The first trailer for the Sundance hit Ain’t Them Bodies Saints has been released online.  The film centers on a young outlaw couple played by Rooney Mara and Casey Affleck who are apprehended by the law and must deal with the consequences of their actions,  Affleck’s character escapes prison years later and sets out to find his lover and daughter in 1970s Texas Hill Country.  Writer/director David Lowery’s debut feature drew positive reviews and comparisons to the work of Terrence Malick at Sundance, and after watching this trailer it’s not hard to see why.  Not only is his visual style eloquent and poetic, but the story almost feels like a spin on Malick’s Badlands.  The trailer promises a slew of fine performances and a nuanced, character-centric story, and I’m eager to catch the full film when it hits theaters.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer, and click here to read Matt’s positive review from Sundance.  The film also stars Ben Foster and Keith Carradine.  Ain’t Them Bodies Saints opens on August 16th.

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.

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.

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.

The Sundance Film Festival recently announced the promising lineups for a few of the festival’s categories, and we’ve now got the first images from some films that will be playing in competition as part of the U.S. Dramatic category.  Briefly:

• Afternoon Delight – Written and directed by Jill Soloway, starring Kathryn Hahn, Juno Temple, Josh Radnor, and Jane Lynch.
• Ain’t Them Bodies Saints – Written and directed by David Lowery, starring Rooney Mara, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster, Nate Parker, and Keith Carradine.
• C.O.G. – Written and directed by Kyle Patrick Alvarez, starring Jonathan Groff, Denis O’Hare, Corey Stoll, Dean Stockwell, Casey Wilson, and Troian Bellisario.
• Concussion – Written and directed by Stacie Passon, starring Robin Weigert, Maggie Siff, Jonathan Tchaikovsky, Julie Fain Lawrence, Emily Kinney, and Laila Robins.

Hit the jump to check out the images and synopses.  The 2013 Sundance Film Festival runs January 17 – 27.

The 2013 Sundance Film Festival is a little under two months away, and the first exciting lineups of films have been announced.  Today the lineups for U.S. and World Cinema Dramatic and Documentary Competitions were unveiled, as well as the lineup for the out-of-competitions NEXT section.  A few highlights include the Daniel Radcliffe-fronted Kill Your Darlings, the outlaw pic Ain’t Them Bodies Saints with Rooney Mara and Casey Affleck, the strong ensemble The Spectacular Now, Primer director Shane Carruth’s new film Upstream Color, and many, many more.

Hit the jump to check out the full lineups, and be sure to check back here on Collider in January for our in-depth coverage from the festival including reviews and interviews.  The 2013 Sundance Film Festival runs January 17 – 27.

If you’re looking for Rooney Mara in the next 12-16 months, odds are she’ll be on a movie set.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo actress is currently filming Steven Soderbergh’s Bitter Pill, and earlier this week she replaced Carey Mulligan in director Spike Jonze’s next project and signed on to star in the 1950s period piece Brooklyn.  She’s also set to film an untitled Terrence Malick project (formerly Lawless) this summer with Christian Bale and Ryan Gosling, and now she’s added yet another pic to her docket.  Deadline reports that Mara, Ben Foster, and Casey Affleck are attached to star in the drama Ain’t Them Bodies.

David Lowery is set to write and direct the film, which is described as a contemporary story in the vein of Bonnie and Clyde.  No other plot details are known at this moment, but you can’t really go wrong with a strong line-up like Mara, Foster, and Affleck.