Authors: Alexander Ortega
Sundance Film Review: Sueño en Otro Idioma
In Sueño en otro idioma, linguist Martín travels to a rural area of Mexico to record conversations between the last speakers of Zikril. … read more
Sundance Film Review: The Workers Cup
Despite their various backgrounds, the men in The Workers Cup share a passion for football, and we feel how much it means to them on a palpable level. … read more
Sundance Film Review: Axolotl Overkill
Axolotl Overkill is a character study of Mifti, a teenage girl who feels disaffected by the life that people her age are supposed to lead. … read more
Sundance Film Review: Family Life
Directors Alicia Scherson and Cristián Jiménez present Family Life as an anxious film: We watch Martín spin his lie to Paz while we become enamored of her. … read more
Sundance Film Review: Dayveon
In the “NEXT” section, Dayveon depicts the frustration of the film’s namesake character, Dayveon, played by Devin Blackmon. … read more
Sundance Film Review: Plastic China
Plastic China features foreman Kun’s plastic-recycling facility. They reside among knolls of plastic waste and veritable mountains of work. … read more
Sundance Film Review: Sami Blood
Sundance chose well by including this film in the “Spotlight” section, as Sami Blood continues to delight and does the Sami people justice. … read more
Salt Lake City Staycation
You may be in town for some film festivals, or you may be a born-and-raised, diehard Salt Laker. Either way, you deserve your Salt Lake City staycation. … read more
Local Reviews: Killbot
Killbot’s back with insatiable metal hunger in The Horror E.P. Deavy Metal eases us into the mayhem with a gorgeous classical guitar intro in “Beware the Moon,” which is riddled with howls from a werewolf and the whimpers of victims-to-be. … read more
Local Reviews: Problem Daughter
I’m a little disappointed that it took me this long to find out about this band. Problem Daughter delivers catchy-as-hell punk rock atop major-key chord progressions with fun upbeat instrumental work. What’s interesting is that the actual words that singer Regan Ashton belts out in songs like “Good Friends” aren’t what initially seize our attention, but, rather, his timbre and comfort with his melodies—he demonstrates his vocal skills with a balance of scratchy and melodic singing. … read more