Sundance 2019 hit its stride Friday with several big name premieres and stars littering the streets of Park City. HeyUGuys’ team of Nathan and Ty caught four films ranging from intense drama, to childhood throwbacks and a very very intense autobiographical film. Here’s their Take 3 of Sundance Day 2.

Ty’s Best Thing He Saw Today:

The best thing I saw today just so happens to be the best thing I’ve seen so far this year.  Honey Boy isn’t just an autobiographical piece about the strained relationship between Shia Lebouf and his rodeo clown father, it is an intensely emotional and personal portrait of a man trying to exercise his demons the only way he’s ever known how; in front of an audience.  With the support of a flawless cast and a director who knows how to step out of the way of her own narrative, Honey Boy is one of the best films you’ll see this year.

Honey Boy - Still 1

Nathan’s Best Thing He Saw today: 

Shia Lebouf! Shia Lebour! Shia Lebouf! I was absolutely floored by his incredible performance and his even more phenomenal script that he penned. With Honey Boy, I was expecting a bizarre, trippy film similar to last year’s Sorry to Bother You, instead I got something so raw, so intrusive and so moving. This is an outstanding career shift for him and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Ty’s Sundance Moment of the Day:

Today’s moment of the day would have to be the first 40 minutes of the film After the Wedding. Regardless of my opinions of the film, I must give it praise for at least causing me to question reality.  Like a psychedelic traveler held tight by the firm grip of a few hits of LSD, beginning to question their sanity.  I began to wonder if I was caught up in some elaborate inside joke, or perhaps witnessing the genesis of a new avant-garde branch of comedy.  You don’t always have to like a film to appreciate one.  Some films beg for your loving praise, while others simply exist to provoke a reaction; this film of course being an exquisite example of the latter.

Nathan’s Sundance Moment of the Day:

Anything can happen at Sundance and you can find yourself in conversation with just about anyone. Tonight I found myself talking to a South African about the innocence of his friend, Oscar Pistorius. The man, was a friend of a friend of mine and somehow this came up in conversation. Pistorius, the paralympic track runner who was accused of shooting and killing his wife, was a good friend of his, with quite the temper he mentioned, but while we sat at a bar on Main Street I got to hear him give his beliefs on his friend’s actions that night. This isn’t a normal social interaction for a kid who lives in Iowa.

Ty’s Lasting Thought of the Day:

Sundance has always been considered to be the creme de la creme of the film festival world, yet this year’s lineup has been a bit lackluster.  I am hoping that as we move forward into the next few days of things, the true diamonds of the festival will start to emerge and make their presence known.

Nathan’s lasting moment of the fest: 

adam

The film Adam had a wlld, wild premise that drew me too it. A young high schooler, poses as a college trans individual to continue to hang out with a girl he has become attracted to. This is a trope that has been explored in so many films. Character pretends to be something he is not, romantic counterpart falls for that person, character refuses to tell the truth despite a million perfect opportunities, romantic counterpart falls out, all hell breaks loose, somehow it all comes together.

The subject matter of this film is uncharted, very sensitive, and timely. I had several issues with the first hour of the film and at times I felt Adam was an incredibly offensive way of telling a cliche story, and this film wasn’t doing anything to advance a massive problem that still resonates today. But the final 20 or so minutes of this film are pitch perfect. The character arcs, the twists you don’t see coming and the resolution of the relationships hit home big time with me. The intentions of this film were outstanding, the execution was a little messy but this is a film I am glad is here and I hope people will see, and stick through til the end.