The Sundance Kid

Although awards season is very much in full swing, with the BAFTAs and Oscars still yet to determine who exactly from last year gave the best performance or what the most memorable original song was, it is already time to look ahead: new year means new films.

2023 begins with the Sundance Film Festival across the pond in Salt Lake City, Utah, where a fresh crop of titles will try and win this year’s hearts. But if you’re not heading over there, fear not – here are five titles from the festival sure to make a splash this year, wherever you are.

Magazine Dreams

Magazine Dreams stars Jonathan Majors. That should be enough to entice you, as should the first image from the film, above, but it’s also the new feature from Hot Summer Nights director Elijah Bynum, focusing on a Black amateur bodybuilder trying to find his way in the world. And if that wasn’t enough? Taylour Paige also stars.

Cat Person

Remember that New Yorker short story that went viral and you said you hated because it was misogynist, or loved because it was misandrist? Kristen Roupenian’s beguiling and controversial fiction story Cat Person turns into a psychological thriller starring CODA’s Emilia Jones and Nicholas Braun of Cousin Greg fame. When a 20-year-old student strikes up a romance with an older man, the rules of dating go out the window. Guaranteed discourse on this one.

All Dirt Roads Taste Of Salt

You may or may not know that everybody’s favourite heartbreaker Aftersun was produced by Barry Jenkins’ production company Pastel – which means that whatever comes next had better rise to the challenge. All Dirt Roads Taste Of Salt is the one tasked with this responsibility in Raven Jackson’s directorial debut, which stars BAFTA Rising Star nominee Sheila Atim and explores a woman’s life in Mississippi over multiple decades.

Eileen

Ottessa Moshfegh. Thomasin McKenzie. Anne Hathaway. William Oldroyd. Eileen. So many good names are on board for the new feature from Lady Macbeth director Oldroyd from the mind of TikTok’s favourite novelist Moshfegh. The story follows the titular young woman who works in a prison in the 1960s, and the dangerous friendship that takes her life in a new direction. Fans of Last Night In Soho, this one’s for you.

Rye Lane

The romcom has desperately needed a revival for decades. British romcoms, too, are often thought of as ghosts in the shadow of Love Actually and Notting Hill, despite us having so much wit and, yes, confidence to offer. Rye Lane thankfully seems to get that: Industry’s David Jonsson stars opposite Vivian Oparah in a one-night chase throughout south London full of vibrancy and heart. Expect karaoke, unwelcome exes, beloved markets, classic cinemas. All the best things to fall in love with.

The films above are not yet slated for release – stay tuned for updates as they come in.