Sundance Film Festival 2022 roundup: Festival highlights

We’ve rounded up some of the buzziest films we saw at the Sundance 2022 film festival – the highs, the lows, and the mixed bags.

With its second consecutive year fully online, Sunday the 30th marked the final day of the 10-day Sundance Film Festival, based out of Park City, Utah.  Sundance continues to remain one of the buzziest festivals of the circuit, and 2022 was no exception – between showcasing highlights from other major festivals and introducing their slate of debut releases, the online fest was filled to the brim with exciting new programming and award-winning critical darlings. As always, though, there can often be just as many poor and middle ground films as there are stand-out hits, so to condense our 2022 festival viewing experience, we’ve written a convenient round-up of some of the most eye-catching titles from this year’s fest, and where they landed on our Sundance best-of hierarchy.

Master – dir. Mariama Diallo

The feature directorial debut of Mariama Diallo, our first film of Sundance 2022 was the modern, genre-bending collegiate horror film Master, starring Regina Hall, Zoe Renee, and Amber Gray. The film follows Jasmine Moore (Renee), one of the few Black incoming freshmen at a prestigious but dated New England University that was built on the site of a Salem-era gallows hill. In between struggling with the social scene, navigating the politics of privilege, and clashing with one of her professors (Gray), Jasmine slowly begins to be tormented by the school’s literal and figurative ghosts, haunted by the pervasive racism rooted deep in the University’s past. Coming to her aid is the school’s first Black female headmaster, Gail Bishop (Hall) who is initially skeptical of the University’s ghostly mythos, but is given a frightening dose of reality when she too begins to experience the nasty side of the school’s history.

Master follows the recent so-called “elevated horror” trend with complex, well-developed characters, cerebral dialogue, dizzying visuals, and a strong sense of self, centered around socio-political commentary and criticism of the generational racism all too often found on college campuses. Though moviegoers heading into the film purely for frights may leave disappointed (it leans much more heavily on suspense and drama than pure horror), the film’s complex conversations surrounding privilege and generational trauma make it an engaging watch. Its sharp script is bolstered by strong performances from all three leading ladies – particularly Amber Gray as Jasmine’s young, trendy lit professor Liv Beckman. While the pacing is sometimes fickle and the aforementioned lack of genuine scare-factor make the horror elements feel like an afterthought, the performances and writing make Master worth a watch for fans looking to broaden their horror horizons – the film debuts on Amazon Prime Video on March 18.

Fresh – dir. Mimi Cave

Landing somewhere between Netflix’s You and The Silence of the Lambs, our second film of the festival was another borderline horror flick – Mimi Cave’s wry romantic drama/horror-thriller Fresh, starring Daisy Edgar-Jones and Sebastian Stan. A play on the ‘horrors’ of the online dating scene, the film sees the endearingly awkward and not-so-smooth Noa (Edgar-Jones) swept off her feet when she meets the seemingly perfect man, Steve (Stan), by chance in a grocery store after a string of bad online dates. Though at first, her new lover appears to be everything Noa could’ve hoped for and more, things quickly turn sinister when she agrees to take a trip to his vacation home, where she eventually comes to the terrifying realization that Steve is a cannibal who lures women in with his grocery store meet-cute shtick, only to kidnap them and sell them for parts – slowly cutting away limbs until all their meat is gone.

Fresh is without question one of our (if not the) favorite films of the 2022 Sundance lineup – effortlessly walking the line between a genuinely frightening thriller and a tongue-in-cheek examination of modern dating. Though at times a little predictable and heavy-handed, especially in the second act when all of Steve’s cards are finally laid out on the table, Fresh can navigate the script’s weaker moments thanks to inspired, vivacious direction from Mimi Cave, and an eerily perfect performance from Sebastian Stan, who’s the film’s unquestionable scene-stealer. Full of equal parts humor and horror, Fresh is a clever, self-aware flick that makes ample use of its talented actors and shines thanks to brilliant direction – audiences can get a taste for themselves when it debuts on Hulu on March 4.

Good Luck to You, Leo Grande – dir. Sophie Hyde

Next on our Sundance docket was Sophie Hyde’s effortlessly charming romantic comedy-drama Good Luck to You, Leo Grande, starring Emma Thompson and Daryl McCormack. A true two-hander, the film takes place almost entirely in a single hotel room and tells the story of an aging RE teacher Nancy (Thompson) who hires prostitute Leo (McCormack) to fulfill her physical, emotional, and intellectual needs. Though at first, her high-strung demeanor makes the frenetic Nancy a less-than-ideal client, Leo is eventually able to coax her to open up (in every sense of the term) and the two engage in borderline therapy sessions as they unload their lives to each other and talk through their emotional issues.

Leo Grande is a gutsy film in that it banks almost entirely on the ability of its actors to pull off the fast-paced and character-laden dialogue (courtesy of writer Katy Brand), but luckily, Emma Thompson is more than up to the task – carrying massive chunks of rambling with ease and making the dialogue-heavy film feel almost light and breezy, even in its most sincere, emotional moments. Playing a less outspoken but complementary role is Daryl McCormack, who brings the requisite charm and wise-beyond-his-years air to make Leo the pitch-perfect scene partner for Nancy – together, their chemistry and rhythm help the film to fly by. Heartfelt, sex-positive, and unrelentingly clever, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is a feel-good drama exploring the importance of self-love through the lens of two wildly different characters – audiences can catch it when it premieres on Hulu later this year.

