Festivals >> Sundance >> 2006 >> Premieres

Alpha Dog(Country: US; Director: Nick Cassavetes; Writer: Nick Cassavetes; Cast: Emile Hirsch, Fernando Vargas, Vincent Kartheiser, Justin Timberlake, Shawn Hatosy, Bruce Willis, Matthew Barry, Heather Wahlquist, Alex Solowitz, Alec Vigil, Harry Dean Stanton)
A drama inspired by true events and the life of Jesse James Hollywood, a suburban drug dealer who became one of the youngest men ever to be placed on the FBI's Most Wanted List. World Premiere.
Full Review

Art School Confidential(Country: US; Director: Terry Zwigoff; Writer: Daniel Clowes; Cast: Max Minghella, Sophia Myles, John Malkovich, Jim Broadbent, Matt Keeslar, Ethan Suplee, Joel Moore, Nick Swardson, Anjelica Huston, Adam Scott, Jack Ong)
Believing that art school will bring him success and the girl of his dreams, an untalented young man becomes embroiled in a murder that makes him a celebrity. World Premiere.
Full Review

Cargo(Country: Spain, UK, Sweden; Director: Clive Gordon; Writer: Paul Laverty; Cast: Peter Mullan, Daniel Bruhl, Luis Tosar, Samuli Edelmann, Gary Lewis, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Ricky Grover, Koen Balcaen, Christopher Fairbank, Carlos Blanco, Lois Soaxe, Jan Willem)
After becoming mixed up in some trouble while traveling through Africa, a young backpacker stows away on a Europebound cargo ship filled with mysteries. World Premiere.
Full Review See: Sundance Film Festival 2006: Day 5, Sundance Film Festival 2006: Day 6

The Darwin Awards(Country: US; Director: Finn Taylor; Writer: Finn Taylor; Cast: David Arquette, Ty Burrell, Josh Charles, Kevin Dunn, Nora Dunn, Joseph Fiennes, Judah Friedlander, Lukas Haas, Tom Hollander, Brad Hunt, Juliette Lewis)
A forensic detective and an insurance claims officer investigate a potential winner of a Darwin Award which honors “those who accidentally kill themselves in really stupid ways." World Premiere.

Don't Come Knocking(Country: France/Germany/US; Director: Wim Wenders; Writer: Sam Shepard, based on a story by Sam Shepard and Wim Wenders; Cast: Sam Shepard, Jessica Lange, Tim Roth, Gabriel Mann, Sarah Polley, Fairuza Balk, Eva Marie Saint, Rachel Amondson, Mike Butters, Emy Coligado, Majandra Delfino)
A washed-up and disillusioned Western movie star returns home, where he reluctantly encounters elements of his past and an entire life that he had missed. North American Premiere.
Full Review

Friends With Money(Country: US; Director: Nicole Holofcener; Writer: Nicole Holofcener; Cast: Jennifer Aniston, Frances McDormand, Catherine Keener, Joan Cusack, Simon McBurney, Jason Isaacs, Scott Caan, Ty Burrell, Bob Stephenson, Greg Germann, Romy Rosemont, Tim Sharp, Hailey Noelle Johnson, Jenn Fee, Jake Cherry, Marin Hinkle)
A drama about three married women, their husbands, and their lone single friend. Opening night gala. World Premiere.
Full Review

The Illusionist(Country: Czech Republic/US; Director: Neil Burger; Writer: Neil Burger, based on a short story by Steven Millhauser; Cast: Edward Norton, Paul Giamatti, Jessica Biel, Rufus Sewell, Edward Marsan, Jake Wood, Tom Fisher, Aaron Johnson, Eleanor Tomlinson, Karl Johnson)
In turn-of-the-century Vienna, a magician uses his abilities to secure the love of a woman far above his social standing. World Premiere.
Full Review

Kinky Boots(Country: UK; Director: Julian Jarrold; Writer: Geoff Deane, Tim Firth; Cast: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Joel Edgerton, Nick Frost, Sarah Jane Potts, Jemima Rooper, Linda Bassett)
In an effort to save his father’s small town shoe factory, a man finds an unlikely ally in Lola, a brassy cabaret singer. North American Premiere.
Full Review

