This week on The Collision, we talk about the 2013 Sundance Film Festival with Film School Rejects Associate Editor and MSN Movies critic and contributor Kate Erbland.  We give our overall appraisal of this year’s festival, our favorite and least favorite films, and how we think these movies will perform when they’re released into theaters.  As always, we close out the show with our recommendations.

Click here to listen to the new episode of The Collision, click here for the previous episode (“Gangster Movies and Gangster Squad“), click here to add the podcast to your RSS, and click here to find us on iTunes. To keep up to date with The Collision, you can follow us on Twitter at @MattGoldberg, @AdamChitwood, and @DrClawMD (Dave Trumbore). Hit the jump to check out the trailers for this week’s recommendations.

The 2013 Sundance Film Festival saw the debut of a number of filmmakers, but one of the most anticipated titles was the follow-up film from Sound of My Voice director/co-writer Zal Batmanglij and star/co-writer Brit Marling.  The two made waves with Sound of My Voice at Sundance 2011, and this year they premiered their ambitious new film, the thriller The East.  Marling stars as an undercover corporate operative who infiltrates a domestic terrorist organization but becomes conflicted when she starts falling for the charismatic leader (Alexander Skarsgard).  The impressive ensemble cast also includes Ellen Page, Patricia Clarkson, and Julia Ormond, and you can click here to watch the trailer and here is Matt’s review.

While in Park City, I got the chance to speak with Batmanglij and Marling for an extended interview.  They talked about wanting to craft an effective thriller that also posed some important questions, how the film’s events and ideas could have parallels to the Newtown massacre, the interesting reactions to the film’s subject matter, how their experience on Sound of My Voice influenced their approach to this larger-budgeted film, and more.  In addition, they also briefly touched upon fulfilling the Sound of My Voice trilogy and future projects.  Read on after the jump.

Ryan Coogler‘s Fruitvale made audiences at this year’s Sundance Film Festival weep with the true story of Oscar Grant, who was murdered by BART Station police in 2009.  At last night’s awards ceremony, Coogler’s debut feature was awarded with both the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award, which made it the first film to win in both categories since 2009′s Precious.  The Weinstein Company picked up the movie for $2 million after a heated bidding war, and I would expect a release sometime later this year.  Click here for my review.

Other winners included This Is Martin Bonner for “Best of NEXT” (voters must have connected with a movie where nothing happens), best screenwriting for Lake Bell for In a World… (click here for my review), and Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley for their tremendous performances in The Spectacular Now.  Hit the jump for the full list of winners.

Adding to the growing list of Jack Kerouac depictions onscreen is writer/director Michael Polish’s adaptation of Big Sur.  The film, which chronicles the author’s struggle with alcoholism and depression in the years following the publication of On the Road, made its world premiere at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival.  It’s a very “Kerouac” adaptation, and star Jean-Luc Barr turns in an impressive performance as the troubled author.

I had the chance to speak with co-star Kate Bosworth during my time in Park City, and the actress talked about the daunting task of tackling such a beloved property, how she prepared for the role, conveying her character’s emotions within the context of Kerouac’s untraditional narrative, what it was like to find out that their film had made it into Sundance, and more.  Read on after the jump.

Even though we’re nearly three months removed from Halloween, I want to use this week’s opening paragraph to throw some support behind director Michael Stephenson‘s touching documentary, The American Scream. I recently caught the film via Netflix where it’s available to “Watch Instantly” and I was impressed to say the least. Stephenson’s previous entry, the indelible Best Worst Movie, quickly became one of my all-time favorite docs for the unexpected emotional punch it packed in following the lives of those impacted by Troll 2. Scream delivered on a similar level with its themes of family, community, and the pursuit of one’s passion (in this case, home haunting). If you haven’t seen it already, I recommend either checking it out on Netflix or picking up a copy for yourself from the film’s website.

All recommendations aside, much to the surprise of no one, this week’s Top 5 is headlined by the announcement that J.J. Abrams will direct/produce Star Wars: Episode VII with accompaniment by our Bullet to the Head set visit, Warm Bodies video interviews with Nicholas Hoult, Teresa Palmer and more, a G.I. Joe: Retaliation set visit preview and interviews with director Jon M. Chu and more, and all of our coverage out of Sundance 2013 to date. A brief recap and link to each is hidden in plain view after the jump.

For a movie about a man who championed innovation, Joshua Michael Stern‘s Steve Jobs biopic, jOBS, is awfully safe and conventional.  By the end of the movie, most viewers will know as much as they previously did about the tech innovator or possibly even less.  Stern and screenwriter Matt Whiteley‘s depiction of Jobs makes one of the most influential figures in American business seem like nothing more like a savvy salesman who bullied people into following his vision.  Ashton Kutcher‘s lead performance veers between convincing and distracting, and while Josh Gad impresses as Steve “Woz” Wozniak, jOBS is a bland biopic that never provides any insight into the man behind the Apple.

Here’s one of the most morbid thoughts you can ever put in your head: will I die today?  This thought isn’t to spur you to live each day like it’s your last.  It’s a simple observation.  Where has life led you to this point, where would you like your life to go, and how does one affect the other?  In his debut feature Fruitvale, writer-director Ryan Coogler goes into the last day in the life of Oscar Grant, who was infamously shot by BART police officers in Oakland, California on New Year’s Day, 2009.  Coogler’s solemn, no-frills direction lets us walk into Oscar’s life, and become absolutely devastated as it heads to its inevitable conclusion.  The film’s emotional impact is only lessened by Coogler’s bizarre decision to push a message that doesn’t coincide with his movie’s theme.

