Starting this week, Jen and I will begin our coverage of the 20th Tribeca Film Festival.
Though the festival usually takes place in spring, Tribeca announced in March that it would “transform prominent locations into an expansive 12-day multi-screen outdoor celebration” in June.
Since first attending the festival back in 2015, it has remained one of my favorite film festivals to follow as the selections are always unique for cinephiles to enjoy. This year is no different as the movie selection is essentially on par with other years. You can even attend at home.
Director Jon M. Chu’s long-awaited In the Heights, adapted from Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, will open the 20th-anniversary edition of Tribeca on June 9.
Before the festival begins, I am looking forward to watching and reviewing these 12 films.
Be sure to check out my top documentaries to watch post coming soon, too.
1. No Man of God
It was a radical new approach to criminal investigations: “profiling.” Through one-on-one discussions with serial offenders, FBI researchers could go much more in-depth. FBI analyst Bill Hagmaier (Elijah Wood), emboldened by this new philosophy, sat down with famed serial killer Ted Bundy (Luke Kirby) for several interviews from 1984-1989 inside Florida State Prison, in hopes of figuring out why Bundy murdered more than 20 victims. What started out as a straightforward informational assignment gradually turned personal for Hagmaier, whose feelings about his charismatic subject grew more complicated with each conversation. Is it possible to empathize with evil?
Studies of Ted Bundy’s life and crimes have been in vogue lately, but this two-character study from director Amber Sealey is the soberest and psychologically intricate look at the killer’s story yet. With a pair of dynamic performances at its center, particularly that of an exceptional Kirby as Bundy, No Man of God is riveting in its intimate chamber piece structure. Sealey and company, including writer Kit Lesser, who based the screenplay on real-life transcripts, don’t glamourize the oft-romanticized Bundy; instead, No Man of God deftly balances emotional complexity and clear-eyed truthfulness. —Matt Barone
2. No Sudden Move
Set in 1954 Detroit, No Sudden Move stars Don Cheadle, Benicio del Toro, David Harbour, with Ray Liotta, Jon Hamm, Amy Seimetz, Brendan Fraser, Kieran Culkin, Noah Jupe, Craig muMs Grant, Julia Fox, Frankie Shaw, and Bill Duke. The story centers on a group of small-time criminals who are hired to steal what they think is a simple document. When their plan goes horribly wrong, their search for who hired them – and for what ultimate purpose – weaves them through all echelons of the race-torn, rapidly changing city.
3. 12 Mighty Orphans
12 Mighty Orphans tells the true story of the Mighty Mites, the football team of a Fort Worth orphanage who, during the Great Depression, went from playing without shoes—or even a football—to playing for the Texas state championships. Over the course of their winning season, these underdogs and their resilient spirit became an inspiration to their city, state, and an entire nation in need of a rebound, even catching the attention of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The architect of their success was Rusty Russell, a legendary high school coach who shocked his colleagues by giving up a privileged position so he could teach and coach at an orphanage. Few knew Rusty’s secret: that he himself was an orphan. Recognizing that his scrawny players couldn’t beat the other teams with brawn, Rusty developed innovative strategies that would come to define modern football.
4. How It Ends
It’s the end of the world as we know it, and Liza feels…fine? A loner by nature, she’s single and resigned to receive the impending end of the universe alone and at peace. But something, nay someone, is pushing her to make amends with friends, family, and lovers before joining her pal’s bacchanalian blowout and going out, forever, with a bang. And so begins Liza’s journey through the manicured streets of suburban Los Angeles, traveling by foot to find peace with her life and, along the way, converse with a panoply of eccentric strangers trying to grapple with their final hours left on Earth. Her companion in said end of the world pilgrimage? The person who knows her better than anyone.
