The Best of Sundance
Were there good movies? Indeed, many were good! I discuss them on several podcasts with leading critics
Dear Last Thing I Saw-ers,
For the second year I’m spending a snowy January watching Sundance premieres. In both years I’ve been in New York. Miracle of modern technology? Sign of the virtual times? Harbinger of the apocalypse? All I know is that stepping outside to fling myself into a snow bank could become a vital part of my creative process.
That process has produced six podcast episodes full of talk about new movies from the Sundance Film Festival. There is much to look forward to! As usual, I lined up leading film critics and journalists to join me. A splendid time was had by all: Eric Hynes, Amy Taubin, Beatrice Loayza, Jourdain Searles (for the first time! [air horn sound]), and Jon Dieringer (also known as the editor on some of my favorite interviews last year, at Screen Slate).
And so podcasting has been my recent work—listed below. Will there be more? There may be more. Also, I’ll have new written work to share in the next letter once some long-brewing pieces are out in the world. I have also considered adopting the nickname “Dr. Oscar,” though not in official correspondence.
Editing and producing these podcasts—not to mention convincing people to put up with my harebrained opinions on cinema—takes more man-hours than might seem apparent. Supporting this substack supplies the fuel for the horsepower needed for those man-hours. Otherwise, the car (= the podcast) can’t run. It’s physics!
So be sure to tap that button below and become one of the proud, the mighty, the subscribed!
Snowily yours,
Nic
NEW PODCAST NOTES
Episode 94: Sundance #1 with Eric Hynes
(Intro to Sundance 2022, Tantura, Riotsville, USA)
Eric Hynes is curator of film at Museum of the Moving Image.
Episode 95: Sundance #2 with Eric Hynes
(Dual, We Met in Virtual Reality, A House Made of Splinters, Jihad Rehab)
Eric Hynes is curator of film at Museum of the Moving Image.
Episode 96: Sundance #3 with Amy Taubin
(Nanny, Master, Call Jane, Resurrection, The Cathedral, You Won’t Be Alone)
Amy Taubin is a critic and contributing editor of Artforum. Her report on Sundance 2022 will be published in Artforum.
Episode 97: Sundance #4 with Beatrice Loayza
(Dos Estaciones, Speak No Evil, jeen-yuhs, Brainwashed)
Beatrice Loayza is the associate web editor at the Criterion Collection.
Episode 98: Sundance #5 with Jourdain Searles
(Emily the Criminal, Sharp Stick, Honk for Jesus Save Your Soul)
Jourdain Searles writes for The Hollywood Reporter, Okayplayer, and Little White Lies, among other publications.
Episode 99: Sundance #6 with Jon Dieringer
(Leonor Will Never Die, Short Films, TikTok, Boom, Cha Cha Real Smooth)
You might have noticed the terrific new music on the podcast. Once again, we have my dear friends at The Minarets to thank! The song is called “Tomorrow’s Forecast.”
For more information on The Minarets (music gratefully used with their permission):
Instagram: @theminaretsmusic
twitter.com/MinaretsMusic
www.facebook.com/TheMinaretsMusic
THIS CRITIC’S PICKS
Delectable selections for home viewing.
The Shining (HBO MAX) Snow day!
Crime Wave (Criterion) Sterling Hayden!
’Round Midnight (Criterion) Directed by Bertrand Tavernier, one of the filmmakers we lost early in 2021
Chuck & Buck (MUBI) Mike White stars in a Sundance film you don’t hear much about anymore...
The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (Criterion)
Real Genius (Hulu) Val Kilmer IS... a genius. Haven’t seen this since I was a kid so who knows.
Les Vampires (Criterion) Silent serial adventures
THE END
Here I may end with a song.
ABOUT ME
Welcome to The Last Thing I Saw!
Besides hosting a podcast, I’m a writer and an editor. My features, interviews, festival dispatches, and reviews are published in The New York Times, Sight & Sound, Artforum, Filmmaker, and W Magazine (and appeared in dearly departed publications such as The Village Voice, Stop Smiling, The New York Sun, and The L Magazine).
In days of yore I worked as editor-in-chief of Film Comment, where I was for 15 years. I assigned and edited both the web and print editorial, hosted its podcast and talks and screenings, learned from brilliant writers, curated Film Comment Selects, and wrote a lot, including interviews with Spike Lee, Robert Pattinson, Juliette Binoche, and Frederick Wiseman. Film Comment was subsequently awarded the Film Heritage Award by the National Society of Film Critics (an honor historically awarded to the Museum of Modern Art and other institutions).
Feel free to get in touch re: writing, editing, moderating, programming, podcasting, etc.
nicolas.rapold@gmail.com