Prop 8 boycotters be damned, the slate for this year’s Sundance Film Festival has been announced, and as always it reads like an overwhelming buffet of tasty cinematic treasures along with a few movies that we would never, ever want to see. The ones that we’re the most excited about? The films that star the actors who we love most, naturally.
(Admittedly this is a flawed way of doing things, as last year it meant that we completely missed out on Momma’s Man and Man on Wire, but our screening powers are only as good as our unhealthy crush on Michael Cera.)
After the jump, the five flicks that we’ll be vying for good seats at come January; leave your own picks in the comments.
The flick: Brief Interviews with Hideous Men The crush: John Krasinski Jim from The Office writes and directs this film adaptation of David Foster Wallace’s work (a first), a novel about a grad student who deals with a bad breakup by interviewing men about their innermost secrets. Julianne Nicholson, Timothy Hutton, Dominic Cooper, Christopher Meloni, and Rashida Jones (Karen from The Office) star.
The flick: The Dream of the Romans The crush: Kat Dennings Firsttime filmmaker John Hindmand helms this ensemble romantic comedy which centers around a spiritual guru who just wants to be left alone. Alongside Dennings, the only redeeming part of The House Bunny, Jeff Daniels, Lauren Graham, Lou Pucci, and Olivia Thirlby star.
The flick: Paper Hearts The crush: Michael Cera Nicolas Jasenovec directs this under the radar docu-comedy about his real life relationship with Charlyne Yi (who played Jodi in Knocked Up). Expect cameos from other members of the Apatow crew.
The flick: Peter and Vandy The crush: Jess Weixler Did you see Weixler in Teeth? The girl has got serious acting chops — no pun intended. Jay DiPietro’s indie tale of a young Manhattan couple told completely out of order is based on a Drama Desk Nominated Best Play. Jason Ritter and Jesse Martin also star.
The flick: An Education The crush: Sally Hawkins Nick Hornby penned the screenplay for Lone Scherfig’s retro film that’s set in the London ‘burbs and explores the odd romance between a precocious teenage girl and a hottie swinger, played by Peter Sarsgaard. Huzzah. Along with Hawkins, who won our eternal admiration for her perky-yet-not-annoying performance in Happy-Go-Lucky, Emma Thompson also stars.