RAVE REVIEWS — Jim Rash and Nat Faxon’s “The Way, Way Back” receives an overwhelmingly positive response. The film premiered in January at the Sundance Film Festival.
You would not expect the mountain resort town of Park City, Utah, to be the location of a world-renowned film festival each year, but more than 50,000 people flock to Robert Redford’s Sundance film festival during its 10-day stretch, which closed on Jan. 27.
Since its inception in 1981, the Sundance Institute has been dedicated to the development of independent cinema — cultivating and inspiring rising artists and filmmakers. I had the fortunate opportunity of volunteering for the opening weekend of the festival.
As a volunteer, I was quickly welcomed there. I was very surprised to find the people, as well as the volunteers, to be so nice. Being in Utah, with its uncommonly high concentration of religious folks, I expected to encounter some friendly people, but my expectations were dimmer for the festival. I was wrong. Having discovered the hospitable nature of the festival, I even felt so inclined to pick up a couple of hitchhikers while I was there. There is a first for everything, but I think that will be both my first and last time for such adventures.
Main Street was the center of all the action, with restaurants packed, live music every night and celebrities window-shopping along the sidewalk; it was a much different environment compared to normalcy in the ski town. It was a unique and exciting atmosphere for everyone there.
After working during the day, I went off to watch films in the evenings. The two films that struck me were “Stoker,” a morbidly intriguing thriller, and the light-hearted comedy, “The Way, Way Back.” “Stoker,” starring Nicole Kidman and Mia Wasikowska, is a gripping film that deals with India (Wasikowska) losing her father to a car accident, which mysteriously brings her Uncle Charlie to live with her and her unstable mother (Kidman). India becomes quite curious of her uncle, so curious that she even becomes infatuated with him. It has somewhat of a Hitchcock vibe to it with disturbing scenes that make you feel uncomfortable while watching, but yet so engaged at the same time. I would personally even take the time to see it again so I can absorb the depth of the story. Of all the films at Sundance, this one might have the quickest release to theaters, coming out on the first of March.
Groundlings alumni and Academy Award winners Nat Faxon and Jim Rash wrote and directed “The Way, Way Back.” With a well-rounded comedic cast, it was my favorite movie that I saw at the festival. It centers on an awkward 14-year-old boy, Duncan, who spends his summer vacation away at the coast with his mother (Toni Collette), and mother’s boyfriend (Steve Carell). This role was quite atypical for Carell; his character was quite the jerk, always bossing around and bullying young Duncan. While Duncan ends up landing a job at the nearby water park, he starts to gain some self-confidence and happiness under the direction of water park employee, Owen (Sam Rockwell).
With hilarious quips and one-liners, “The Way, Way Back” is an extremely fun film to watch. As the credits started to roll, the audience began to clap and cheer while getting up for a standing ovation. The directors and the cast then walked onstage to begin a time for audience Q&A. It was such a surreal experience to watch a film and then have some of the most hilarious people in Hollywood talk about it right in front of me.
Robert Redford once said, “Storytellers broaden our minds: engage, provoke, inspire, and ultimately, connect us.” I found this to be incredibly true while at Sundance. Stories bring us together and connect us in all different facets of life. There were people from all over the world at Sundance, and they were there for the sake of film and storytelling. I love to watch movies because for a couple of short hours I get to tune into a story that is different from mine — a story that evokes emotions in myself that I wouldn’t experience otherwise, that then allows me to engage and connect with others. Film is a beautiful thing that brings us together.
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