With Sundance Film Festival 2011 announcing their line-up this week, the first images from a number of premieres are starting to arrive. I’ve rounded up the major ones below, including Vera Farmiga‘s directorial debut Higher Ground, Terri starring John C. Reilly, the financial thriller Margin Call starring Kevin Spacey, Stanley Tucci, and Zachary Quinto. There is also Homework starring Emma Roberts and a bit of schlocky fun with new Hobo With a Shotgun and Troll Hunter stills. I’ve included most of them below, along with plot synopsis, but check out Collider and Dread Central for more.
Higher Ground (dir. Vera Farmiga)
Synopsis:
A frustrated young mother turns to a fundamentalist community for answers, but after years of dogma and loss, she must find the courage to ask the questions that will help her reclaim her life.
Margin Call (dir. JC Chandor)
Synopsis:
A frustrated young mother turns to a fundamentalist community for answers, but after years of dogma and loss, she must find the courage to ask the questions that will help her reclaim her life.
Homework (dir. Gavin Wiesen)
Synopsis:
Quirky, rebellious George has no ambitions other than to cut his next class. But one day, one girl gives him the perfect reason to figure out who he really is. Cast: Freddie Highmore, Emma Roberts, Michael Angarano, Elizabeth Reaser with Rita Wilson and Blair Underwood.
Terri (dir. Azazel Jacobs)
Synopsis:
Orphaned to an uncle who is fading away, mercilessly teased by his peers and roundly ignored by his teachers, Terri is alienated and alone. When the dreaded vice-principal sees something of himself in Terri, they establish a friendship which opens Terri up to the possibility that life is not something to be endured, but something to be shared, and even enjoyed. Cast: Jacob Wysocki, John C. Reilly, Creed Bratton, Olivia Crocicchia, Bridger Zadina.
Martha Marcy May Marlene (dir. Sean Durkin)
Synopsis:
Haunted by painful memories and increasing paranoia, a damaged woman struggles to re-assimilate with her family after fleeing an abusive cult. Cast: Elizabeth Olsen, Brady Corbet, Hugh Dancy, John Hawkes, Sarah Paulson.
Troll Hunter (dir. André Ovredal)
Synopsis:
The story of a group of Norwegian film students that set out to capture real-life trolls on camera after learning their existence has been covered up for years by a government conspiracy. A thrilling and wildly entertaining film, Hunter is said to deliver truly fantastic images of giant trolls wreaking havoc on the countryside, with darkly funny adherence to the original Norwegian folklore.
HERE (dir. Braden King)
Synopsis:
The script, written by King and Dani Valent, centers on an American cartographer who’s on assignment to create a new, more accurate satellite survey of Armenia, who forms a powerful bond with an Armenian expatriate and art photographer. Hit the jump to check out the images from both films.
The Convincer (dir. Jill Sprecher)
Synopsis:
An insurance salesman, caught in a caper involving a rare musical instrument, sets off a series of dramatic consequences. Cast: Greg Kinnear, Alan Arkin, Billy Crudup, David Harbour.
Hobo With a Shotgun (dir. Jason Eisner)
Sundance Film Festival 2011 runs from January 20th-30th in Park City, Utah.
Which films are you most looking forward to?