Sundance Review: Josephine (2026)

After witnessing a sexual assault in Golden Gate Park, 8-year-old Josephine acts out violently as her parents struggle to help her process the trauma, causing her to seek control and justice in her own way.

Josephine is directed by Beth de Araújo director of Soft & Quiet (2022).

To say I was incredibly interested to see what Araújo would do next after the highly disturbing and shocking Soft & Quiet (2022) would be the understatement of the decade. While Soft & Quiet was disturbing in a louder and more in your face sense, Josephine is disturbing in a more quiet and calculated way that ultimately leads to a very grounded film that is truly powerful.

All three of the main performances are phenomenal, starting with Mason Reeves who gives one of the best child actor performances in recent memory and right from when she witnesses a horrific crime taking place you can automatically feel the brightness taken away from her. Reeves’s character Josephine who is an 8-year-girl completely shuts down and her behavior changes as well, it’s truly devastating to watch and the loss of innocence is fully on display here. Mason Reeves’s body language and long silent pauses are crushing and incredibly authentic. The film truly does a fascinating job of displaying how this sort of trauma can really affect someone especially a child who isn’t fully able to comprehend what they just saw.

Channing Tatum and Gemma Chan both give phenomenal performances here. Tatum gives a career best performance that really sticks with the viewer due to the amount of power and emotional depth that goes into his performance as Damien (Josephine’s father). Gemma Chan is the weakest of the three, however that does not mean for a second that she’s bad. She just doesn’t get as many huge moments of power, she does make up for it with more quiet ones that have this more distant feel, it’s this interesting yin and yang going on here. Tatum gives the more louder and striking moments whereas Chan gives this more distant yet incredibly effective performance. Chan’s character Claire (Mason’s mother) has all the worries of a mother and she really tries with all her might. Chan and Tatum work incredibly well together and really display the reactions of parents who are horrified effectively.

The film’s opening brings you right into the experience in the most disturbing way possible. It is a very disturbing moment that is what ultimately leads to the events of the film and how it traumatizes Josephine. We see over the course of the film with how much it’s really affecting Josephine and with trauma like this it does not simply go away. A child seeing an act of sexual violence and having so much weight on her shoulders because of being a witness is soul crushing.

I don’t want to say too much more as Josephine is the sort of experience that you should absolutely go into knowing as little as possible. It’s a film that is certainly not going to be for everyone due to disturbing nature. With that being said this film broke me and really made me cry, it’s a disturbing yet important film that I do recommend taking a look once it releases.

Josephine currently does not have a release date.

10/10 A+

Sundance Review: Union County (2026)

Follows Cody Parsons as he navigates a drug court program, while his foster brother Jack also deals with heroin addiction, and their sister tries to stay clean.

Union County is directed by Adam Meeks which is his directorial debut.

We have seen plenty of road to recovery films before, some good, some bad and some incredibly forgettable. Rarely we get to see one of these films that prioritizes authenticity in this case though Union County is one of those films. The story itself is a very traditional road to recovery film, but it’s the details that only add up to this film which helps it reach the finish line in the end.

First and foremost a large majority of the supporting cast (including Annette Deao who is a huge stand out of the film and I’ll get into in a moment) are not actors. They worked at the drug court program itself and some were even participants of the program as well. This brings this blend of documentary and narrative film elements into the mix which Adam Meeks does such a fantastic job of presenting. It’s a beautifully told story that feels authentic the whole way through the experience.

The performances are all fantastic across the board, Will Poulter once again shows he is a terrific actor. He gives this grounded and convincing performance as Cody a man who is struggling with addiction, there’s subtle moments that show internal pain. His portrayal of addiction and recovery is deeply humane, there are so many striking moments presented here each of which really build Poulter’s performance. Poulter’s ability to show immense regret through this more muted direction feels incredibly real and is presented incredibly well. This is undoubtedly a career best worthy performance from Will Poulter.

