The 2022 Sundance Film Festival recently came to a close after showing a wide variety of films virtually and at a handful of satellite screens across the country. It was a strong festival that provided a first glimpse of films that challenge, inspire, and move us in their own ways. It provided an initial look at the most exciting films that are to come out this year.
If you missed out on the festival, you’re in luck as many of these outstanding films are coming out soon to the general public. Be it on streaming or in theaters, audiences will soon be able to check out the best of the fest for themselves. This list won’t include some big festival hits such as the charming and complex Cha Cha Real Smooth as that doesn’t have a release date just yet despite being scooped up by Apple TV+. However, there is still much to offer that is worth checking out soon. Whether you want to catch expansive science fiction or inventive dramas, this list will help you know both what you should seek out and where you can find it.
After Yang
A remarkable and jaw-dropping work, After Yang is the unmatched festival standout. It had already gotten critical praise when it premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, though nothing could have prepared us for how completely breathtaking of a film this would be. Written and directed by the auteur Kogonada, whose first film Columbus is also wondrous, his newest sees him taking on science fiction that still maintains his distinct visual style and command of emotions. It stars Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, Justin H. Min, and newcomer Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja as a family who must come to terms with an impending loss. It leaves a lasting, profound impression that makes it one you should seek out as soon as you can.
After Yang is available to watch in theaters starting March 4.
Downfall: The Case Against Boeing
The first of many incisive documentaries at the festival, Downfall: The Case Against Boeing could easily stack up against the most horrifying films that will come out this year. Digging deep into the ways that corporate greed led to multiple high-profile crashes that killed hundreds, director Rory Kennedy has created a meticulous and thorough approach to the haunting subject matter. The documentary takes a holistic approach to the lead-up to the accidents and the human toll that they left in their wake. It is a short, concise documentary that doesn't shy away from pointing out the many failings that led to this tragic event. It will outrage and inform in equal measure.
Downfall: The Case Against Boeing is available to watch on Netflix starting February 18.
Emergency
A sleeper hit that takes the college buddy comedy genre and blows it up, Emergency is a film that you may not have heard of coming out of the festival though you soon will. An expansion by writer-director Carey Williams from his short film of the same name, it follows three friends who have the worst night of their lives. It centers on the duo Kunle (Donald Elise Watkins) and Sean (RJ Cyler), two of only a few Black students at their college who put up with persistent racism that is hidden under faux progressiveness.
This all comes to a head when they find a drunken white girl passed out in their home. Afraid they’ll be blamed for the situation if they call the cops, they decide to try to drive her to the hospital with their friend Carlos (Sebastian Chacon) but find the journey is a more perilous one than they could’ve imagined. It is a film that is as painful as it is funny, making for an experience that defies easy categorization though will capture your attention regardless.
Emergency is available to watch in theaters on May 20 and on Amazon Prime on May 27.
Fresh
A film that offers a – dare I say – fresh look at modern dating, Fresh is a horror film where the terror comes from those we let into our lives. It stars Sebastian Stan and Daisy Edgar-Jones, who both play off each other perfectly, as a newly formed couple where not everything is what it seems. It is a film that, while not flawless, still packs a distinct vision that creeps under your skin the longer it goes on. It has all the romantic and comedic elements you would initially expect, though the darker turn it takes is all about making the most of its horrific developments. It plays with old tropes with mixed success, though the way it all gets turned on its head is undeniably unexpected. If this all sounds vague, it is because the experience is best preserved for when you see it for yourself.
Fresh is available to watch on Hulu starting March 4.
jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy
A documentary that looks at the musical genius who has become both an icon and a figure of controversy, jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy is a decades-long study of both the artist and the man. Shot over multiple decades, it is hard to imagine a more thorough and expansive look at a rapper’s life in recent memory. Boasting hours and hours of observational footage of him at work, there is nothing else that comes close to seeing who Kanye West is. Made by the directing team of Coodie & Chike, who previously worked on music videos and other documentary projects, this three-part documentary takes more time with getting to observe West than anything ever has. The result is a cultural artifact that isn’t going to win West any new fans, though it may begin to help us understand more of what has shaped him.
jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy is available to watch on Netflix with part one premiering on February 16.
Master
A film that defies expectations as it builds a strong sense of atmosphere and dread, Master is a dynamite debut film from director Mariama Diallo and stars a never-better Regina Hall. It is a takedown of the power structures within academia that follows Hall as Gail Bishop, the first Black woman to hold the post of “Master” of a residence hall. However, there is a lingering sense of dread that is permeating all aspects of the school and threatens to consume everything that Gail holds dear. It also stars Zoe Renee in a breakout performance as Jasmine, a student who begins to be haunted by both the school’s horrifying history and its present. It is horror all its own whose ending stuck with me more than most of the other films in the festival for both how poetic and tragic it all became.
Master is available to watch on Amazon Prime starting March 18.
The Worst Person in the World
The film that will break your heart and still leave you wanting to see it all again, The Worst Person in the World is a work of art from start to finish. It is a fitting film to complete director Joachim Trier’s Oslo Trilogy while also featuring an unparalleled performance from Renate Reinsve. She plays an uncertain young woman named Julie who is trying to find her way in the world. As she navigates the joys and pitfalls of the passions of being alive, Reinsve commands every moment with a confidence that is unlike any other performance of recent memory. Trier is similarly at the top of his game, creating many vibrant visual sequences that capture your imagination and your heart. By the time the perfect final song plays, you’ll only wish you could spend more time being enveloped in the film’s world.
The Worst Person in the World is available to watch in theaters starting February 4.
We Need to Talk About Cosby
Another one of the many noteworthy documentaries at the festival, We Need to Talk About Cosby is a comprehensive look at the legacy of the comedian, and the subsequent societal reckoning after he was accused of more than 60 sexual assaults. It is hard to express just how committed W. Kamau Bell’s four-part documentary is to capturing the entire history of how Bill Cosby rose to prominence and subsequently fell from grace. It is a harrowing experience to see it all laid out like this, but Bell approaches the entire story with an unflinching eye. The contradiction between Cosby’s public persona and the horrors of who he was to people once the cameras turned off has never been more fully explored than it is here. It is not an easy watch, though Bell does justice to all the facets of this story and ensures that the voices of the survivors are put at the forefront of our collective cultural memory.
We Need to Talk About Cosby premiered on Showtime on January 30 and the remaining parts will air on the next three Sundays.
You Won't Be Alone
A gorgeous, flooring cinematic experience that is as if Terrence Malick made a film about the lives of 18th-century witches, You Won’t Be Alone is not going to be for everyone though it still remains a film that is utterly unique and arresting. It stars Noomi Rapace as one of many forms an ancient witch takes as she begins to take in what it means to be alive. As she begins to learn more about what future she has in the world, the film lures you in with its precise and all-encompassing visuals that remain constantly overwhelming. It is not a horror film but instead a work that blends multiple genres to become something completely distinct from anything else at the festival. The result is an incredible debut from writer-director Goran Stolevski who has crafted an imaginative and mythical meditation on life that will be one of the most striking films you’ll see this year.
You Won’t Be Alone is available to watch in theaters starting April 1.