Can we all agree that as far as holidays go, Valentine’s Day is pretty bogus? The day is designed to sell candy and cards and set up unhealthy expectations for the single folks, making it more cynical than romantic. Luckily, Netflix offers a variety of films and television series catered to both the romantic and the cynical. If you are lucky enough to share the evening with a special someone, Pride & Prejudice (Joe Wright, 2005), Beginners (Mike Mills, 2010), Amelie (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001), and Notting Hill (Roger Michell, 1999) are great options to snuggle up over. For those a little more jaded by romantic experiences, harder edge, love stories like Blue Is the Warmest Color (Abdellatif Kechiche, 2013), Laurence Anyways (Xavier Dolan, 2012), The One I Love (Charlie McDowell, 2014), and Love (Gaspar Noé, 2015) are also available on the streaming service. So, no matter your feelings on Valentine’s Day, there are plenty of visions of love on film for you to see this weekend. And for other new films and television new to streaming this week, check out the recommendations below:

Netflix

Dope (Rick Famuyiwa, 2015)

Somewhat lost in the shuffle of diverse film offerings from 2015 (despite being a huge hit during the festival circuit), Dope is a fast-paced and endearing throw-back to the early 90s hip-hop culture. In the film, a group of three inner-city high school friends get wrapped up in the drug trade while facing pressures brought on by their identity, community and social expectations. Shameik Moore (who will soon star in the Baz Luhrmann Netflix series The Get Down) gives a great breakthrough performance as Malcolm, a nerdy but charming kid at the center of the story. Director Rick Famuyiwa (The Wood, Our Family Wedding) brings a passionate, clear voice to the film that will continue to resonate as issues related to race and identity become more and more complicated. You can check out our full review of this “Must See Indie”.

Other titles new to Netflix this week:
Bates Motel (Series, Season 3)
Black Souls (Francesco Munzi, 2014)
Brotherly Love (Jamal Hill, 2015)
The Girl in the Book (Marya Cohn, 2015)
The Railway Man (Jonathan Teplitzky, 2013)

Fandor

The Harder They Come (Perry Henzell, 1972)

Seminal reggae musical The Harder They Come has long been difficult to see—it isn’t available on any streaming service and would show up in the “Saved” section of your Netflix DVD queue. The film stars Jimmy Cliff as Ivanhoe Martin, a struggling musician in Kingston who gets wrapped up in drugs and crime. Heralded for its soundtrack, which placed on Rolling Stone magazine’s Top Albums of All-Time list, the music largely opened up reggae and Caribbean music to world-wide audiences, paving the way for figures like Bob Marley to reach prominence. Also new to Fandor this week are its “Criterion Picks”, featuring great French romances of forbidden love, just in time for Valentine’s day.

Other titles new to Fandor this week:
The Cult of JT LeRoy (Marjorie Sturm, 2014)
The Earrings of Madame de… (Max Ophuls, 1953)
L’inhumaine (Marcel L’Herbier, 1924)
The Lovers (Louis Malle, 1958)
The Soft Skin (François Truffaut, 1964)

MUBI

The Aviator (Martin Scorsese, 2004)

With Leonardo DiCaprio the odds-on favorite to win his first Academy Award this year, it’s a good time to revisit one of his highest profile roles (for which he lost out on the statue to Jamie Foxx in Ray—not sure how that would play out if they ran that race again). DiCaprio’s portrayal of the reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes is a sprawling epic, nearly three hours long, spanning more than 20 years. Overall, The Aviator won 5 Oscars, including for Cinematography and Editing, as well as Cate Blanchett’s supporting role as famed Hollywood actress Katharine Hepburn. You can check out Scorsese’s wonderful biopic on MUBI until March 12.

