Twelve

Although there have been some reviews so far that this film is terrible, I think it deserves an upgrade to "OK". However, if you girls out there love Chase Crawford and/or Gossip Girl, this will be a fantastic film. Even though the story comes from a novel, it seems very similar to the GG series (but way more intense). Similarities:
Chase Crawford
Upper East Side Manhattan
Drugs
Troubled rich teenagers
Sex
Narration

Hate to admit it, but somehow I got dragged into watching Gossip Girl. So although this flick didn't seem original to me, I liked it because it was a very dressed up and more suspense building version of a GG episode with very good production quality.
I saw this movie at Sundance so I don't know if it is available to watch anywhere at the moment, but I'm sure somewhere down the road it will pop up somewhere.

Buried

Oh man!

Was this flick intense or what. The entire movie uses one actor and one location. Ryan Reynolds took the lead (and only) role for this unique film. He gets buried alive and is left with a cell phone, lighter, and pocket knife. Reynolds was fantastic in this role. He displays more human emotion in 90 minutes than most humans go through in a lifetime. Out of the four Sundance movies I saw this year, this was my favorite. There's no way I could write a script that would keep the audience entertained and full of suspense with only using one location and actor, but they pulled off this feat somehow. It was a great experience as the movie's power instantly made me feel claustrophobic and short of air from the start and left me sitting on the edge of my seat by the end.
I've heard that this movie has now been picked up by a major company and will make into theaters sometime this year. Go see it.

Teenage Paparazzo

Since Sundance Film Festival is only here once a year, I thought it would be appropriate to bring in some independent films from the great Utah based tradition. Teenage Paparazzo is a film written and produced by Adrian Grenier (Curly haired guy who plays Vincent on Entourage). As you can guess, the film revolves around the life of a teenager who has somehow fell into the paparazzi lifestyle. Adrian first picked up the idea of this story when he got sprayed with flashes from the young thirteen year old. Shocked anyway by how obsessed the media is with celebrities, this little kid made Adrian want to get to know the youngster and why he does what he does. The film carries on with the relationship between the newly famous Entourage star and this adolescent who stays up all hours throughout the night, chasing down celebrities (on his bike or skateboard) with other paparazzi just for a chance to get a good shot of the stars. Adrian attempts to get behind the lens (literally) to try and understand the lifestyle of the paparazzi, only to find out that many of them wish they were themselves famous. The thirteen year old eventually starts to get famous himself as Adrian followed him around for a couple years with a camera crew. At the end of the film, they show Austin (kid) actually viewing the first cut of the complied movie which leads him to see things in a greater perspective, causing some changes to take place in the kid for the better.
The film is entertaining but also rich with serious issues that relate to how grossly this nation is saturated and dependent on media. There is a lot of humor in it as well and also many sit down interviews with current Hollywood stars about the expanding paparazzi. Adrian Grenier was there to introduce his film which also made the experience better. I wouldn't be surprised if this film gets well circulated after Sundance.

Avatar

Well I hate to jump on the bandwagon of Avatar lovers, but I can't help it. It truly is a fantastic film. The look and feel of James Cameron's fantasy world, Pandora, is something that I have never seen before on a screen. The verisimilitude and cinematography of this distant alien world captures you from the beginning and takes you on a ride like none other. I saw this film in 3D which was a good decision, making the colors and effects come to life even more. If you haven't seen this movie yet, I suggest you get yourself down to the theaters asap as the experience of seeing it at home compared to the big screen isn't even comparable. Don't be worried about the almost three hour length either because the plot is well balanced and keeps the viewer engaged.

Besides the great look of the flick, the story also has power in it is well. The many ups and downs with a slight twist of a love takes the audience on a journey that somehow results in cheering the aliens on to defeat our own human race.

Watch the preview.