Film fests have been a breeding ground for the next generation of talent. From major leaders like Steven Soderbergh and Quentin Tarantino, to niche filmmakers like Wes Anderson, they all got their start at one place: The Sundance Film Festival. Started in 1978 and spearheaded by Robert Redford, the event has happened every January in Park City, Utah. Many features and shorts are presented and attended by bigwigs in Hollywood. If you happen to be the lucky director, bid wars between studios are common. And with the need for more content means more competition. But some are just hype.
Hulu just released Good Luck To You, Leo Grande, which ignited a fervor. Given the salacious nature, hard not to see way. Over the course of four encounters, a teacher named Nancy Stokes, played by Emma Thompson, hires the titular gigolo played by Daryl McCormack. The reason for this is she feels unfulfilled sexually in her life, she has been widowed for two years and didn’t get satisfied within her marriage. Leo wants to help her find her pleasure. Along the way, they get to know each other through dialogue that feels clunky.
Director Sophie Hyde makes no bones about the situation. Her ham-fisted use of camerawork to show rather than tell the emotion becomes distracting. Thompson’s delivery feels like Hugh Grant’s character from Four Weddings and a Funeral became female and was dropped into a sex comedy. Those two words are as misleading as the trailer; this is never sexy nor particularly comedic.
The format of one location and two players makes it feel more like a stage play than a film. Clocking in at 97 minutes, it feels longer. And the grand reveals can be seen a mile away, not helped by the intrusive score. Much has been said about the bold nudity here. When it got to that point though, the film has already worn out its welcome and was just throwing anything at us for attention.
The critical darling of this year’s fest, Cha Cha Real Smooth, was bought up by AppleTV+ for streaming start this month. Upon initial previews, it seemed like it might be their next CODA. I regret to inform you it is not. A film that I would call The Graduate-lite, this is the sophomore effort from one-man band Cooper Raiff. This is a mistake; he should have focused either on writing, directing or starring but not all three.
Raiff plays Andrew, a recent college graduate back home to figure out his life. While taking a gig at a fast-food joint, he is invited to a Bar Mitzvah where he starts to pump up the crowd. Reminded of his own experiences as a child, he starts to take up being a party starter/DJ. Along the way, he meets Domino played by Dakota Johnson, a single mother of an autistic daughter. They begin to hit it off and Andrew tries to bring her daughter out of her shell. As the film progresses, Andrew baby-sits and gets to know the family more. A minor conflict arises as Andrew finds Domino is engaged to another man.
I say minor because that is the best way to describe this movie. It is edgeless to a fault. Slices of life are well and fine; that is no excuse to have no confrontations. Every moment seems to deflate like a balloon animal.
There has never been a movie where I smiled out of awkwardness more. Raiff packs his movie with so much quirkiness that it is hard to understand these characters, many of whom are underutilized. One comparison I felt was the movie Garden State, down to the cloying indie soundtrack. For a sweet story that won’t give you a toothache, check out the aforementioned CODA which was this year’s best picture on the same streaming service. Now that is some good viewing.
