Seattlest at Sundance: Take 3

Have we talked about the food at Sundance? Well, perhaps that's because it's nothing to blog home about. Everything's overpriced, there's not much by way of selection, and the service is slooooooow. D'ya want a grande nonfat hazelnut latte before your 8:30am film? "Sorry, we just have 2% milk and the only size we have is tall. That'll be $4." While waiting in line, you can purchase a pre-made sandwich for $6.50 or a banana for $2. Eating in town ain't much better. Yesterday we had some terrible pizza. It was supposed to be mushroom, but really it was cheese with some mushrooms thrown on top before reheating. And though we ordered it by the slice, it still took twenty minutes. Even at the fancier restaurants, you're gonna hafta wait at least an hour to get your food. Ah, if only movies alone could sustain us.

On our second full day, we caught three films---

1) The Hawk is Dying: We will gladly see any film featuring Paul Giamatti, for he rarely disappoints. Dreamlike and rich in metaphor, this is another good 'un from America's Schlubheart, one that has us pondering after the fact. Giamatti and a red-tailed hawk both star as themselves: the former as pathetic middle-aged dude George Gattling, and the latter as the bird of prey he is bound and determined to train. Michelle Williams puts in another great small performance, this time as the pothead girl-next-door. It goes without saying that Giamatti is excellent (as always), though we wonder if perhaps he should think about branching out a bit. We also wonder how long he had to work with hawks in preparation for having one on his wrist all that time.