Noah Centineo shows that he has really evolved as an actor, he plays Jack (Cody’s brother) who is a very complex and grounded character that is also struggling with addiction. Although his screen time is limited, he completely transforms into his role which leaves a lasting impact on the viewer. Finally there is Annette Deao and the rest of the supporting cast who as I mentioned before either work at the program or are participants of the program. Deao is the stand out among them as she gives a phenomenal performance where she is basically playing herself, the conversations between her and the rest of the cast are nothing short of brilliant. These arguably some of the film’s most raw moments and they all really deliver in this striking detail. Deao is a real life counselor at the program making her scenes all the more powerful.

As mentioned before the film blends documentary and narrative film elements together, Meeks does an excellent job at doing so especially when it comes to details. The writing has this raw feel that while can have the very traditional road to recovery film elements, still manages to be striking in its execution. Authenticity is what is holding this film together and luckily the whole way through there isn’t a single moment that takes you out of the film.

Overall Union County is an authentic experience that tells such a powerful story of recovery. The cast do such a phenomenal job of telling this story and truly bring so much strength, emotion and care into the experience.

Union County currently has no release date.

8/10 B+

Sundance Review: Big Girls Don’t Cry (2026)

A 14-year-old girl named Sid navigates identity, desire, and the internet during a transformative summer, imitating older peers to fit in

Big Girls Don’t Cry is directed by Paloma Schneiderman which is her directorial debut.

Big Girls Don’t Cry is yet another pretty solid coming of age film, that does have some familiar beats as other films in the genre. But expands upon them as the film goes on, we quickly get some incredibly done chemistry, exploration of the characters and the daily lives of them. All of this combined together paints a quite raw picture that in some way connect with the viewer.

The performances are what hold this film together. Ani Palmer plays Sid a 14 year old girl who is trying to find who she is and wants to desperately fit in with her old peers. Palmer gives a phenomenal performance as Sid due to her long pauses and facial acting that are both striking and capture that of a teenager growing up. It’s truly a fascinating performance that really sticks with you after viewing. Rain Spencer is just as fantastic here, Spencer has plenty of moments where she completely steals the scene she’s in. I was unfamiliar with Rain Spencer (I have not seen The Summer I Turned Pretty) prior to watching this film, so I’m quite impressed with her performance here.

Which does lead me to one of my favorite parts of this film…the chemistry. Every single one of the cast feels connected and has natural dialogue touch that makes the film all the more real. That’s especially the case with Ani Palmer and Rain Spencer, every single moment the two share the screen it feels like we are listening to a raw conversation between two individuals.

The writing is quite strong here as well, while there are some moments that are a bit on the weaker side. The rest of the film really brings the viewer into Sid’s experience and presents it in this very grounded way. Throughout the film we see Sid trying to figure out who she is and the more important moments that lead up to her to figure out the final conclusion.

Overall Big Girls Don’t Cry can definitely feel a bit familiar at times and it may not bring anything new to the coming of age film genre. However I do think this film is undoubtedly going to connect with a lot of people simply due to how it’s presented and how well written the characters really are and sometimes with films like this that’s all that really matters.

Big Girls Don’t Cry currently has no release date.

7/10 B

Sundance Review: Rock Springs (2026)

Centers on a grieving family who move to a new town after a tragedy, only to find sinister secrets lurking in the woods behind their house.

Rock Springs is directed by Vera Miao which is her directorial debut.

Rock Springs is a very admirable film, while not every single element works entirely the film is clearly made with a lot of knowledge and care about certain topics. Those being racism and trauma, more so about generational ties to trauma. The film mixes this incredibly with horrors of a massacre that actually did happen (based on the 1885 Wyoming incident where white miners murdered at least 28 Chinese miners.) all of this together creates a horrifying image that brings the viewer into the film.

The performances all around are great especially Kelly Marie Tran and Benedict Wong, Tran does a fantastic job of playing a grieving mother. It’s a stunning performance that really sticks with the viewer the whole way through, Wong absolutely nails his performance during the film’s more historical parts. The amount of power and striking atmosphere that goes into his performance is astounding.

