Sundance Film Festival 2019: Seven New Documentaries Premiering on the Big Screen
January 16, 2019
Every January, film buffs and movie industry makers descend upon snowy Park City, Utah, for the Sundance Film Festival, the largest independent film festival in the United States. With competitive sections for American and international dramatic and documentary films, both feature films and short films, and a group of out-of-competition sections, including NEXT, New Frontier, Spotlight, Midnight, Premieres, and Documentary Premieres, this is a festival that has launched careers and awarded the greats. This year’s Sundance Film Festival starts January 24, 2019, and will showcase over 117 movies screened at venues across Salt Lake City and the Sundance resort.
Here are seven new documentaries, all premiering this year at the Sundance Film Festival, that we can’t wait to see on the big screen.
Untouchable
Untouchable offers the inside story of the dramatic rise and fall of movie titan Harvey Weinstein, showcasing how he abused his position of power. Insiders including former staffers, college friends, and reporters offer candid, emotional, often-harrowing testimony on the collateral damage of Weinstein’s alleged abuse, offering more insight into the twisted behavior of a media giant.
Halston
Few people know that fashion guru Halston had humble beginnings in Des Moines, Iowa. From his first encounter with fame—he designed Jackie Onassis’s famous pink pillbox hat—to his groundbreaking ideas—think hot pants—this documentary tells the story of a complicated man and his craft.
Ask Dr. Ruth
Everyone’s favorite five feet tall sex therapist is back: Dr. Ruth Westheimer became a household name in the ’80s; she’s still around today, still working and still promising the best sex you’ve ever had if you listen to her. Filmmaker Ryan White follows along with the spunky sex therapist from speaking engagements to TV and radio appearances. It’s hard to believe how far she has come and how much she has endured, from an orphan of the Holocaust to a sex education trailblazer.
APOLLO 11
NASA’s vaults have long been sealed; this groundbreaking documentary will showcase never-before-seen audio and 70 mm film footage of the incredible Apollo 11 mission. Director Todd Miller takes viewers to the eye of the Space Race storm with footage so vibrant you’ll feel as if you’ve tagged along on the trip that changed the course of our country.
Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am
American writer Toni Morrison refused to be defined by the establishment. She wrote for an African American audience and refused to let her words be marginalized. Today the Nobel Prize award winner’s novels are taught in schools around the world. Archival material, as well as interviews with Oprah Winfrey, Angela Davis, and Morrison herself, draw a complex portrait of her inspirational life and works.
Marianne & Leonard: Words of Love
Leonard Cohen and his Norwegian muse, Marianne Ihlen, shared an endless, inspiring love story. It all began on the idyllic Greek island of Hydra in 1960 when the duo met via a bohemian community of foreign artists, writers, and musicians. The couple endured throughout the ages, from highs to lows, and died just three months apart. Fans of Cohen will especially appreciate this insightful, intimate love story.
David Crosby: Remember My Name
Musical genius David Crosby—of The Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash—shares his rocky, 50-year journey as a musician and activist at the forefront of the California rock scene in this rockstar of a documentary. From his Laurel Canyon days with Joni Mitchell to dark times in jail to his personal struggles, septuagenarian Crosby is a survivor of the scene, offering powerful witness to the transformative nature of music.
