In a world of prequels, sequels, threequels, and remakes, originality is far and few between today. That is what makes the Sundance Film Festival stand out among festivals around the world.
The 2026 edition, and the final Sundance held in Park City, Utah, began Thursday with a film that perfectly encapsulates what Sundance is meant to be: a launching pad for creativity and boldness.
Buddy is the feature-length debut from filmmaker Casper Kelly. Kelly first broke through with his Adult Swim short Too Many Cooks in 2014, a surreal and ridiculous take on 1990s sitcoms like Full House and Step by Step. What begins as a loving tribute quickly devolves into pure mania, stacking one insane idea on top of another.
Buddy follows that exact formula stretched across 95 minutes. Imagine the children’s show Barney colliding head-on with Poltergeist.
The film embraces a nostalgic take on ’90s television, complete with a catchy theme song and a descent into absolute insanity. Kelly assembles an impressive cast for the ride, including Michael Keegan Key, Cristin Milioti, Michael Shannon, and Topher Grace. The child performances are also surprisingly strong, especially considering the bizarre and often intense material they are asked to navigate.
The story centers on a children’s television show called Buddy, hosted by an orange unicorn who teaches life lessons through songs alongside his child co-stars. What begins as a cheesy homage to a certain purple dinosaur slowly unravels into a gory, violent, surrealist horror film as the children attempt to escape Buddy’s TV playhouse.
Kelly excels at preserving the element that made Too Many Cooks such a hit, the unpredictability and humor that comes from never knowing what will happen next. The cast fully commits to the madness, with Key standing out as the voice of Buddy. He carries the film with a chaotic, rage-filled performance that is a major reason the movie is as fun and unhinged as it is.
The child actors are excellent, led by Delaney Quick (If I Had Legs I’d Kick You), Tristan Borders, Madison Sky Polan, and Caleb Williams.
Buddy thrives when it remains inside its twisted television world, but it stumbles slightly when it takes a sharp turn into heavier drama. While Kelly clearly has a strong grasp of surrealism and ’90s nostalgia, the core concept does not quite have enough momentum to sustain a full runtime. An added subplot involving a mother searching for her missing daughter feels abrupt, and the seriousness of her story clashes with the absurd tone of a ’90s puppet slasher film.
That unevenness feels like the growing pains of a first-time feature filmmaker, though it also signals real potential. Kelly shows enough originality and confidence here to suggest his best work is still ahead of him.
But at the end of the day, Buddy accomplishes exactly what it sets out to do. It is hilarious, unique, and wildly unpredictable, becoming a true Sundance original!