Other titles new to MUBI this week:
The Draughtsman’s Contract (Peter Greenaway, 1982)
The Girl on the Train (André Téchiné, 2009)
Ne Change Rein (Pedro Costa, 2005)
Sweetgrass (Ilisa Barbash & Lucien Castaing-Taylor, 2009)
Who’s Camus Anyway (Mitsuo Yanagimachi, 2005)

iTunes and Video On-Demand

The Peanuts Movie (Steve Martino, 2015)

One of the great animated entertainments to come out this year was The Peanuts Movie, a nostalgic updating of the beloved classic comic strip. Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy and the rest of the gang are featured in an original story with plenty of reverence to its source material and through stunning computer-generated animation. The film tells two companion stories: one featuring the Little Red-Haired Girl who moves into the neighborhood, immediately capturing the attention of the lovable worrier Charlie Brown, and a fantastical side story with Snoopy and his sworn enemy the Red Barron. The Peanuts Movie is now available to rent or own on iTunes and other VOD platforms.

Other titles new to VOD this week:
99 Homes (Ramin Bahrani, 2014)
Freaks of Nature (Robbie Pickering, 2015)
Grandma (Paul Weitz, 2015)
The Leftovers (Series, Season 2)
The Night Before (Jonathan Levine, 2015)

This week’s show is brimming with special guests as Bernard welcomes Lily Tomlin and Paul Weitz to talk about their outstanding new film, Grandma. Plus, filmmaker Hubert Sauper joins the show to discuss his documentary We Come As Friends, an outsider’s look at the violent conflict in the Sudan. Ananda jumps in to help review ‘Grandma,’ and on top of all that, Bernard rants about crappy video game movies and shares his Indie Pick of the Week. Whew! Click that play button and listen away!

Topics

• Indie Pick of the Week (0:55)
• ‘We Come As Friends’ Interview (10:17)
• ‘Grandma’ Review (43:25)
• Lily Tomlin and Paul Weitz (1:05:14)

WTI Articles Referenced in the Podcast

7 Chinese Brothers Review
We Come As Friends Review
Grandma Review

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An actor earns serious credit when they not only perform incredibly in a role but perform it in a way that makes audiences believe no one else could have possibly played it better. Not to overly gush about a film others have already gushed enough over, but I was oozing with said respect when exiting Grandma. Not only is it a well-written film with a rare and fiercely defined main character, but its title role fits its perfectly casted actor, Lily Tomlin, in perfect symbiosis. Playing this role at this point in her career is perfect timing, and Paul Weitz casting and utilizing her unique talents is an example of the art of directing at its finest. Though comedy might be the safest genre for allowing septuagenarians to shine (though Grandma is more a part of that ambiguous sub-genre of dramedy), it’s films like this that prove there is a trove of older actors who, in addition to the talent they already bring, provide another level of performance that, when given the chance, can absolutely blow us away.

This secret reserve of talent—likely derived straight from life experience—is something Tomlin displays in abundance in Grandma. A taciturn and grieving widow, Tomlin plays Elle Reid, a feminist poet and movement leader, still revered if not much remembered from her glory days. A year and a half has passed since her partner Violet has died from cancer, and her relationship with a much younger woman, Olivia (Judy Greer), is ending and she deals with it with the same cutting rigidity with which she faces all of life’s challenges, telling Olivia she doesn’t love her, and to leave her key on the table. Elle hardly has time to actually process this breakup when her teenaged granddaughter Sage (the curly-haired goddess Julia Garner) shows up on her front door, pregnant and in need of funds for an abortion.

Elle does her due diligence as a grandma—complaining about the price of an abortion these days—and also as a wizened woman, asking Sage if she’s thought through the decision since she’s likely to think of it at some point every day for the rest of her life, but never tries to talk her out of it. Instead, she grabs the keys to her vintage Dodge and agrees to help Sage scare up the $600 she needs by 5:30 that afternoon. As Elle attempts to collect on old debts and the goodwill of friends, more of her varied and complicated life is revealed. Laverne Cox is a tattoo artist buddy who tells of Elle’s kindhearted gift of loaning her money to fix a botched transgender boob-job. Elizabeth Pena is coffee shop owner who puts Elle in her place by offering $50 for some of her old first edition hardbacks, including The Feminine Mystique (and Sage wonders aloud if the book has anything to do with The X-Men). Elle challenges Sage’s sensibilities, teaching her along the way by standing up to her deadbeat boyfriend when Sage won’t (hilariously kicking the teenager’s ass) and making a scene in a coffee shop when the proprietor asks her to quiet down when discussing abortion.

