Park City Dispatch Day Four: JLo at TAO and the Future of Political Comedy
Vulture’s back in Utah for what could be the penultimate iteration of the Sundance festival in its longtime home, Park City. We’ve been here all weekend, checking out the buzziest films, seeing the sights on the festival’s main thoroughfare, and welcoming directors, actors, producers, and all their publicists to stop by our studio on Main Street and talk about their latest projects with host Jay Jurden. Want to keep up with everything going on slope-side? We’ve got you covered — check out our full festival coverage here, follow along with us on social, and scroll on for some of our favorite moments so far, including:
➼ John Lithgow and Olivia Colman holding hands
➼ Rachel Sennott giving us her best impression of Charli XCX
➼ The cast of Oh, Hi! posing with our latest cover star, Adrien Brody
➼ Chloë Sevigny paying respects to the late, great David Lynch
Day One
We sat down and made our screening wish lists
From Ayo Edebiri’s turn as a music blogger (too close to home) in Opus to mumblecore renegade Mary Bronstein’s sophomore feature after a 17-year(!) break to a two-part documentary on Pee-wee Herman, here are the 15 movies we’ll be lining up in the snow to see.
We tried to get the lay of the land
Thankfully, we found our way to the only spot that really matters.
Day Two
Alison Brie stopped by for coffee
The studio festivities kicked off bright and early Friday morning when Together star and producer Alison Brie dropped in for a conversation with Vulture senior news writer Fran Hoepfner. She discussed making the “physically intimate” psychological thriller with first-time writer/director Michael Shanks, and co-star, co-producer, and IRL-husband, Dave Franco. It being her seventh time at Sundance, she reminisced on the rag-tag days of partying and crashing on Ludwig Göransson’s couch. She also took a moment to appreciate a shirtless Adrien Brody from New York’s latest cover. Read the rest of their conversation here.
Jimpa’s John Lithgow and Olivia Colman held hands
They also discussed their latest movie, Jimpa with writer/director Sophie Hyde and co-star Aud Mason-Hyde. The group reflected on the recent political vibe shift — what Lithgow called a “ghastly sea change” — and underscored the importance of making a movie about queer joy at this particular moment in history.
Aisling Franciosi is in Twinless, and she’s funny
Twinless, starring James Sweeney, Dylan O’Brien, and Aisling Franciosi is ostensibly a movie about grief, centering around two guys dealing with the loss of their twin brothers, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still have a giggle. “In both this past summer’s Speak No Evil and Twinless, Franciosi gets big laughs out of pretending something kind of fucked up is actually totally fine and regular and not a thing to panic about. Being able to garner reactions of both horror, laughter, and the occasional double threat of horrified laughter is no small feat,” writes Fran Hoepfner. Let Aisling Franciosi be funny!
We learned about some casting drama on the set of Omaha
Discussing her latest film, Omaha, with co-star John Magaro and director Cole Webley, 11-year-old actress Molly Belle Wright revealed some exclusive gossip from behind the scenes: the original dog actor was fired for his on-set behavior and ultimately replaced by an identical dog. His crime? Being too hyper.
Cinderella scared us
Critic Bilge Ebiri attended the premiere of Norwegian director Emilie Blichfeldt’s The Ugly Stepsister, a dark twist on a classic fairytale. Our favorite line from his review: “Elvira swallows a tapeworm egg, and as the worms grow (and growl) inside her belly, she can eat whatever she wants and still shed inches. It’s like Ozempic, but alive.”
Dave Franco had to grin and bear it
Juliette Lewis remembered that time she was a chair
Juliette Lewis took on an unconventional acting challenge in her latest film, By Design, from writer/director Amanda Kramer: she was a chair. Lewis stopped by the studio to discuss the body-swap-with-a-twist movie along with Kramer and her fellow cast-mates. We had a lot of questions going into this conversation, and somehow, we came out with even more.
Sly Stone got doc’d
Bilge Ebiri walked out of Sly Lives! feeling with a deep appreciation of the legendary artist. Questlove, it seems, was well-suited for the task of documenting the story of Sly & the Family Stone. “The real power of Sly Lives! lies in its presentation of Stone’s most iconic hits, which Questlove often lets play all the way through as his interview subjects dissect the songs and the imagery associated with them… Honestly, it helps when musicians make movies about other musicians,” he writes in his review.
And more stuff that happened on day two…
➼ Flora Lau made a movie fit for our times.
➼ Woody Norman survived extreme conditions to bring us Sukkwon Island.
➼ Conan O’Brien got nostalgic.
