Tag: Joe Swanberg

Film Feature: Sundance Film Festival Spotlights #2

Sundance 2015 Spotlights: Six Feature Films

Sundance

The Sundance Film Festival in Park City, UT, closed last Sunday, February 1st, and the award winners were announced that day; they can be found here.

Spinning Platters Sr. Film Reviewer Carrie Kahn continues her coverage of Festival films, so you can know what to look for in the coming year – and what to avoid – as many of these titles are purchased and widely distributed

As a reminder, we are using our patented Viewing Priority Level (VPL) Guide to advise you accordingly:

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Film Review: Happy Christmas

Soft and low key, and a healthy dose of reality

Melanie Lynskey and Joe Swanberg snuggle up tight in 'Happy Christmas'
Melanie Lynskey and Joe Swanberg snuggle up tight in ‘Happy Christmas’

Some people enjoy movies because they provide an escape from the hardships of real life.  To them, the more out-of-this-world, the better.  Other people enjoy realistic movies the most – the movies that capture the intricacies of real human behavior, real emotions, and stories grounded in reality.  Happy Christmas will definitely please the latter group of movie watchers, but has a rather good shot at pleasing the former group, too.  Director Joe Swanberg (Drinking Buddies) is a rising talent getting known for his acute handling of complex onscreen relationships.  Happy Christmas is Swanberg’s most mature film to date, capturing a segment in the life of a few in a way that doesn’t rely on overly dramatic instances to drive the plot.  In doing so, the film is actually a pleasant invitation into another family’s life, one in which the characters ring true.

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Film Review: Drinking Buddies

When Luke met Kate: Can drunk men and women ever be just friends?

Olivia Wilde's Kate and Jake Johnson's Luke are drinking buddies... and maybe more.
Olivia Wilde’s Kate and Jake Johnson’s Luke are drinking buddies… and maybe more.

Watching Joe Swanberg’s new film Drinking Buddies is a bit like spending a summer evening out having beers with friends. The beers are cool and tasty, the company is good, the conversation can run the gamut from light, playful, and flirty to serious and intense, and the whole experience is decidedly pleasant. Of course, when you awake the next morning, you may only have a hazy recollection of having had a nice time, and by day’s end, you probably will have forgotten much of what transpired. But that’s not to say the diversion wasn’t worth it. Continue reading “Film Review: Drinking Buddies”