While clearly pro-choice, the film doesn’t especially try to conventionalize or even trivialize abortion but instead bring it into colloquial terms. Sage’s decision is treated with gravity and respect. It’s even given an interesting dual-perspective by another character in the film, who expresses the sadness an abortion once brought them with sincerity and dignity. The crux of the film lies within a scene between Elle and her one-time husband Karl (Sam Elliott, also absolutely shining), he an unfortunate casualty of Elle being gay at a time when no one was discussing such things and thus part of her path of destruction in her youth.  They chit-chat about lovers and grandchildren, roll a doobie together, and then go on to have a fiercely charged and emotionally revealing series of exchanges that perfectly expresses the complexity of real relationships, the many forms of love, and the way our decisions shape us and stay with us as we mature.

Paul Weitz is a wonder in being able to capture saturated morsels of the different humor associated with different age ranges and genders. In American Pie he nailed the adolescent male mind without demeaning it, and here he’s traveled the length of the spectrum (galaxy?) to home in on the perfectly evolved humor of an aging widowed lesbian academic. I’ve certainly never heard anyone insult another by calling them a “writer-in -residence” but the joke is among the sharpest of the film. All involved should certainly remain in the minds of voters when awards season rolls around.

Filled with laughs, realistic love, and a freedom to emote, Grandma is as cathartic as it is hilarious. Even while seeing the pain that comes from a lifetime filled with loss and experience, the wisdom and humor of a lifetime’s experience is given equal merit. It’s enough to make being a grandma look like the coolest job out there, and a reason to look forward to advancing through our years.

A version of this review was originally published as part of our Tribeca 2015 coverage.

Is it really possible that Lily Tomlin has gone this long without a starring vehicle of her own? The iconic actress has decades of perfectly timed, naturalistic punchlines under her belt, yet for years her parts have been largely reduced to limited arcs on TV shows or small, supporting roles in middling movies. Writer/Director Paul Weitz clearly saw the enormous potential in this market gap. Following his 2013 Tina Fey comedy Admission, in which Lily Tomlin played Fey’s mother, Weitz wrote an entire movie with Tomlin in mind.

Grandma premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival to slew of praise for Tomlin (Way Too Indie caught up with it at Tribeca and had glowing things to say, too). Despite its title, Tomlin’s character is far form a withered, weakened old lady. In Grandma, Tomlin plays Elle Reid, a misanthropic lesbian poet, whose granddaughter Sage (Julia Garner) shows up broke and in need of an abortion. Together, the two journey to collect cash, confront their pasts, and hit Nat Wolff in the balls with a hockey stick.

Grandma also stars a collection of familiar faces, many of them in the trailer, including Sam Elliott, John Cho, Marcia Gay Harden, Judy Greer and Laverne Cox. While New Zealanders will get a early chance to see Grandma at the New Zealand International Film Festival in July, Americans everywhere will have to cope with Granmda‘s August 21st release date by watching and re-watching the pleasant new trailer below:

The 21st Los Angeles Film Festival, produced by Film Independent, announced its complete lineup this morning. 30 films have been chosen for inclusion in their U.S. Fiction, Documentary and World Fiction competitions, 18 of which will be world premieres.

Previously they had already announced that the Opening Night Film will be Grandma and there will be Gala Screenings of the first episode of the MTV TV series Scream as well as the feature films Seoul Searching and The Final Girls (which just won an audience award at 2015 Stanley Film Festival). Additionally two pre-festival screenings will also be held: Dope will have its LA Premiere on June 8 and Inside Out will screen on June 9 and be preceded by a special Master Class with writer/director Pete Docter. It was also announced, this year’s Guest Director is Rodrigo García, Gale Anne Hurd will receive the Jaeger-Lecoultre Glory to the Filmmaker Award and Lily Tomlin will receive the Spirit of Independence Award.

