Best Films of the 2018 Sundance Film Festival

The Sundance Film Festival is one of the greatest places for film lovers to catch new and exciting films, many of which have gone on to do well in the mainstream box office. Founded in 1978, Sundance has since become America’s biggest film festival, and is the breeding ground for smaller studios to capture those big deals that can catapult their films into theatre’s around the country. Last year, the Sundance Festival premiered films like Call Me By Your Name, Brigsby Bear, and The Big Sick, which was a nominated film at the past Golden Globes awards. Here are some of the best films that were streamed this year.

Bodied

This film was produced by world renowned rapper Eminem, with the prolific music video director Joseph Kahn behind the directing scenes. It is a similar to 8 Mile, Eminem’s debut actor role, with it following an up-and-coming white battle rapper who is trying to rise through the ranks of his peers while battling a racially charged environment. It differs from 8 Mile though when it comes to the tone of the film, which is a comedy with thriller elements and a dramatic flair that touches on a number of different themes. The film takes on cultural appropriation regarding race stereotypes, while staying in the line with the raw nature of the underground battle rap scene, which it has no shortage of. Some of the battle rap scenes are incredibly intense, and provide a energetic charge to the film. The film was presented by YouTube Red, and will arriving in theaters later this year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_8ycSX9PqE

Hereditary

Produced by the phenomenal studio A24, this film was the standout among the horror genre at this years festival. In previous years, films like The Witch and The Babadook were major successes, bringing innovation to the genre, and Hereditary takes the crown for doing just this. Hereditary is a family drama that slowly morphs into a twisted horrorshow that is bubbling with elements of the supernatural. It has been compared to classic horror films like The Exorcist and Rosemary’s Baby. The cast alone is something to be acknowledged as well, with Toni Collette, Gabriel Byrne, and Ann Dowd giving amazing performances. In the trailer, Hereditary seems to certainly be utterly terrifying, with a twist that is said to catch every viewer totally off guard. The film is due to have a theatrical release on June 28th this year.

The Guilty

This film certainly lives up the to the indie qualities that are so synonymous with Sundance films. The Guilty does this by being a film that was created and produced with a “hyper” low-budget with very limited resources. The entire film takes place in a single location: an emergency call center, centering around a single character who is trying to save a kidnapped woman who has called for help. The film is a tight knot of tension all the way throughout, with twists and turns at every corner. It is perfectly accentuated by Jakob Cedergren and Jessica Dinnage, who manage to keep the film moving along despite being some of the only characters present in the film.