A certain prognosticator of seasonal change got wrenched out of his hovel and whispered into a Punxsutawnian’s ear: six more weeks.
Whether you take stock in that or not, winter is here to stay for a while. But no matter, celebrations still abound. Valentine’s Day is coming up; Wuthering Heights anyone? And in one resort town in Utah, a little film fest just wrapped up its latest iteration there. You might have heard of it. The Sundance Institute, founded by the late Robert Redford, has been the place to see emerging talents and independent artists. The last few weeks of January into February have been carved out to showcase and laud few films, as well as shop them to distributors. This marks the final year the fest will be in Park City, transferring to Boulder in 2027. While most of this year’s selections aren’t available yet, some of last year’s are now on streaming.
On Hulu, writer/director/star James Sweeney’s second film Twinless features Dylan O’Brian as both Rocky, a hockey-loving hooligan, and his gay twin brother Roman. Roman dies in an accident, leaving Rocky hurt and devastated. But through a series of encounters, he meets Sweeney’s Dennis at a trauma support group. He tells Rocky about his brother and befriends him. But nothing is as it seems as the film unfolds. To be honest, I wasn’t sure where this film was going. In many ways I thought it would turn out like another of last year’s films, Lurker, about a rising pop star’s stalker. Sweeney lightly side-steps this, creating a story of loneliness in the 21st century. One that is both funny, scary and poignant.
2025 was the year of playing twins, too, as O’Brien portrays Rocky and Roman as distinct halves. Gilmore Girls fans will love Lauren Graham as their basket case mother. Abbott Elementary’s Chris Perfetti and, why hello Heated Rivalry’s Francois Arnaud, make an appearance. Effortlessly paced, Sweeney shows what an exceptional director and writer he is.
Another favorite of last year, Eva Victor’s Sorry Baby won her a screenwriting award and it is easy to see why. In only her first feature film, she exhibits the confidence of directors who have been doing this for decades. Again, a multi-hyphenate, Victor also stars as Agnes a professor at an east coast college. She invites her friend Lydie (Naomi Ackie) for a weekend. Both lived in the home Agnes now resides in, as graduate students. We immediately sense that something isn’t right with Victor’s character. Her sudden fits and ticks as well carefully placed objects leave small clues for us.
Later at a dinner with fellow former students, everything is all but stated when the name of Preston Decker comes up and Agnes freezes. In a show of solidarity, Ackie delivers a line about deboning fish with heavy subtext and biting snark. This is the film After The Hunt wishes it was.
In perfectly executed sequences, Victor goes back to show us what was done to Agnes not in a gratuitous way but with abstract pathos. Most films would focus on justice like an episode of SVU. Here this is about the human cost of assault. But one that is presented with humor and grounded emotional purity that is so rarely given these subjects.
From her taking in a stay cat to a heart-to-heart with a sandwich shop owner played beautifully by John Carroll Lynch, Victor maps the journey Agnes takes. She is not just a victim of a crime. She is a psychologically complex person, navigating horrible circumstances and trying to find a way forward. In an ending that had me in tears, I implore you to seek out this film on HBO Max. It is a shame neither of these films got as much recognition as the splashier ones from last year. But to paraphrase one pop star, whose film I might check for next time: they made their own way and they made it.