The Los Angeles Film Festival will be held in LA between June 10 – 18. Way Too Indie will have comprehensive coverage of the festival.

Complete LA Film Festival Lineup

(Does not include short films, Launch digital media lineup, high school competition, or music videos.)

US Fiction Competition

Original voices with distinct visions from emerging and established American independent filmmakers.

3rd Street Blackout, dir. Negin Farsad, Jeremy Redleaf, USA, World Premiere

A Country Called Home, dir. Anna Axster, USA, World Premiere

Bastards Y Diablos, dir. A.D. Freese, USA/Colombia, World Premiere

The Girl in the Book, dir. Marya Cohn, USA, World Premiere

How He Fell in Love, dir. Marc Meyers, USA, World Premiere

It’s Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong, dir. Emily Ting, USA, World Premiere

Mekko, dir. Sterlin Harjo, USA, World Premiere

Out of My Hand, dir. Takeshi Fukunaga, USA/Liberia, N. American Premiere

Puerto Ricans in Paris, dir. Ian Edelman, USA/France/Czech Republic, World Premiere

Too Late, dir. Dennis Hauck, USA, World Premiere

Documentary Competition

Sponsored by Netflix and Loyola Marymount University’s School of Film and Television.
Compelling, character-driven non-fiction films from the U.S. and around the world.

A New High, dir. Samuel Miron, Stephen Scarpulla, USA, World Premiere

The Babushkas of Chernobyl, dirs. Holly Morris & Anne Bogart , USA/Ukraine, World Premiere

Be Here Now (The Andy Whitfield Story), dir. Lilibet Foster, USA/Australia, World Premiere

Catching the Sun, dir. Shalini Kantayya, USA, World Premiere

In a Perfect World, dir. Daphne McWilliams, USA, World Premiere

Incorruptible, dir. Chai Vasarhelyi, Senegal/USA, International Premiere

Love Between the Covers, dir. Laurie Kahn, USA, U.S. Premiere

Maiko: Dancing Child, dir. Åse Svenheim Drivenes, Japan/Norway, World Premiere

Missing People, dir. David Shapiro, USA, U.S. Premiere

My Love, Don’t Cross That River, dir. Mo-Young Jin, South Korea, U.S. Premiere

Oriented, dir. Jake Winternitz, UK/Palestine/Israel, International Premiere

Treasure; From Tragedy to Trans Justice, Mapping a Detroit Story, dir. dream hampton, USA, World Premiere

World Fiction Competition

Unique fiction films from around the world from emerging and established filmmakers, especially curated for LA audiences.

Atomic Heart, dir. Ali Ahmadzadeh, Iran, North American Premiere

Ayanda and the Mechanic, dir. Sara Blecher, South Africa, World Premiere

Elvira, Te Daria Mi Vida Pero La Estoy Usando (Elvira, I’d Give You My Life But I’m Using It), dir. Manolo Caro, Mexico, International Premiere

Flocking (Flocken), dir. Baeta Gardeler, Sweden, North American Premiere

Las Malas Lenguas (Sweet and Vicious), dir. Juan Paolo Arias, Colombia, World Premiere

A Midsummer’s Fantasia, dir. Jang Kun-Jae, South Korea/Japan, U.S. Premiere

Sin Alas (Without Wings), dir. Ben Chace, Cuba, International Premiere

White Moss (Belyy Yagel), dir. Vladimir Tumaev, Russian Federation, International Premiere

Buzz

Los Angeles premieres of celebrated favorites from around the world.