Day Three
Harry Hamlin had some notes for his reptilian costars
Check out the rest of their conversation in the studio, including everything to know about the upcoming season of Mayfair Witches, here.
The Dating Game revealed dark societal truths
The Dating Game, from documentarian Violet Du Feng, follows dating coach Hao as he makes over three single men in Chongqing, China, in an effort to attract them mates. “A grim, dystopian reality” is revealed in the documentary: the men in China outnumber women by 30 million, so the odds are stacked those seeking partners. As a result, Hao resorts to tactics of deception and phoniness in order to serve his clients ultimate goals. “Hao isn’t entirely a slime-ball. More than anything, he might be a reflection of his times,” writes Bilge Ebiri in his review. “Given the fake-it-till-you-make-it half-reality that governs all our social media lives, there may well be a dark truth running beneath the superficiality on display in this film. In an openly phony world, who cares about being genuine?”
Mary Bronstein and Rose Byrne gushed over Conan O’Brien
Because who wouldn’t? He’s a total mensch!
The Cast of Oh, Hi! said hi…
…to cover star and Oscar nominee Adrien Brody.
Dave Franco and Alison Brie got intimate
In their second visit to The Vulture Spot this weekend for both Brie and Franco, the pair discussed working together on Together. “After most days of filming this movie we would look at each other and say, ‘we couldn’t have done this with anyone else because of the intense level of physical intimacy in this film,’” remembered Franco, “by the end of the shoot, my entire body was covered in bruises.”
We took a trip to Green Lake
Sierra Falconer’s Sunfish (& Other Stories on Green Lake) is an anthology movie that features “four delicate tales that together constitute a quietly moving daydream,” writes Bilge Ebiri. Clocking in at just 87 minutes, the movie manages to be languorous without dragging, but despite its brevity, it might stick with you. “The true revelation lies in the whole, in the gathering sense that life is full of change and that nothing ever really resolves itself. That might also be why this particular anthology works so well, and also why it lingers afterwards. These incomplete individual stories all dance on the edge of transformation, even though we can’t quite tell what comes next for these people.”
Rachel Sennott did her best Charli XCX impression
When she stopped by the studio, she recounted her role in getting Charli’s 2020 song, “Detonate” into the soundtrack for Bunnylovr.
The hottest club in Park City is literally TAO
And the hottest DJ is…. Jennifer Lopez? A surprise guest performer at the pop-up in Park City turned out to be none other than Kiss of the Spider Woman star. The event was attended by the likes of Harry Jowsey, Post Malone, Heather Gay, and Niecy Nash — possibly why JLo’s performance went under the radar for some of the party’s guests. “I’m not going to lie I somehow completely missed it and I thought everyone was just playing a joke on me,” Gymnasium founder Adam Faze told Vulture. But she was definitely there. Trust us.
And more stuff that happened on day three…
➼ The cast of Dark Winds agreed with George R. R. Martin: Zahn McClarnon deserves an Emmy.
➼ Film critic Bilge Ebiri saw Rabbit Trap and All That’s Left of You.
➼ Rabbit Trap’s Jade Croot shared the creepy inspiration behind her character.
➼ Mark Ruffalo was daddy.
➼ It snowed. A lot.
Day Four
Everyone’s obsessed with New York’s Zach Schiffman
Chloë Sevigny and Rose Byrne remembered lost legends
Sevigny took a moment to reflect on what she loved most about David Lynch’s work, and Byrne shared a memory about her first visit to Sundance with Heath Ledger when they were eighteen, promoting Gregor Jordan’s Two Hands.
Benedict Cumberbatch was seized by a crow
In The Thing with Feathers, Cumberbatch plays a widower with two young sons, who is grieving the loss of his wife. In the throes of his grief, he begins having visions of a giant, talking crow who seizes control of his body and profanely mocks his melancholy. “When Crow begins manipulating him, the father’s flails of protest become discordant dance moves, programmed but alien. He makes bird gestures while he draws, acting out his characters but also maybe letting something peek out from within himself. It’s one of the best, most alive and inventive performances the actor has given,” writes Bilge Ebiri in his review. Cumberbatch also came by the studio to discuss the film with director Dylan Southern. Check out his conversation with Jay Jurden here.
Roy Wood Jr. predicted that political comedy isn’t going anywhere
“I think we will continue to make jokes about the people in power and the policies that oppress people, and I don’t think that’s going to change regardless of who done put — excuse me, didn’t put — their hand on the Bible.”
Jennifer Lopez thought we’d forgotten about Bye Bye Birdie Live!
And more stuff that happened on day four…
➼ We have good news and bad news about The Legend of Ochi.
➼ The Ballad of Wallis Island’s cast makes a wish.
