles the third Thor movie, he’s playing his next movie, Hunt for the Wilderpeople, at Sundance. Regardless of how his next movies turn out, his last film stands as a must-see.
What We Do in the Shadows is available to rent on iTunes
Once (2007) (Sing Street, John Carney)
This 2007 musical drama took the independent film world by storm upon its release and introduced the world to the beautiful music of these Irish artists. The film went on to win an Oscar for Original Song and has remained an indie classic. Director John Carney returns to his indie roots for another outing at this year’s festival.
Once is available to rent on iTunes
Into the Abyss (2011) (Lo and Behold, Reveries of a Connected World, Werner Herzog)
It’s always a treat to have a new documentary by legendary filmmaker Werner Herzog, so before you see Lo and Behold, Reveries of a Connected World, check out one of the most affecting documentaries he created, Into the Abyss. Not one to shy away from tough subject matter, Herzog opens the curtain on the mass incarceration of the United States. While there is an abundance of Herzog documentaries to choose from, we recommend this one due to its availability and topical material.
Into the Abyss is currently streaming on Netflix
What Happened, Miss Simone? (2015) (Nothing Left Unsaid, Liz Garbus)
A contender for this year’s Documentary Oscar and alumni of Sundance from 2015, the Nina Simone documentary reviewed by Jasper this summer is a compelling insight into one of the most influential performers of the 20thCentury. While her name may not ring as iconic as her contemporaries, hearing the soundtrack of this documentary makes a viewer realize just how well-known and transcending her soulful music stands. Director Liz Garbus has a new documentary focused on Anderson Cooper and his mother this year, making her one of the few directors to debut movies at Sundance in two consecutive years.
What Happened, Miss Simone is currently streaming on Netflix
Beyond the Lights (2014) (The Birth of a Nation, Nate Parker)
A perfect companion piece to watch with Miss Simone, Beyond the Lights is a fictional story of a pop star whose career parallels the musicians in today’s world. This movie may come across to casual viewers as a straightforward love story, but filmmaker and Sundance alumni Gina Prince-Bythewood tells a layered story with themes of media representation, feminism, black masculinity, and so much more. Critically acclaimed but largely overlooked by moviegoers, Beyond the Lights is a highly recommended watch. The film’s star, Nate Parker, is following in the footsteps of his director and will release his directorial debut, The Birth of a Nation (if you’re thinking that’s a reference to another film you’re right on track) at Sundance this year.
Beyond the Lights is currently streaming on Netflix
God Loves Uganda (2013) (Life, Animated, Roger Ross Williams)
One of Sundance’s favorite filmmakers, Roger Ross Williams, has his second feature documentary premiering at the festival this year. Prior to that, he directed the controversial and compelling piece on the missionaries who have successfully invaded Uganda and had a mass impact on its people, with alarming repercussions. Stories like these are eye-opening, compelling, and not to be missed.
God Loves Uganda is currently streaming on Netflix
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015) (last year’s winner)
Lastly, while this movie doesn’t have a corresponding release for this year, it is still worth recognizing just how great last year’s big winner was. Me and Earl not only made my top 10 list, but it also serves as an iconic teen dramedy in a genre that nobody would’ve thought had room for growth and innovation. At last year’s festival, it took audiences by storm and received the festival’s only standing ovation and ultimately won the top two prizes: the “Grand Jury Prize” and “Audience Award”. Who knows what this year’s festival movie will be the big winner? In the meanwhile, we’ll cherish last year’s!
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is available to rent on Amazon Video
Bonus – these ten aren’t enough for you? Here are a few more films in release whose filmmakers have new films at the festival this year:
Senna (2010) – (2016 release: Ali and Nino, Asif Kapadia)
Maria Full of Grace (2004) – (2016 release: Complete Unknown, Joshua Marston)
Cesar Chavez (2014) – (2016 release: Mr. Pig, Diego Luna)
Gasland (2010) – (2016 release: How To Let Go of the World, Josh Fox)