One of the many films premiering at that 2013 Sundance Film Festival this week is writer/director Michael Polish‘s Jack Kerouac adaptation Big Sur.  The film is a wild ride as we’re taken through the author’s struggle with alcoholism and depression in the years following the publication of On the Road.  Tackling the character of Kerouac would’ve been a daunting prospect for any actor, but Jean-Marc Barr brings an intimacy to Kerouac’s manic tendencies in the film that convey to the audience exactly what’s going on in his head.

I had the chance to speak with Barr earlier this week in Park City about his work in the film, and he talked about Kerouac’s influence on his life when he was younger, nailing down all the rhythmic Kerouac dialogue, how the principles behind the author’s beatnik movement are lost on the younger generations of today, and more.  Barr also talked quite a bit about working with Lars von Trier on the much anticipated Nymphomaniac, describing the film as an ambitious working tackling all facets of sex.  Read on after the jump, and click here if you missed by interview with Josh Lucas and Radha Mitchell about the film.

Though the 2013 Sundance Film Festival certainly hasn’t been lacking in coming of age stories or tales of ennui over the past week, the fest also played host to a peculiar western called Sweetwater.  Directed by Logan and Noah Miller, the film stars January Jones as a woman in the 19th century west who runs up against a flamboyant and dangerous preacher (Jason Isaacs) and a rambunctious sheriff (Ed Harris) when her world is thrown into chaos.

I had the chance to speak with Jones in Park City earlier this week in anticipation of the film’s premiere, and she talked about keeping her character grounded opposite the colorful performances by Isaacs and Harris, the ambiguity of her character at the beginning of the film, and what influenced her performance.  In addition, Jones talked about her non-involvement in the sequel X-Men: Days of Future Past and the evolution of her character Betty on Mad Men over the past five seasons.  Read on after the jump.

David Lowery‘s confident feature Ain’t Them Bodies Saints lives between old life and a new beginning; between past crimes and future punishment; between the intimate and the distant.  But for me, the emotions fall through the beautiful cinematography, lyrical music, and excellent performances.  This is the X-factor of any viewer: an emotional connection we struggle to explain.  Lowery has made a strong movie, and one that will put him on the radar of everyone who sees Ain’t Them Bodies Saints.  But for reasons I have difficulty articulating, I couldn’t feel anything from his gorgeous film.

Randy Moore‘s Escape from Tomorrow will be remembered for how it was made.  Future discussions will revolve around its legality, and how Moore managed the task in the first place.  But when it comes to the actual picture, Moore works incredibly hard to come to a simple and fairly uninteresting theme.  Every time Moore hits a strong moment, he’ll continue to repeat that emotion and duplicate the event until it’s an absolute chore.  The movie can be absolutely bonkers, but its strangeness eventually feels like a gimmick rather than a hook.

Kathryn Hahn is an amazing comic actress who has yet to receive the widespread recognition she deserves.  She’s mostly been stuck in supporting parts, but she’s a scene stealer, and she deserves to be in lead roles.  She finally gets that opportunity in Jill Soloway‘s Afternoon Delight.  Hahn proves that not only can she carry the picture, but she has the dramatic range to play a woman who is looking for a change of pace in order to fix her life.  Soloway puts a fascinating relationship at the center of the movie, and for two-thirds of the film it looks like she has made a confident feature debut.  But then a sequence comes along that drowns the movie in sorrow, and grinds it to a halt to where not even Hahn’s performance can save it.

As the 2013 Sundance Film Festival winds down to a close, a few more high profile acquisitions are taking place.

• Before Midnight – Director Richard Linklater’s simply incredible sequel to Before Sunrise and Before Sunset earned rave reviews following its premiere at the festival, and now Deadline reports that Sony Pictures Classics is making the acquisition in what’s shaping up to be one of the biggest deals of Sundance.  Read Matt’s review here.
• Prince Avalanche – Director David Gordon Green’s refreshingly subdued and touching tiny-budget comedy starring Paul Rudd and Emile Hirsch also earned great reviews, and Magnolia Pictures has acquired distribution rights for a summer 2013 release.  Read Matt’s review here.
• Ain’t Them Bodies Saints – This Casey Affleck/Rooney Mara period crime film has earned comparisons to the work of Terrence Malick, and IFC Films has nabbed the U.S. rights for a multi-platform release later this year, per Deadline. Look for an awards season push.
• S-VHS – This horror anthology sequel earned better reviews that its predecessor, and Variety reports that Magnolia Pictures (who distributed the first film) has acquired the rights to release this pic as well.

Hit the jump to read the press releases and for images.

Premiering at this year’s Sundance Film Festival was director Michael Winterbottom’s The Look of Love.   Starring Steve Coogan, the film is based on the true story of British adult magazine publisher and entrepreneur Paul Raymond who went on to become one of the richest men in Britain.  The film also stars Anna Friel, Imogen Poots, and Tamsin Egerton.  For more on the film, here’s all our previous coverage.  In addition, IFC Films has picked up the rights, so it’ll be in theaters at some point down the road.

Shortly after the premiere I got to speak with Winterbottom backstage at the Eccles theater in Park City.  We talked about the experience of being at Sundance, how the project came together, how they came up with which aspects of Raymond’s life they should focus on, the editing process, what he learned from his friends and family screenings, film versus digital, future projects, and a lot more.  Hit the jump for what he had to say.

I usually like movies that have some sense of structure and pacing.  If they don’t have these qualities, then I like these films to be truly daring and outside-the-box.  Lake Bell‘s In a World… is a rambling mess of a nice little comedy with too many characters, and has almost no sense of pacing or flow.  But somehow, it’s still a charming flick.  Bell gives a fun lead performance, and she surrounds herself with a likable cast.  Even the subtext is cutesy.  In a World… should be a movie that I found a slog, but somehow, Bell’s film won me over despite its glaring flaws.