The film bounces a bit with the past and present, but it’s done in this way where the film cleverly brings it to you, like we are discovering the dark history of Rock Springs itself. It feels like we as the viewers actually discovered something and now we are told to apply that information into the present day. Not every single part of the translation to past and present works entirely, however there are some genuinely atmospheric moments that do capture the dark history of Rock Springs.

The film’s themes of racism and trauma are well done here, the racism comes from the real event and the generational trauma comes from how the past and present are connected that trauma never really goes away. The script from Vera Miao has some powerful moments that clearly have this sense of knowledge behind them, these moments might not be anything incredibly groundbreaking. However I do think the careful nature of the script more than makes up for it.

I do think some of the editing does end up hurting the connection between the past and present, it makes a few scenes drag out for a bit longer than they should. It’s worth noting that the film does take a bit to get going, however the supernatural elements and the historical elements keep it afloat and really bring you into the experience.

Overall Rock Springs is a solid film, it’s admirable film that executes its ideas decently well. There is a few bumps in the road, however that’s not enough to stop the film from being incredibly intriguing.

Rock Springs currently has no release date.

7/10 B

Sundance Film Review: Zi (2026)

In Hong Kong, a young woman haunted by visions of her future self meets a stranger who changes the course of her night-and possibly her life.

Zi is directed by Kogonada director of Columbus (2017), After Yang (2021) and A Big Bold Beautiful Journey (2025).

Zi is a return to form for Kogonada, after last year’s disappointing A Big Bold Beautiful Journey it is nice to see Kogonada return to what he’s best at. Although Zi is heavily flawed and is still not as great as Kogonada’s first two films, there is still a lot to like here and there’s some genuinely great moments that make Zi shine.

The performances from Michelle Mao and Haley Lu Richardson are both quite strong here, the two have great chemistry that over the course of the film builds into something beautiful. There are some silly moments in between it all, Richardson’s character El immediately starts crying for Zi (played by Michelle Mao) after only meeting her for 10 minutes. However that actually does work here as the film is going for a much more experimental direction and I do think what ends up getting revealed later on justifies this. Mao and Richardson play their characters well and have some very real moments, there is some great facial acting and quiet moments that help build their bond. Jin Ha who plays Min gets the short end of the stick, his character is underdeveloped and just not all that interesting, he does however show off his great singing voice (he’s been on Broadway).

The writing is the film’s weakest point, the story is a very thinly written narrative. The premise here is Zi gets visions of the future and sees an older version of El, the two meet and from there very little happens. There’s just not a whole lot to chew on here writing wise, with that being said there’s beautiful moments that do happen and I do think the ending wraps it up nicely.

It’s a much more experimental film compared to A Big Bold Beautiful Journey it’s an incredibly small budget of these characters walking around in the city. Admittedly the city element does bring some excellent atmosphere that does create this beautiful tone to the film. The score is beautiful as always when it comes to Kogonada’s films, it fits the atmosphere that is required and brings this level of beauty and warmth that helps elevate the film.

Overall Zi is definitely an improvement over A Big Bold Beautiful Journey (2025), it’s a nice return of what Kogonada is best at. If you can get past the thin story you should be able to enjoy this one for what it is.

Zi currently has no release date.

6/10 C+

Sundance Film Review: Chasing Summer (2026)

Following a breakup with her boyfriend and loss of her job, a woman heads to her hometown, where she reunites with friends and former flings, which turns her life upside down.

Chasing Summer is directed by Josephine Decker director of Madeline’s Madeline (2018), Shirley (2020), The Sky Is Everywhere (2022) and a few others.

Chasing Summer is a cute little 91 minute comedy that doesn’t overstay its welcome, there isn’t a whole lot to talk about with this one. It’s a midlife crisis film about a woman who loses her job and man, she moves back to her parent’s place and we see wacky shenanigans follow. What you see is what you get from this one, luckily the performances and Josephine Decker’s strong direction make this entertaining enough.