Brand: A Second Coming, dir. Ondi Timoner, UK/USA

Chuck Norris vs Communism, dir. Illinca Calugareanu, UK/Romania/Germany

The Dark Horse, dir. James Napier Robertson, New Zealand

Diary of a Teenage Girl, dir. Marielle Heller, USA

In Football We Trust, dir. Tony Vainuku, co-dir. Erika Cohn, USA

Infinitely Polar Bear, dir. Maya Forbes, USA

Jimmy’s Hall, dir. Ken Loach, UK/Ireland/France

Manson Family Vacation, dir. J. Davis, USA

The Overnight, dir. Patrick Brice, USA

People, Places, Things, dir. James C. Strouse, USA

The Vanished Elephant, dir. Javier Fuentes León, Peru/Colombia/Spain

Victoria, dir. Sebastian Schipper, Germany

Sweet Micky for President, dir. Ben Patterson, Haiti/USA

LA Muse

A competitive section of world premieres of fiction and documentary films that are quintessentially L.A.

A Beautiful Now, dir. Daniela Amavia, USA, World Premiere

Aram, Aram, dir. Christopher Chambers, USA, World Premiere

Can You Dig This, dir. Delila Vallot, USA, World Premiere

Day Out of Days, dir. Zoe R. Cassavetes, USA, World Premiere

The Drew: No Excuse, Just Produce, dir. Baron Davis, Chad Gordon, USA, World Premiere

The Escort, dir. Will Slocombe, USA, World Premiere

Flock of Dudes, dir. Bob Castrone, USA, World Premiere

French Dirty, dir. Wade Allain-Marcus & Jesse Allain-Marcus, USA, World Premiere

No Más Bebés (No More Babies), dir. Renee Tajima-Peña, USA, World Premiere

Weepah Way for Now, dir. Stephen Ringer, USA, World Premiere

Nightfall

From the bizarre to the horrifying, these are films to watch after dark. Films premiering for the first time in the U.S. are nominated for the Nightfall Award.

Caught, dir. Maggie Kiley, USA, World Premiere

The Confines, dir. Eytan Rockaway, USA, World Premiere

Crumbs, dir. Miguel Llansó, Spain/Ethiopia/Finland, North American Premiere

Crush the Skull, dir. Viet Nguyen, USA, World Premiere

Dude Bro Party Massacre III, dir. Tomm Jacobsen, Michael Rousselet, Jon Salmon, USA, World Premiere

Plan Sexenal (Six Year Plan), dir. Santiago Cendejas, Mexico, North American Premiere

Ratter, dir. Branden Kramer, USA, LA Premiere

Shut In, dir. Adam Schindler, USA, World Premiere

Zeitgeist

A competitive section of curated, World Premiere films that embody key trends in American independent filmmaking. 2015 captures hard knock, coming of age stories.

A Girl Like Grace, dir. Ty Hodges, USA, World Premiere

Band of Robbers, dir. Aaron Nee & Adam Nee, USA, World Premiere

In the Treetops, dir. Matthew Brown, USA, World Premiere

Manifest Destiny, dir. Michael Dwyer, Kaitlin McLaughlin, USA, World Premiere

Stealing Cars, dir. Bradley Kaplan, USA, World Premiere

What Lola Wants, dir. Rupert Glasson, USA, World Premiere

Visit www.lafilmfest.com for more info or to buy tickets.

We’ve got yet another giant-sized show for this week on the Way Too Indiecast! Joining your regular host, Bernard, on today’s podcast are three familiar faces, plus one very special, very indie guest. Indie filmmaker Kevin Chenault joins the show in our first segment to talk about his latest movie, Different Drum, as well as share his favorite road trip movies along with Bernard and Way Too Indie head honcho, Dustin Jansick. After the break, we say goodbye to the boys from the midwest and welcome in Ananda and Zach to talk about the highlights and lowlights from the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival, which just wrapped up. Plus, as always, our indie picks of the week!

