(Photo courtesy of New World Pictures)
Here at the Sundance Institute, we talk a lot about film. Whether it’s helping co-workers figure out what to watch this weekend or feeling positively ancient when we hear that a movie from our youth is celebrating a big anniversary, we’ve got thoughts, feelings, and recommendations for indie film lovers ready to go. Welcome to our regular series where Sundance Institute employees bring our most passionate hot takes about independent cinema to you. This is Personnel Thoughts.
The return of autumn means school is back in session, and this time of year brings with it memories of pop quizzes, rushed locker visits, impenetrable cliques, and cafeteria politics. For some, middle and high school heralded glory days measured by sports victories and academic achievement. For others, teen years were social torture ticking by all too slowly. Regardless, any environment where emotions are running that high is just begging to be written into a good story.
Thankfully, lots of artists have taken up the mantle and graced us with films that chronicle this unique time and setting — and some of the most iconic among them have screened at the Sundance Film Festival. Certain stories go for realism, while others lean into dramatic twists and turns. But one thing’s for sure: They all bring us back to school. We’ve delved into our Festival archives to spotlight our favorites; read all about them below.
Heathers (1989 Sundance Film Festival)
“What is your damage, Heather?!” “Come on, it’ll be very.” “Oh, the humanity!” Like several great teen movies I could mention, Michael Lehmann’s Heathers employs its own unique dialect that renders the film oddly timeless, courtesy of a screenplay by Daniel Waters (the most memorable line involves doing something anatomically ill-advised with a chainsaw). Admittedly, other elements of the pitch-black comedy are less timeless, from its big hair and bigger shoulder pads to the pointed slurs casually thrown out by its bullies in the cafeteria. The film had its U.S. premiere at the 1989 Sundance Film Festival, and it’s a marked departure from the bevy of teen flicks the decade dished out before it. Heathers may not offer dance breaks, montages with high-energy needle drops, or grand romantic gestures. But it does serve up satire and murder in a high school setting. It’s my favorite ’80s movie — and may just be my favorite Sundance Film Festival title to this day.
Winona Ryder stars as Veronica, high school junior recently accepted into the fold of the popular Heathers (Kim Walker, Lisanne Falk, and Shannen Doherty), the trio of fashionable mean girls who rule campus. The Heathers are cruel in the expected ways, making fun of those who don’t fit into their mold — though we’re granted glimpses into unexpected depths of character here and there. Veronica’s discomfort with this entourage’s behavior coincides with the arrival of new student J.D. (Christian Slater doing his best Jack Nicholson impression). J.D.’s a handsome loner, as fed up with the social order as Veronica is, and his plans for revenge are pretty persuasive. That is, before they get homicidal.
Heathers is campy, irreverent, hilarious — and lovable for all those reasons, but it also resonates with audiences who remember feeling a righteous anger akin to Veronica’s (though I imagine theirs did not result in manslaughter). She knows that the corrupt in power need to be removed, but she also realizes that taking one out will likely cause another to sprout in its place. — Lucy Spicer, Associate Editorial Manager
Jawbreaker (1999 Sundance Film Festival)
Writer-director Darren Stein’s Jawbreaker is the original “mean girl” movie. I watched this dark teen comedy on rotation when I was in high school. The hair, wardrobe, and catchy quotes were all too familiar. But what really made this film stand out was the story. It seemed unimaginable that a group of teen girls would accidentally kill their friend during a prank and try to cover it. The lengths they go to and the consequences that ultimately fracture their friendship drew me in. I detested these characters while simultaneously wondering, “Are they actually going to get away with it?” The acting was stellar, with Rose McGowan leading the “it” girl pack alongside Rebecca Gayheart, Julie Benz, and newcomer-at-the-time Judy Greer. And then there was the incomparable Pam Grier, the blaxploitation queen herself, as detective Vera Cruz relentlessly pursuing justice.
To me, Jawbreaker is a quintessential ’90s cult classic — a reminder of what was so good about films from that decade: original stories, memorable characters, and plots that made you feel like you could be dropped right into the middle of the action and, if you were lucky, somehow make it out as the heroine. — Keena Chapman, Associate Director, Collab Digital Marketing
Brick (2005 Sundance Film Festival)
Nothing captures the high school experience quite like an intricate drug plot, snappy noir dialogue, and a haunting rattle of a film score. Alright, maybe not. But it’s that unlikely combination of tone and setting that makes Rian Johnson’s debut feature such a joy to watch.
“Joy” may seem like the wrong word for a movie that dips into the dark underbelly of a high school crime ring, but I stand by it. You can feel Johnson’s excitement for the detective genre and all its trappings as he gleefully maps them onto the high school social hierarchy. After all, whose teenage life wasn’t full of moodiness and moral ambiguity?
Brick, for those not in the know, follows high schooler Brendan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) as he tries to find answers for the death of his ex-girlfriend Emily (Emilie de Ravin). As our central detective, he follows the trail from clique to clique and gang to gang, worming his way deeper into the plottings of The Pin (Lukas Haas), a local drug dealer. In this world, theater kids are the femme fatales, football players are the dirty politicians, and everybody talks like the platonic ideal of a Raymond Chandler character.
What might sound like pretentious pastiche is in practice an exhilarating exercise in genre filmmaking at an indie budget. Johnson and his childhood friend — and constant collaborator to this day — Steve Yedlin shoot this like they won’t get another one and you feel it in every sequence. For those late to class, I suggest you take your seat: POV punches, spinning mirrors, and a whole lot of atmosphere await you. — Max Bennion, Temporary Coordinator, Archives & Digital Assets
Eighth Grade (2018 Sundance Film Festival)
No other film hurtles me back faster in time to the anxiety-ridden highs and lows of junior high than Bo Burnham’s Eighth Grade. Through the perspective of teenager Kayla (Elsie Fisher), I’m navigating the halls of middle school and all the complexities of adolescent angst. Kayla reminds me what it was like experiencing an all-consuming crush (cool bass intros for said crush not included), trying to fit in with the popular kids when you’re anything but, and walking the fine line between wanting your parents’ help and support and wanting them to butt out of your life entirely. Her YouTube vlogs about how to be confident are an endearing mixture of cringe and heart, really getting at the desire to be perceived and, moreover, understood. I love watching Kayla coming into herself as the film and school year closes and, while she doesn’t have everything figured out, she at least has a friend and sauce connoisseur in scene stealer Gabe (Jake Ryan) and the sense that she can persevere through the trials and tribulations of high school. — Leigh Clouse, Archivist