Iliza Shlesinger (who also wrote the film’s script) is by and large what keeps this film going. There’s some genuinely funny moments due to her performance, the interactions she has with some of the other characters are genuinely great and at times feels all too real. Lola Tung is great here as well although she is very underutilized and only gets so much to really do. She does get one interaction with Shlesinger that is quite solid however.

Shlesinger’s script is decent enough, there are some genuinely funny moments and there’s a nice balance of drama and comedy. The twist the film goes for however can be seen coming a mile away and unfortunately the third act is not as strong as the rest of the film. It’s so much slower (not in a good way) and at times feels a bit redundant. I do think Decker’s direction does salvage this a bit by making this feel a bit more personal and has the feel of somebody telling us this story rather than this being unexpectedly dumped on us all at once.

I do appreciate Josephine Decker going for something a bit different from her previous films, even if Chasing Summer is not as good as her previous work. There is a lot of heart here that does help the film cross the finish line, there is this wave of nostalgia to the film. Seeing people you thought you wouldn’t see again, or finding out people from your town you grew up in are still there. There’s this sweet and real feel that Decker captures that gives the film more room to breathe.

Overall Chasing Summer is a decent little comedy, it has its flaws but it does have enough charm and fun to be worth a watch.

Chasing Summer currently has no release date.

6/10 C+

Sundance Review: Fair Play

An unexpected promotion at a cutthroat hedge fund pushes a young couple’s relationship to the brink, threatening to unravel far more than their recent engagement.

Fair Play was my favorite film of the Sundance Film Festival, to be quite honest I did not expect this at all. Given the film’s premise you would think it would just be another romantic thriller but this film goes quite a few steps beyond to make this one thrilling experience.

For starters Phoebe Dynevor and Aiden Ehrenreich are both quite incredible, they give the best performances from a film I saw at the festival. From the opening act of them coming off as a normal couple, to the downright chaotic moments in the final act were things evolve into a nightmare. There’s a huge range of emotions and depth the two display in the film, there’s so many striking moments between the two that really capture the film’s atmosphere to the point where it’s just unbelievable. Chloe Domont did such a wonderful job in the director’s chair, she starts the film off as you would expect a relationship thriller but like I said before quickly evolves into chaos.

I was a bit worried how Fair Play was going to end but luckily Chloe Domont ended the film right on a very high note that really leaves the viewer in shock and with a lot of raw power oozing out of it. Fair Play is the very definition of a powerhouse film, every chance it gets it hits the viewer hard, with incredible performances from Dynevor, Ehrenreich or any of the rest of the cast, the script which is a whole other beast with very grounded moments and striking dialogue. There’s also the closeup shots that really put into the conversation of the characters, it helps that these conversations are very well grounded and get pretty personal between the characters.

Overall Fair Play is a fantastic film and a truly masterfully crafted film that I’m seriously glad I saw, if you are going to put a select few films from the Sundance film festival on your radar make sure one of them is Fair Play.

Fair Play currently has no release date.

10/10 A+

Sundance Review: Sometimes I Think About Dying

Fran, who likes to think about dying, makes the new guy at work laugh, which leads to dating and more, now the only thing standing in their way is Fran herself.

Sometimes I Think About Dying was one of the films at the festival that got the most buzz and rightfully so, while this movie most definitely won’t work for everyone it absolutely worked for me.

Sometimes I Think About Dying is a film that is about loneliness, we follow a young woman who’s name is Fran who works at an office and is very lonely. We also see her small interaction’s with people and eventually she starts to open up as the film goes on, Daisy Ridley gives quite possibly her best performance to date. It’s something completely different from what she usually does and it’s truly fantastic. She really captures the feeling of loneliness and how hard it is to open up, Dave Merheje is also quite fantastic here as well, the blend of Merheje’s and Ridley’s personalities truly go well together, there’s some beautiful moments between the two and really capture the type of bond of someone wanting to help another open up.