Featuring a who’s who of comedic favorites, including Fred Armisen, Olivia Wilde, Nick Kroll, and Lamorne Morris, and shot completely during the quarantine of 2020, How It Ends is Tribeca alum Daryl Wein and Zoë Lister-Jones’ hilarious and poignantly resonant comedy for our collective ages. —Liza Domnitz
5. The Beta Test
The picture of Hollywood success, talent agent Jordan (the film’s co-writer, co-director and leading man Jim Cummings) seems to have it all—the snazzy career, the Ken-doll good looks, the lovely woman. When a purple envelope mysteriously appears in his mailbox inviting him to an anonymous tryst, the cracks in his carefully constructed façade of perfection begin to spread. Defenseless to resist, he indulges in a wild night of mind-blowing passion, only to find his life slowly but surely coming undone in the aftermath. Increasingly embroiled in a web of deceit, Jordan falls ever deeper down a rabbit hole of suspicion and conspiracy, desperately trying to keep up appearances all the while.
Jim Cummings treats us to this thriller-tinted darkly comedic dramedy, portraying the fabulously fake Jordan with quirky, neurotic genius. This offbeat, wholly original film is buoyed along by snappy writing that hilariously sends up the depravity of the movie industry’s sleazier side, mercilessly skewering the “masters of the universe” said to run Hollywood and happily poking fun at the paranoia of the guilty. Edgy, unpredictable and gleefully over-the-top, The Beta Test is a squirmingly funny indie gem. —Karen McMullen
6. Shapeless
The world’s a stage for Ivy—there just aren’t many people seated in front of it. Struggling to establish herself as a singer, she collects humble checks while bouncing around various New Orleans lounges and bars and crooning with her silky-smooth voice for minimal amounts of liquor-sipping patrons. But those meager paydays aren’t Ivy’s toughest battle. That’s reserved for when she’s home alone, which is when her physical insecurities overwhelm her and she succumbs to a debilitating eating disorder. Keeping her battles a secret has its consequences. Ivy is now transforming into something nightmarish. And it may be too late to reverse course.
Shapeless, a remarkably confident and unique genre work, marks the head-turning arrival of first-time feature filmmaker Samantha Aldana, as well as her close collaborator Kelly Murtagh, who wrote the script, produced and stars in the film. Pulling from deeply personal places, they’ve delivered an achingly intimate character study that doubles as a haunting, body-horror-minded examination of women’s body issues unlike anything the horror genre has seen before. —Matt Barone
7. Ultrasound
Driving home late at night during a heavy rainstorm, Glen experiences car trouble. Near where his car gets stuck, he spots a house, knocks on the door, and is greeted by an oddly friendly middle-aged man, Arthur, and his younger wife, Cyndi. The strange couple pours him a drink, and then more drinks, followed by an unexpected offer that Glen can’t refuse. Elsewhere, a young woman, Katie, is feeling emotionally weighed down by a secret romantic arrangement that feels like a textbook case of gaslighting. And at the same time, in a nondescript research facility, medical professional Shannon begins questioning her role in a bizarre experiment, fearing that she’s doing more harm than good.
How these seemingly unconnected characters’ situations converge is only part of the fun in rookie director Rob Schroeder’s vibrant and nimble sci-fi mystery box debut, based on the graphic novel Generous Bosom, written by cartoonist Conor Stechschulte, who also wrote the screenplay. Always steps ahead of the viewer, Ultrasound steadily zigs and zags between disorientation and unease, all while maintaining its hold on being wickedly enjoyable pulpy entertainment. The likes of Rod Serling would be proud. —Matt Barone
8. False Positive
After difficult struggles with fertility, loving couple Lucy (Ilana Glazer) and Adrian (Justin Theroux) seem to have finally found their potential savior in the charming and world-renowned reproductive specialist Dr. Hindle (Pierce Brosnan). But as their dreams begin to come true and hope transforms to happiness, cracks start to appear in the façade of normalcy, sending the now-expectant mother into a spiral of suspicion that threatens her grasp on reality.
