Hello readers! It is the end of the day at that means time for another one of my Sundance Film Festival viewing logs. Here I give my mini reviews for every film I saw at the festival. Yesterday I gave all positives but today was more mixed.

Here goes!

Ailey

This film is a documentary about famed dancer and choreographer Alvin Ailey. Going into watching this I had never heard of Ailey so this was a great chance to become acquainted with an important person to the arts. And to its credit Ailey does a good job introducing the man and his incredible dancing using both archival footage and some more recently taken. The fluidity of the dance is beautiful and I can see why it touched so many. There’s not much else to this movie. It’s a standard biopic done well. I’m surprised Neon bought this one because I think it is going to American Masters on PBS.

6 out of 10

Smile Worthy

Marvelous and the Black Hole

Marvelous and the Black Hole is a good example of when being close to friends at the festival pays off. I had missed this one in my planning but my friend Kristen Maldonado told me to check it out and I ended up really enjoying it. You readers also know I don’t normally like teenage angst movies and in this movie the lead girl is a lot to deal with. She drove me crazy but the movie doesn’t try and justify her behavior. All it takes is a bubbly magician played by Rhea Perlman to save the day. Marvelous and the Black Hole has a huge heart anyone with teenagers or who has been a teenager will enjoy. It reminded me a little bit of Eighth Grade from a few years back.

8 out of 10

Smile Worthy

Taming the Garden

I am sure there is someone who can explain to me why watching a tree for nearly 2 hours is brilliant but I am not that person. I assumed this would be an expose of types about the people who move these trees across the ocean but it wasn’t. It was literally a whole movie of watching construction crews work. No story,, characters. Nothing. It reminded me of when my Brother was 2 or 3 he had a movie of just construction workers doing their thing and he loved it. Maybe this movie is made for them? As for me I need more!

2 out of 10

Frown Worthy

Together Together

Every year at Sundance there is a quirky rom-com that everyone falls in love with. Together Together is probably that movie except it’s not about a love relationship but one based on friendship instead. It stars Ed Helms as a single man who has decided to have a baby via a surrogate played by Patti Harrison. As they work on this unusual project they genuinely become friends. I really appreciated the movie was about platonic friendship and that they didn’t have it turn romantic towards the end. As a single person I related to both characters quite strongly. In addition, I liked both of the actors and the script was charming. Some people have complained about the ending being abrupt. I was fine with it.

8 out of 10

Smile Worthy

Jockey

I have a feeling Jockey will end up being the underdog film of the festival because it’s very understated and simple but I liked it. It stars Clifton Collins Jr as an aging jockey who doesn’t have many races left and Moises Arias as a boy who may or may not be Clifton’s son. Finally Molly Parker stars as a possible love interest for Collins. The highlight of Jockey is a dancing scene in the middle of the train tracks. It was random but beautiful

7 out of 10

Smile Worthy

Fire in the Mountains-

My last film comes from India and it is one I am not going to give a review. I liked it ok but I found it tough to read the subtitles which were in a white that blended in with everything else. Sometimes I can get an idea what the story is from the images on screen but not here. I was mostly confused. It looks pretty though. If any of you saw it what do you think of it?

So there you have it. My reviews for the Sundance Film Festival day 4!