SUNDANCE 2006: stephanie daley
This film was one of many that were developed at the Sundance Institute and is, hands down, one of the very best at the festival this year.
STEPHANIE DALEY is a story about two women. The first is the title character (Amber Tamblyn), a 16-year-old girl who is accused of murdering her premature baby. The second is pregnant forensic psychologist Lydie Crane (Tilda Swinton), brought on by the prosecution to interview Stephanie and find out the truth of what happened.
The stories of these two women are skillfully inter cut back and forth through time to weave a gripping and sometimes hard to watch drama. The writer/director Hilary Brougher won the Waldo Screenwriting Award at the festival this year. It couldn’t have been more deserved. This is a hard movie to make and a tough story to tell and Brougher does an incredible job. I won’t say anything more about what happens in the film, because watching the story unfold is such a harrowing journey.
The performance by Tamblyn is FANTASTIC. I am not familiar with her previous work, and I was totally blown away by what she did in this film. This is her movie to carry and does a great job. She captures the innocence and vulnerability of a young 16-year-old, but there is a cold distance to the way she speaks about what happens. You watch her go through these events and feel apart of it, never judging her. You know what she is accused of, but don’t know what really happened until the very end. Tilde Swinton is also very good in the film and her story line with her husband and her pregnancy fits into the themes explored by Stephanie’s story.
I was not prepared for this film and was blown away. This might have been the best movie that I saw and look forward to other people having the opportunity to see. There is a scene at the end of the film that is one of the hardest to watch that I have seen. It is handled with such realism that the horror is shocking. STEPHANIE DALEY is such a well crafted script and well told film and I am excited for the movies to come from Hilary Brougher.
STEPHANIE DALEY is a story about two women. The first is the title character (Amber Tamblyn), a 16-year-old girl who is accused of murdering her premature baby. The second is pregnant forensic psychologist Lydie Crane (Tilda Swinton), brought on by the prosecution to interview Stephanie and find out the truth of what happened.
The stories of these two women are skillfully inter cut back and forth through time to weave a gripping and sometimes hard to watch drama. The writer/director Hilary Brougher won the Waldo Screenwriting Award at the festival this year. It couldn’t have been more deserved. This is a hard movie to make and a tough story to tell and Brougher does an incredible job. I won’t say anything more about what happens in the film, because watching the story unfold is such a harrowing journey.
The performance by Tamblyn is FANTASTIC. I am not familiar with her previous work, and I was totally blown away by what she did in this film. This is her movie to carry and does a great job. She captures the innocence and vulnerability of a young 16-year-old, but there is a cold distance to the way she speaks about what happens. You watch her go through these events and feel apart of it, never judging her. You know what she is accused of, but don’t know what really happened until the very end. Tilde Swinton is also very good in the film and her story line with her husband and her pregnancy fits into the themes explored by Stephanie’s story.
I was not prepared for this film and was blown away. This might have been the best movie that I saw and look forward to other people having the opportunity to see. There is a scene at the end of the film that is one of the hardest to watch that I have seen. It is handled with such realism that the horror is shocking. STEPHANIE DALEY is such a well crafted script and well told film and I am excited for the movies to come from Hilary Brougher.
posted by Humby | 1:01 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home