Little Miss Sunshine(Country: US; Director: Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris; Writer: Michael Arndt; Cast: Abigail Breslin, Greg Kinnear, Paul Dano, Alan Arkin, Toni Collette, Steve Carell, Bryan Cranston, Marc Turtletaub, Beth Grant, Jill Talley, Brenda Canela)
A family determined to get their young daughter into the finals of a beauty pageant take a cross-country trip in their VW bus. World Premiere.
Full Review See: 2006 Readers' poll

A Little Trip To Heaven(Country: US, Iceland; Director: Baltasar Kormakur; Writer: Baltasar Kormakur; Cast: Forest Whitaker, Julia Stiles, Jeremy Renner, Peter Coyote, Alfred Harmsworth)
A husband and wife tangle with an investigator over her dead brother's million dollar insurance policy. US Premiere.
Full Review See: Sundance Film Festival 2006: Day 10

Lucky Number Slevin(Country: Germany, USA; Director: Paul McGuigan; Writer: Jason Smilovic; Cast: Josh Hartnett, Bruce Willis, Lucy Liu, Morgan Freeman, Ben Kingsley, Michael Rubenfeld, Peter Outerbridge, Stanley Tucci, Kevin Chamberlin, Dorian Missick, Mykelti Williamson)
A case of mistaken identity lands a man in the middle of a murder being plotted by one of NewYork City's biggest crime bosses. World Premiere.
Full Review See: Sundance Film Festival 2006: Day 2, Sundance Film Festival 2006: Day 4, Paul McGuigan on Lucky Number Slevin

Neil Young: Heart of Gold(Country: US; Director: Jonathan Demme; Cast: Neil Young, Emmylou Harris, Ben Keith, Spooner Oldham, Rick Rosas, Karl T. Himmel, Chad Cromwell, Wayne Jackson, Pegi Young, Grant Boatwright, Diana DeWitt)
An emotionally rich musical portrait of icon Neil Young, shot over a two-night performance at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. World Premiere.

The Night Listener(Country: US; Director: Patrick Stettner; Writer: Armistead Maupin, Terry Anderson, Patrick Stettner; Cast: Robin Williams, Toni Collette, Joe Morton, Bobby Cannavale, Rory Culkin, Sandra Oh)
In the midst of his crumbling relationship, a radio show host begins speaking to his biggest fan, a young boy, via the telephone. But when questions about the boy's identity arise, the host's life is thrown into chaos. World Premiere.
Full Review See: Sundance Film Festival 2006: Day 7

The Science Of Sleep (La Science Des Rêves)(Country: France/Italy; Director: Michel Gondry; Writer: Michel Gondry; Cast: Gael García Bernal, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Alain Chabat, Miou-Miou, Pierre Vaneck, Emma de Caunes, Aurélia Petit, Sacha Bourdo, Stéphane Metzger, Alain de Moyencourt, Inigo Lezzi)
A man held captive by the people in his dreams tries to wake himself up and take control of his own imaginings. World Premiere.
Full Review See: Sundance Film Festival 2006: Day 9

The Secret Life Of Words (La Vida Secreta De Las Palabras)(Country: Spain; Director: Isabel Coixet; Writer: Isabel Coixet; Cast: Sarah Polley, Tim Robbins, Julie Christie, Javier Cámara, Sverre Anker Ousdal, Steven Mackintosh, Eddie Marsan)
A nurse forgoes her first holiday in years, opting to travel to a remote oil rig, where she cares for a man suffering from severe burns. North American Premiere.
Full Review

Thank You For Smoking(Country: US; Director: Jason Reitman; Writer: Jason Reitman, based on the novel by Christopher Buckley; Cast: Aaron Eckhart, Maria Bello, Cameron Bright, Adam Brody, Sam Elliott, Katie Holmes, David Koechner, Rob Lowe, William H Macy, JK Simmons, Robert Duvall, Kim Dickens)
Satirical comedy follows the machinations of Big Tobacco's chief spokesman, who manages “spin” on behalf of cigarettes while trying to remain a role model for his twelve-year-old son. US Premiere.
Full Review See: Interview with Jason Reitman about Thank You For Smoking and Juno

This Film Is Not Yet Rated(Country: US; Director: Kirby Dick; Writer: Kirby Dick, Eddie Schmidt)
A breakthrough investigation into Hollywood’s best-kept secret: the MPAA film ratings system and it’s profound impact on American culture. World Premiere.
Full Review

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