Our guide to the best films at Sundance London 2014

Sundance London is upon us. This weekend, the two-year old offshoot of Utah’s cinema spectacular comes to Greenwich, bringing with it a remarkable selection of films. In case you missed our guide the first time round, here's how to make the most of the festival - and tickets are still available, so there’s no excuse for non-attendance. 

If you attend just one screening make it Fruitvale Station, which won both the U.S. Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. Ryan Coogler’s film, based on the shooting of reformed drug-dealer Oscar Grant, is a harrowing, important film that continues to take the critical world by storm. Michael B Jordan, who said once the film had wrapped that the character would be with him for the “rest of his life”, plays Oscar so believably, that, even in the critical previews, there was not a dry eye in the cinema.

One of the glorious things about the Sundance London Film Festival is the eclectic, democratic programming. David Wain’s loveable rom-com parody They Came Together, sits happily alongside the more experimental. Memphis, from writer-director Tim Sutton contains little dialogue, rather, it characterises the Tennesseean city and its inhabitants throughmusic, poetic imagery and impressionistic cinematography. Somewhere between fiction and reality, this film is set in a strange mythological version of the city of Memphis that Sutton has created, and stars real life soul-musician Willis Earl Beal as a semi-fictionalised, singer part superstar, part lost-boy. The film has confounded many reviewers, who find it too ‘indie’ even for this ‘indie’ film festival, but for those who are open to film as a visual Art, we heartily recommend booking a ticket as soon as possible.

Lambert & Stamp is surely a highlight. The music documentary tells the story of two amateur filmmakers who, while researching for a subject for an underground movie, discovered Roger Daltry and Pete Townsend, later mentoring and managing the band that later became The Who. The Hollywood Reporter raved at its premiere, asking: “Is it too sweeping a statement to say Lambert & Stamp instantly earns a place in the pantheon of great music docs? Who cares, let’s just go ahead and say it.” Alongside Jarvis Cocker leads a panel on how British documentary is pushing the boundaries of music, biography and film, accompanied by the directors of the excellent Nick Cave doc and Sundance hit 20,000 Days on Earth, released later this year.

Black comedy has dominated the film festival billings this year, and you may already be gearing up for Frank (2014), the comedy from Lenny Abraham about an eccentric musician, played by the incomparable Michael Fassbender . For those who can’t wait until its official release date, this will be shown at the festival, but for those looking for something a little different in the knowledge that Frank will soon be playing nationwide, we recommend the dystopian hipster world created by American comedian, actor and writer David Cross in his directional debut Hits. This film explores the fame game through the eyes of a group of misfits living in New York State, and contains many moments of chaotic hilarity. Crossing genres, this film is a clever satire that moves away from normal Hollywood story arcs, and is hotly tipped to be released nationally this year.

If you like your comedy a little bloodier, our bet would be on director, (and graphic novelist!) Marjane Satrapi’s new film, The Voices, starring Ryan Reynolds as a psychopathic murderer in a surprisingly brilliant comeback role. This  horror-fest couldn’t be more different from Satrapi’s 2007 Cannes Film Festival hit, Persepolis, and hints at the range of this wonderful new talent. There’s a brilliant twist: wait ‘til the very end for an extra surrealist flourish. 

Other treats in store for festival goers include a selection of films from the archive, including director Quentin Tarantino’s cult hit Reservoir Dogs (1992 Sundance Film Festival) and the beautiful Winter’s Bone (2010 Sundance Film Festival), starring Jennifer Lawrence in her Oscar winning role.

Don’t forget to stick around after the credits roll for the post-screening filmmaker Q&As at each of these new films, and for all others on the programme.

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