A clever and chilling look at gender roles and the notion of unconditional trust, False Positive delivers an unexpectedly twisted tale of modern family troubles. Boasting a solid ensemble cast, including a memorable turn from Gretchen Mol as Hindle’s loyal nurse, director John Lee has truly found a kindred spirit in leading lady and co-writer Glazer. Longtime collaborators on the acclaimed Broad City, the two have shifted gears entirely here, abandoning the jokes but maintaining the edge for this genre-bending thriller about the perils of parenthood. —Loren Hammonds
9. We Need to Do Something
For teenager Melissa, family dysfunction is the norm. When a freak tornado traps Melissa inside the family home’s bathroom with her parents and younger brother, those rifts are exacerbated. And as their confinement within the increasingly-more-claustrophobic-by-the-hour lavatory stretches to multiple days, the situation grows extremely volatile. But there’s more than just hard feelings threatening the family. Something evil is beyond the walls, toying with them. Is this the family’s reckoning at the hands of a higher power? Or was it unintentionally triggered by Melissa and her girlfriend, Amy? Whatever the cause is, one thing’s for certain: All hell is about to break loose.
Based on screenwriter Max Booth III’s 2020 novella, first-time director Sean O’Grady’s We Need to Do Something is a single-location funhouse of horrors, starting off intense as hell and steadily tightening its grip. Unpredictable, unhinged, and laced with offbeat humor, it’s a confident and singular descent into domestic nihilism that’s as wildly fun as it is deeply disturbing. Get ready for a workout: You’ll be picking your jaw off the floor whenever you’re not applauding this insane film’s audacity. —Matt Barone
10. Clean
Clean (Adrien Brody) tries to live a simple life. He works alone at night, collecting other people’s garbage while philosophizing about the city’s decay. His free time is spent cleaning up abandoned buildings and looking after the neighborhood. Deeply troubled by a violent past and the loss of his daughter, Clean is stuck in a rut, only momentarily able to lift the heavy veil of regret. When a well-meaning mishap marks him as the target of a local crime boss (Glenn Fleshler), Clean is forced to come to terms with the violence of his past in this brutal and bloody thrill ride.
Written and directed by Paul Solet, Clean weaves familiar shades of film noir with a modern grit, crafting a brooding and sullen snapshot of failed redemption. Led by a dedicated performance by Brody and a strong ensemble cast, Clean is a hyper-violent meditation on the power of the past and the struggle for salvation. —Joe Yanick
11. Lorelei
Wayland (Pablo Schreiber) has been in prison for 15 years for armed robbery. Upon his release, he returns to his blue-collar hometown and inadvertently reconnects with his high school girlfriend Dolores (Jena Malone), now a single mother struggling to support her three kids, who are all named after different shades of blue. Soon after their reunion, Wayland moves in with the chaotic family and becomes a reluctant yet much-needed father figure. Struggling to pay the bills, Wayland finds himself drawn back to his old ways as Dolores yearns for her pre-motherhood dream of living in Los Angeles.
This stunningly authentic feature debut from Sabrina Doyle and the producers of The Florida Project features stellar chemistry between its two leads, who are struggling at the margins of society, and strong supporting performances from the three kids. Tackling the all-too-familiar struggle of the working class in America with beautiful cinematography and an affecting score, every element of this film contributes to a deeply felt sense of place.—Sarah Dawson
12. Honeydew
It’s been a rough night for Sam (Sawyer Spielberg) and Riley (Malin Barr), a young couple taking a road trip through a stretch of backwoods roads. First, they’re kicked off a campsite; then, their car breaks down. Looking for help, they ring the doorbell of an isolated house owned by Karen (Barbara Kingsley), a peculiar older woman who lives with her even stranger son, Gunni. As Sam and Riley wait for someone to arrive to fix their ride, Karen offers to make them something to eat. That’s when their host starts revealing a bit about herself, which is also when Sam and Riley’s night shifts from annoying to something much, much worse.
It’s a familiar horror film setup: a desperate situation leads folks to enter the wrong house in the wrong part of the woods. But none of those films are quite like Honeydew, an unhinged discovery from rookie filmmaker Devereux Millburn. With its quirky sound design, playful visual language, and blend of twisted violence and macabre humor, Honeydew steadily distorts genre conventions while introducing an unforgettable new geriatric horror villain.—Matt Barone
