SXSW 2021 – Review Round Up
Over the past week, we have been lucky enough to be virtually attending 2021’s SXSW with our Reviews Editor Scott J. Davis and Horror Editor Bradley Hadcroft our guys on the ground so to speak, soaking up all the festival has to offer. You can read their full reviews here, but we wanted to highlight some of the films they saw at the festival so here are just some of the amazing, electric line-up that were part of the amazing line-up:
LUDI
A cautionary yet important look at chasing the American Dream in Miami’s Little Haiti, Edson Jean’s touching film is a much-needed reminder of the struggles that immigrants face to make their way through the bustling, scary United States and just how much they have to navigate to make their dreams come true, even if that is simply enjoying life. Shein Mompremier (Black Lightning) shines in the titular role as the hardworking, exhausted nurse who battles co-workers, clients, bus drivers, and older patients, as each and everything conspires to knock her back. It may not quite fulfil its initial promise, but Ludi is a riveting, moving drama whose story is as timely as it has ever been.
Drama | USA, 2021 | SXSW 2021 | Dir.Edson Jean | Shein Mompremier, Alan Myles Heyman, Madelin Marchant
I’M FINE (THANKS FOR ASKING)
There have been a plethora of new, exciting, creative films in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic (see also The End of Us, below) that while proving restricting and tough, has allowed many filmmakers and storytellers to express their own frustrations with life we have all had to live in the last year. I’m Fine… is another to add to the roster and while doesn’t quite hit the heights of some of the others, Kelley Kali and Angelique Molina’s sweet yet tough film about a recently widowed mother (Kali) becoming houseless with her 8-year-old daughter and trying to find a new home, is well worth keeping an eye out for.
Comedy, Drama | USA, 2021 | SXSW 2021 | Dir.Kelley Kali, Angelique Molina | Kelley Kali, Deon Cole, Capella Fahoome
THE END OF US
The aforementioned “other” entry into the “pandemic-set” film sub-genre, The End Of Us looks at the effects of 2020 on relationships and love. Out-of-work actor Nick (Ben Coleman) and girlfriend Leah (Ali Vingiano) have been together for a few years but are breaking up and hoping for a change in their lives: however, the following morning, lockdown is enforced and the former couple is forced to stay together as the days turn into months. Written and directed by Henry Loevner and Steve Katner, it’s a bittersweet yet slight dramedy with two winning lead turns that give a different slant to all of the madness of 2020.
Drama | USA, 2021 | Dir. Steven Kanter, Henry Loevner | Ben Coleman, Ali Vingiano, Derrick DeBlasis,
UNITED STATES VS REALITY WINNER
June 2017. Former US Air Force airman and NSA contractor Reality Winner is arrested after she printed off a top-secret government document pertaining to Russia’s involvement in the US elections and sent it to the news organisation The Intercept. Immediately, she was targeted by the Trump administration, prosecuted, and sentenced to 64 months in jail under the Espionage Act. Sonia Kennebeck’s taut documentary examines Winner’s case as well as the nature of patriotism, the changes in US politics, and the role of whistleblowers.
Documentary | USA, 2021 | SXSW 2021 | Dir.Sonia Kennebeck | Reality Winner, Billie Winner-Davis, Gary Davis
POTATO DREAMS OF AMERICA
Based on his 2017 short, writer/director Wes Hurley’s unique, autobiographical comedy-drama is unlike anything you have seen before and thrives in its confident, absurd yet touching narrative. Told in two halves – one set in post-Cold War USSR, the other in the US – the film is by turns a dark, biting, satirical and hopeful story of a gay boy growing up in Russia with his mail-order bride mum, his family, and their lifelong dream of moving to the United States to start over. Trust us when we say you have seen nothing like Potato Dreams, but you’ll be glad you did.
Biography, Comedy | USA, 2021 | SXSW 2021 | Dir.Wes Hurley | Marya Sea Kaminski, Dan Lauria, Tyler Bocock
LILY TOPPLES THE WORLD
Dominoes. Who here doesn’t love to play? First created in the 1200s, the game has come on leaps and bounds in terms of creativity, expression, and genius and no-one is more at the forefront of the modern dominoes world than Lily Hevehs aka Hevesh5 who has become a 21st-century pioneer. With over 3 million YouTube subscribers and creating designs for The Tonight Show, Katy Perry, and Casey Neistat, Lily has become a sensation and Jeremy Workman’s wonderful – and SXSW winning – documentary will delight, enchant and make new fans of the ancient gameplay.
Documentary | USA, 2021 | SXSW 2021 | Dir.Jeremy Workman | Lily Hevesh
INTRODUCING, SELMA BLAIR
Another SXSW winner – scooping the Special Jury Recognition for Exceptional Intimacy in Storytelling award – is filmmaker Rachel Fleit’s beautiful, heartbreaking story of Selma Blair and her battles with MS. The actress, famed for her work in Cruel Intentions, Legally Blonde, Hellboy, and countless other memorable performances, was diagnosed in October 2018 and has since been for stem-cell replacement treatments to help her manage her disease better. Raw and unflinching, Fleit’s remarkable film gives us an unfiltered look at Blair’s battles and traumas all told with love and affection for the one-of-a-kind performer.
Documentary | USA, 2021 | SXSW 2021 | Dir.Rachel Fleit | Selma Blair
OUR FATHER
After news filters through that their father has passed, sisters Beta (Baize Buzan) and Zelda (Allison Torem) reunite to settle his final wishes as well as set out to find their long-lost uncle (Austin Pendleton) who many of the family believe is dead. Having been out of contact for many years, the sisters are at much different places in their lives – Beta is set to return to university, Zelda struggling with her mental health – but despite their frosty, jagged relationship they have to find a common ground to help each other come to terms with their loss. Despite having all the usual hallmarks of a Sundance dramedy, Bradley Grant Smith’s off-kilter film is elevated by two excellent lead performances.
Comedy, Drama | USA, 2021 | SXSW 2021 | Dir.Bradley Grant Smith | Baize Buzan, Allison Torem, Austin Pendleton
You Read rest of our Reviews over at this page.
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