Dual – dir. Riley Stearns

Returning to the darker side of the festival’s programming, our fourth film of Sundance 2022 was Riley Stearn’s dystopian drama Dual, starring Karen Gillan and Aaron Paul. The film follows Sarah (Gillan) a terminally ill woman who opts to have a clone of herself created to make the mourning of her death easier on her loved ones – only to suddenly find out she’s made a miraculous recovery. with Sarah and her double now both in the world, the two prepare to participate in a government-mandated duel to the death to decide which version of Sarah will be allowed to live out the rest of her life. Though it’s certainly an intriguing premise, the excitement of Dual begins and ends with the longline – the film doesn’t engage with the concept in any particularly exciting ways beyond the initial, surface-level trappings of what fighting your clone to the death entails.

The performances are deliberately jilted and rigid – courtesy of Riley Stearn’s decisive direction that presents an off-putting future where everyone talks with nearly surreal frankness. While we give credit for  Stearns for sticking to his guns and achieving a cohesive tone across his dialogue, performances, and visuals, the choice to make Dual such a frigid endeavor robs the film of much of its emotional weight and takes away the opportunity to expand on a truly original concept. Though Karen Gillan’s double-duty performance is commendable and the minutia of her facial expressions deliver much of the film’s most impactful emotional beats, Stearn’s deadpan style feels disconnected from the inherent drama of Dual’s premise. Dual was acquired by RLJE films but currently doesn’t have a release date.

TikTok, Boom. – dir. Shalini Kantayya

The only documentary feature on our Sundance 2022 docket, next up is Shalini Kantayya’s social media-savvy TikTok, Boom. As the title implies, the film explores the origins, popularity, and controversies of TikTok, a Chinese-created social media app that allows users to create short videos in sync with pre-recorded music and audios. TikTok, Boom. follows the lives of a handful of TikTokers across all genres – from political activists to beatboxers – and trace’s the platform’s booming popularity and eerie ability to create internet stars nearly overnight.

In rooting the narrative around a small number of individual users and their stories, TikTok, Boom. is initially able to create a compelling character-driven documentary. However, as the film expands its scope to encompass more pressing, controversial subjects like the app’s clashes with Facebook and questions regarding censorship and data sharing, it begins to feel more aimless, sacrificing narrative clarity and pacing in favor of more interesting content and interviews with industry professionals about the legalities of TikTok’s many sociopolitical controversies. Though it functions as a great primer to anyone not already TikTok savvy, TikTok, Boom. doesn’t give much new information, nor does it challenge preexisting ideas or deliver a compelling stance on any particular issue. More of a ‘TikTok 101’ film than anything else, it’s by no means bad, but certainly doesn’t take the time to engage with any single concept presented on a deeper level, making for a serviceable but shallow documentary. TikTok, Boom. is an acquisition title currently seeking distribution.

Am I Ok? – dir. Stephanie Allynne & Tig Notaro

Delving back into the world of narrative features, our sixth film of Sundance was Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne’s romantic comedy-drama Am I Ok? starring Dakota Johnson. The film is a tale of friendship and self-discovery that follows Lucy (Dakota Johnson), an introverted young woman who comes to the belated realization that she’s a lesbian, and struggles to find a place for herself in life with the burden of her newfound identity. As she navigates coming to terms with her sexuality and deciphering the advances of flirty coworker Brittany (Kiersey Clemons), Lucy also juggles maintaining her relationship with her best friend Jane (Sonoya Mizuno) who suddenly announces that she’s moving to London for work.

Co-directed by wives Stephanie Allynne and Tig Notaro (both of whom are perhaps better known for the acting work in front of the camera), Am I Ok? is a sweet, charming if a none-too-memorable film that’s bolstered by an endearingly awkward performance from Dakota Johnson, who handles the comedic beats with just as much ease as the emotional moments of self-discovery. Though somewhat lacking in an authoritative directorial identity, and at times struggling with awkward dialogue, Am I Ok? overcomes the weaker technical aspects thanks to a heartfelt message and a powerhouse lead. Moviegoers can catch Am I Ok? when it lands on HBO Max later this year.

Girl Picture (Tytöt tytöt tytöt) – dir. Alli Haapasalo

Our final film of Sundance 2022 was also the only non-English film of our slate: coming-of-age drama Girl Picture from Finnish director Alli Haapasalo. The film takes place over three consecutive Fridays, following teenage girls Mimmi, Emma, and Rönkkö as they forge friendships, explore their newfound sexuality, navigate complex social hierarchies, and try to find romance, all while trying to figure out what it means to be growing up. Punky, outspoken Mimmi (Aamu Milonoff) and quiet, driven ice-skater Emma (Linnea Leino) begin an opposites-attract whirlwind romance, while Mimmi’s best friend Rönkkö (Eleonoora Kauhanen) embarks on a journey to find true sexual pleasure for the first time.

Despite a somewhat odd structuring in regards to the dynamic and grouping between its three leading characters, Girl Picture is a beautifully shot, written, and acted film with a wonderfully melancholic tone and an uplifting spirit that’s made possible by the frequent inclusion of musical sequences from director Alli Haapasalo, and three near-faultless performances from its trio of young leads. Each of the girls is dynamic, fleshed out, and simultaneously unique while also being undeniably relatable, and they slot together just as well as they function individually. Their interpersonal relationships are incredibly genuine and easy to root for, and as we follow each young woman on her individual (and interlacing) journey, the airtight script oozes with character beats and emotional development while still managing to feel youthful and effortless. Girl Picture has the makings of a coming-of-age classic, but while Finnish audiences can catch it on April 14th, it’s yet to secure American distribution.