The filmmaking is also quite interesting as well, between the stylish shots in the office to the wide shots of the small town streets. It’s a very unexpectedly stylish film with a lot of variety, but the thing that I believe makes the film successful is that despite the film being about loneliness and trying to open up there’s so many genuinely sweet and cute moments. It’s not all dark at all which is definitely the most realistic approach, eventually we see Fran open up more and the final shot really solidifies this really strongly. It’s a beautiful ending that really inspires the viewer!

Overall Sometimes I Think About Dying is a very relatable film that really hits you hard, yet is a genuinely sweet film that is quite strong in it’s messaging. Very well acted, written and directed all around!

Sometimes I Think About Dying currently has no release date.

9/10 A

Sundance Review: Mutt

Over the course of a single hectic day in New York City, three people from Feña’s past are thrust back into his life: his foreign father, his straight ex-boyfriend, and his 13-year old half-sister. Having lost touch since transitioning from female to male, Feña must navigate the new dynamics of these old relationships while tackling the day-to-day challenges that come with living a life in-between.

Much like A Little Prayer, Mutt also follows the daily life a certain person or group of people. In this case we follow the daily life of Feña a transmasc person played by Lio Mehiel. Mutt takes the premise of the film a step further and builds on Feña’s relationships which really results into something truly special.

First and foremost it can’t be said enough how fantastic the performances really are here Lio Mehiel as I said before plays the leading role and their performance is just phenomenal especially during the last moments of the film which I’ll get into more in a second. MiMi Ryder plays Zoe, Feña’s sister which results in such a beautiful and very authentic brother and sister bond. It’s one of the best moments of the film and really captures the beauty of the film as well, the interactions between the two are truly beautiful. Finally there’s Alejandro Goic who plays Pablo, Feña’s father although he only appears during the film’s final moments those last moments are truly something special.

Alejandro Goic and Lio Mehiel deliver some of the best acting I’ve seen so far this year during the final act, both display very realistic conversations and emotion that will absolutely tug at your heart strings. There’s this family element of wanting to be accepted and in the end really shines with it’s message, the rest of the film is just as spectacular there’s some attention to detail when it comes to the script. With lots of realistic conversations to the truly beautiful acting and cinematography there’s so much here that really is fascinating.

Mutt currently has no release date.

9/10 A

Sundance Review: Theater Camp

As summer rolls around again, kids are gathering from all over to attend AdirondACTS, a scrappy theater camp in upstate New York that’s a haven for budding performers. After its indomitable founder Joan (Amy Sedaris) falls into a coma, her clueless “crypto-bro” son Troy (Jimmy Tatro) is tasked with keeping the thespian paradise running. With financial ruin looming, Troy must join forces with Amos (Ben Platt), Rebecca-Diane (Molly Gordon), and their band of eccentric teachers to come up with a solution before the curtain rises on opening night.

Theater Camp is a mockumentary style film that pokes fun of theater camps but at the same time brings this nostalgia factor into the mix, which is mainly the reason why the film succeeds.

If Theater Camp were just another mockumentary it would still be great due to other factors but I don’t think it would stand out anywhere near as much, luckily directors Nick Lieberman and Molly Gordon put in a little bit of everything that everyone can relate to. Sure a lot of it is things theater kids will most definitely remember from their early years, but even if you were just in one play for the middle school or elementary school you went to you can definitely relate to this film.

The performances are truly fantastic here, Ben Platt, Molly Gordon and the kids give tremendous performances that really capture the spirit of the film and the spirit of theater in general, there’s a lot of in jokes that Gordon and Lieberman make sure to put in. Even if you did one play in your life you will get these jokes, the singing voices are fantastic with each of the songs complimenting the film quite well especially the last one which really wraps the film up very nicely.

Lastly the film is just genuinely really fun, there’s truly so much love and effort put into the film that really puts a smile on your face by the end of the film. It captures the fun and chaotic nature of theater so well and makes it a blast, this is one I highly recommend!

Theater Camp has no release date.

9/10 A