#3
Fresno
Dir. Jamie Babbit
Karey Dornetto has been an outstanding television writer for years, working on shows like “South Park”, “Arrested Development”, “Portlandia”, and “Kroll Show”. Although, I know her best from her work on “Community”, probably most notably writing the episode “Epidemiology” (aka the zombie episode). Her writing is extremely funny and all of it comes directly from her understanding of character. Fresno is her first feature screenplay, and if it is anything like her TV work, it will be pretty great. A cast including Judy Greer (in a lead role!), Natasha Lyonne, Aubrey Plaza, and Fred Armisen is just a bonus.
Fresno is a comedy about co-dependent sisters who work as hotel maids in Fresno, CA. Shannon (Judy Greer) is fresh out of sex rehab when her younger, overly optimistic lesbian sister Martha (Natasha Lyonne) lands her a job as a maid at Fresno Suites, the local hotel. When Shannon jeopardizes her fresh start by accidentally killing a hotel guest after a post-rehab relapse, Martha goes to great lengths to help her sister cover up the crime. Shannon finally learns to take responsibility for her actions, and the sisters begin to resolve their tortured relationship.
#2
6 Years
Dir. Hannah Fidell
I said Taissa Farmiga would show up here again. I don’t know how it happens, but there generally seems to be an actor who lights up a festival with several terrific performances. Two years ago it was Brie Larson with Short Term 12, The Spectacular Now, and Don Jon. I think that slot could go to Farmiga this year, provided the films are good. The film to showcase more of her dramatic range is 6 Years. This is the only world premiere I have heard any early word on from folks working at SXSW, saying it was one to look out for. So, I’m looking. I’m looking.
A young couple in their early 20s, Dan and Mel, have known each other since childhood. Now their 6-year romantic relationship is put to the test when Dan receives an attractive job offer from the record label with whom he interns, and he must choose between a move forward and a future with Mel. Growth and temptation happen-but will their relationship remain part of their future?
#1
Ex Machina
Dir. Alex Garland
This is probably the most exposed film at the festival, as it has even opened in a number of places around the world and shown at festivals. Ex Machina has been getting pretty terrific reviews, and the idea of a science-fiction three-hander starring Domhnall Gleeson, Alicia Vikander, and Oscar Isaac is very exciting to me. I have not loved Alex Garland‘s work (except for Never Let Me Go, which is greatly under appreciated), but I respect it greatly. I’ll be interested to see with him directing that his ideas and story actually wrap up in a satisfying way, which I think has been his downfall before.
Caleb Smith (Domhnall Gleeson), a programmer at an internet-search giant, wins a competition to spend a week at the private mountain estate of the company’s brilliant and reclusive CEO, Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac). Upon his arrival, Caleb learns that Nathan has chosen him to be the human component in a Turing Test–charging him with evaluating the capabilities, and ultimately the consciousness, of Nathan’s latest experiment in artificial intelligence. That experiment is Ava (Alicia Vikander), a breathtaking A.I. whose emotional intelligence proves more sophisticated–and more deceptive–than the two men could have imagined.
So there you have it. What I am looking forward to at this years South by Southwest Film Festival. Is anyone else out there going? If not, what are you interested in me reviewing? Also, look forward to my full schedule, which I will post in a couple of days.