Topics

• Indie Picks of the Week (2:30)
• Different Drum (10:40)
• Favorite Road Trip Movies (14:30)
• Tribeca Wrap-Up (33:18)

WTI Articles Referenced in the Podcast

Of Horses and Men review

Different Drum review

Along the Roadside review

2015 Tribeca coverage

TransFatty Lives review

(T)ERROR review

Among the Believers review

The Wolfpack review

The Overnight review

Grandma review

Slow West review

Subscribe to the Way Too Indiecast

• Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes
• Subscribe to the podcast on Stitcher
• and don’t forget to leave us a rating and quick review!

We’re less than a week away from the start of the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival and the lineup of films, speakers, and events (not to mention a fun assortment of jurors) has us excited to usher in Spring in the city. With just over 100 films playing at the festival, picking and choosing what to see is one heck of an undertaking, not to mention the speakers—Stephen Colbert with George Lucas, Brad Bird with Janeane Garofalo, Bennet Miller with Christopher Nolan, and so many more—and the special events—Back to the Future 30th Anniversary screening, Goodfellas 25th Anniversary screening, Monty Python and the Holy Grail 40th Anniversary special screening (as well as many of the other Monty Python films)—there’s more to be done than can possibly be done in a week and a half.

In anticipation for this exciting New York jubilee, we’ve honed in on the films playing at Tribeca that we’re most excited to see. Stay tuned for all of our Tribeca 2015 coverage, and keep an eye out for these hotly anticipated films.

Grandma

As a feminist poet reeling from a break-up and still mourning the loss of her long time partner, Elle Reid (Lily Tomlin) is forced to sideline her misery when her teenage granddaughter (Julia Garner) shows up needing $600 and a ride. In an effort to round up the money, the two have to hit the road, running into people from Elle’s life and discovering more about each other. Based on his track record alone, it’s not hard to be excited for the latest from Paul Weitz (About a Boy, Mozart in the Jungle). His best work stems from the dynamics of stubborn former-successfuls forced to interact with younger polar opposite-types, hilarity and lessons picked up along the way. After its highly lauded debut at Sundance this year, Weitz is being praised for doing what he does best, but in a particularly indie, low-budget sort of way. That he cast Lily Tomlin (whose impeccable comedic acumen has been restricted mostly to television of late and is so seriously deserving of big screen attention) to helm, only proves Weitz is maturing from his American Pie days and I, for one, can’t wait to see the results. [Ananda]

Meadowland

Cinematographer-turned-director Reed Morano (Winter’s Tale, The Skeleton Twins) makes her feature debut in this drama following a pair of parents struggling to cope in the aftermath of their son’s disappearance. In Meadowland, Sarah (Olivia Wilde) struggles to maintain her job as a teacher, while her husband Phil (Luke Wilson) develops a disconnect from his responsibilities as a city cop. Olivia Wilde has developed into an unofficial ambassador for the Tribeca Film Festival, producing several films (including shorts) that have debut in New York; however, often these movies provide Wilde with an intricate role to play. Her willingness to stretch herself as an actress is exciting, and here she’s paired with one of the many female directors making their debut during the festival. Meadowland’s wide-ranging supporting cast includes Giovanni Ribisi, Elisabeth Moss, John Leguizamo, Juno Temple, and Scott Mescudi, and the combination of elements makes this contemplative drama an intriguing prospect for the Tribeca Film Festival. [Zach]

Bleeding Heart

A sophomore effort from director Diane Bell (Obselidia), Bleeding Heart (not remotely to be confused with Bleeding Hearts, the low-budget Dustin Diamond horror vehicle also wheedling its way into the world this year) is the tale of two sisters. One, May, a yoga instructor (Jessica Biel) living a clean and orderly life with her boyfriend, the other, Shiva, a street-smart chaotic sometime-street worker (Zosia Mamet) in need of saving. When May takes in Shiva and attempts to put her life into some sort of order, it’s Shiva who ends up pulling May into her own disarray. Bell has described the actual core of her story as centering around violence, specifically violence against women. The questions she hopes to bring up about violence being an answer to violence are intriguing, and the message is one always worth exploring. [Ananda]

