Sundance 2023: A look at some of the festival’s elite class of short films and Animation Short Film Program

EDITOR’S NOTE: Sundance’s elite short film slate is highlighted. Les Roka’s reviews five short films from various offerings while Thomas Dugrosprez reviews this year’s Animation Short Program. The following five films from this year’s Sundance Short Film program stand out for their distinction and impact, as part of The Utah Review’s coverage of the 2023 … Read more

Sundance 2023: From the Iranian diaspora, a trio of outstanding films by women directors: The Persian Version, Shayda, Joonam

EDITOR’S NOTE: Reviews of The Persian Version and Joonam were written by Les Roka and Shayda was penned by Thomas Dugrosprez.  Three films by directors representing the Iranian diaspora premiered at Sundance and while each approached their subjects in different ways, the collective set offers a rich, comprehensive portrait of Iranian women as strong-willed independent … Read more

Sundance 2023: Food and Country’s bounty of information takes viewers on a cross-country exploration of new approaches for chefs, farmers

At one point in Food and Country, a documentary that truly puts agricultural economics and the impact on our nation’s food production system into a clear perspective, journalist and food writer Ruth Reichl sums up the precarious situation precisely. She mentions that it feels like a “terrible failure” because the problems were already being talked … Read more

Sundance 2023: Appealing family fare in Sundance Kids selections include Blueback, Aliens Abducted My Parents and I Feel Kinda Left Out

EDITOR’S NOTE: Thomas Dugrosprez wrote the reviews and Les Roka added interview and background notes to the feature. This year’s trio of Sundance Kids selections have something for virtually every young cinematic fan. In addition to the superb animation film The Amazing Maurice, which was reviewed earlier this week, there is the Utah filmed narrative … Read more

Sundance 2023: Radical electrifies emotional impact of innovative teacher’s true story in an Mexican elementary school

In the middle of the magnificently acted Radical, which received its premiere at Sundance, one narrative scene encapsulates all of the formidable barriers to meaningful education in a sixth-grade classroom at José Urbina López Primary School in the border town of Matamoros in Mexico. Alarmed by reports of the sixth grade teacher’s radical approach in … Read more

Sundance 2023: Amid fear and turbulence of dire threats to abortion, reproductive rights, Plan C documentary is testament of hope, resilience

EDITOR’S NOTE: Thomas Dugrosprez wrote the review and Les Roka added interview and background notes to the feature. As the U.S. faced the overturning of Roe v. Wade on June 24, 2022, the role of health care and reproductive rights workers and activists became instantly criminalized, in a country where 1 out of 4 women … Read more

Sundance 2023: Rich archival bounty defines historical significance of Indigo Girls in It’s Only Life After All

Some of the most impactful moments in the documentary, It’s Only Life After All, a comprehensive retrospective on Atlanta-based singer-songwriters Amy Ray and Emily Saliers who continue to perform as the Indigo Girls, appear in the first third of the film. The documentary received its Sundance premiere late last week. There are numerous fascinating clips … Read more

Sundance 2023: The Amazing Maurice is splendid adaptation of Sir Terry Pratchett classic

The late Sir Terry Pratchett, whose Discworld books epitomized his literary genius of irony and paradox in the realm of fantasy stories, wrote that Discworld was “relentlessly, solidly logical.” He added, “The reason it is fantasy is that it is logical about the wrong things, about those parts of human experience where, by tacit agreement, … Read more

Sundance 2023: Previewing eclectic sampling of documentaries, fiction, Sundance Kids, short film offerings

EDITOR’S NOTE: Part II summarizes the films and programs from Sundance 2022 that are part of The Utah Review coverage. For Part I which is an overview of the state of the film industry in Utah, see here. An eclectic sampling from this year’s Sundance slate is on The Utah Review radar this year for … Read more

Sundance 2023: Making the Utah production stage ready for film: State’s cinematic industry made big strides in 2022

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Part I is an overview of the Utah film industry in the current moment. Part II (tomorrow) will offer a summary preview of the Sundance 2023 feature-length and short films, which The Utah Review will cover. Like nearly 2,400 of their peers who are listed in a directory of Utah film industry professionals, … Read more