Slow West

Slow West left the Sundance Film Festival with the Grand Jury Prize for the World Cinema Dramatic competition, as well as smatterings of praise from the critics in attendance. Described as a Western set at the end of the 19^th century, Slow West’s plot description (17-year-old travels from Scotland to Colorado to reunite with the woman whom he loves) and even its title (it’s not Exciting West) seemed to suggest a sleepy, thoughtful brand of frontiersmen cinema. Then came the recent of the trailer to Slow West, packed with horse-riding, gun-totting, fur-coat-wearing characters set against expansive blue skies and empty fields. If Michael Fassbender spouting dialog through the cigar held firmly in his mouth while “Come Alive” blares in the background isn’t enough to get you excited for Slow West, not much else will. But how about one more shot of Ben Mendelsohn in his fur coat from Sundance? [Zach]

Tumbledown

After being a part of last year’s unfortunate Johnny Depp flop, Transcendence, it’s good to see Rebecca Hall getting a lighter and more central role. In Tumbledown she plays a widower of a famous musician beginning work on his biography and spurred into action when a New York academic (Jason Sudeikis) makes it known he too wants to write a book on his life, and his version may look very different. The two end up collaborating, digging into her deceased husband’s life and coming to clearer understandings of what it means to live and love. Directed by first-timer Sean Mewshaw, the film boasts an impressive cast including Dianna Agron and Blythe Danner, but mostly looks like the perfect romantic comedy to relieve some of the tension by some of the more serious festival drama fare. [Ananda]

Aloft

Having only really seen its first stirring teaser trailer, full of poetic imagery and no dialogue, a lot of my interest in seeing Aloft is based on pure intrigue. But the talent loaded behind it makes for real promise as well. Tribeca’s description of the film sums it up best: “The tales of a mother and son are told in parallel and woven together in a way that demonstrates the subjectivity and fragility of time. Single-mother Nana (Jennifer Connelly) has a mysterious experience at the hands of a traveling healer. Years later, her troubled son Ivan (Cillian Murphy) sets out to search for his now absent mother. The film blends past with present against the backdrop of a frozen world.” The film also features Mélanie Laurent (Inglourious Basterds), an actress I’d watch do almost anything. Peruvian director Clauda Llosa first impressed with The Milk of Sorrow, nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2010. The emotional and visual tantalization of Aloft implies this may be one we all go home talking about. [Ananda]

Slow Learners

Don Argott & Sheena M. Joyce have collaborated on several strong documentaries (Last Days Here and The Art of the Steal are both on Netflix Instant) but are set to make their fictional feature debut this year with the World Premiere of Slow Learners at Tribeca. Adam Pally (Happy Endings, The Mindy Project) and Sarah Burns (Enlightened, Married) star as platonic friends who decide to shed their vanilla personalities for more confident alter egos in a summer filled with crazy, drunken nights.  Beyond the underrated comedic talents of Pally & Burns, Slow Learners’ cast features funny supporting performers like Saturday Night Live’s Bobby Moynihan, The Office’s Kate Flannery, and Veep’s Reid Scott. Tribeca typically features a couple standout, low-key humanistic comedies, and with the talent attached, hopefully Slow Learners will be among this year’s most entertaining. [Zach]

Thought Crimes

The story of the NYPD’s “Cannibal Cop” dominated headlines when Gilberto Valle was accused of plotting to kidnap, rape, kill, cook, and eat up to 100 women. Valle had utilized police databases to conduct surveillance on women that he fantasized about brutalizing, and although Valle alleged got close enough to stalk a couple of his potential victims, he never carried out the long list of heinous acts associated with his name. For obvious reasons, this scandal permanently affected Gilberto Valle’s life; however, first-time feature documentarian Erin Lee Carr endeavors to take a closer look at the case while asking a fundamental question: can you be guilty of a crime you only thought of committing? With unique access to Valle and his family, Carr’s documentary Thought Crimes promises to examine the evolving role of the criminal justice system as the digital world becomes an increasingly vital part of everyday life. [Zach]

For the full guide to films playing at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, check here.