Go through the massive list of stars that appear in Joe Swanberg’s Digging for Fire and it might be easy to claim that one of the most prolific names in modern indie has “gone mainstream.” But actually watch Digging for Fire (or Happy Christmas or Drinking Buddies), and it’s clear that the mainstream has actually come knocking on Swanberg’s door. This is the same low-key, character-based storytelling Swanberg has been honing for years, only now with a plethora of talent and established names thrown into the mix. And, if anything, Digging for Fire shows Swanberg as a filmmaker in total control, using his ensemble and skills at creating a casual, inviting tone to make a subtle and fascinating exploration of commitment, aging and marriage.

Taking place in Los Angeles, the film opens with married couple Lee (Rosemarie Dewitt) and Tim (Jake Johnson, who co-wrote with Swanberg) taking their son Jude (Swanberg’s own son, stealing every scene he’s in) to house-sit for one of Lee’s wealthy clients. While Lee goes off working as a yoga instructor, Tim—a public school teacher—stays at home during the summer break. Soon after arriving, Tim starts poking around the house and discovers a bone and an old gun buried in a yard behind the house. Tim wants to keep digging, but Lee doesn’t want him messing up her client’s property, and a host of other small disagreements between the two (including Tim’s refusal to put Jude in a private school) leads to Lee taking Jude to spend the weekend with her parents (Sam Elliott and Judith Light).

Tim takes the opportunity to invite some of his old buddies over (Sam Rockwell, Chris Messina, Mike Birbiglia and Kent Osborne, to name a few), and before long he’s convincing all of them to help dig up whatever else might be hiding underneath the property. At this point the film forks off into two narrative strands, one profiling Tim’s weekend with his friends, and the other following Lee trying to have a girl’s night out with her sister (Melanie Lynskey). Both Lee and Tim wind up finding themselves conflicted when they each encounter an opportunity to cheat; Lee meets a British restaurant owner (Orlando Bloom), and Tim makes nice with the young, carefree Max (Brie Larson).

Anyone familiar with Swanberg’s previous work won’t be surprised to learn the film’s central mystery is a nonstarter. It’s more of an excuse for getting characters together to casually chat about the themes Swanberg and Johnson really want to explore. “When did you feel like you got back to yourself?” Lee asks her mom at one point, wondering if marriage and motherhood have removed her ability to live her own life, and Tim admits to Max that he feels like he’s not maturing, he’s just getting older. Their brief exchanges with friends, family and strangers around them reveal that both Lee and Max have hesitations about staying in for the long haul of their marriage, with the hypothetical idea of something “better” existing out there tempting them into seeking individuality over partnership.

What makes Digging for Fire such an enjoyable yet fleeting experience is how Swanberg lets these ideas flow organically into the film through his terrific cast and tight editing. Narrative doesn’t mean much here, as it’s more about how Lee and Tim’s actions reflect their concerns. Dewitt and Johnson anchor the film nicely, and there isn’t a single weak spot in a cast that’s as sprawling as LA itself. Shooting on 35mm with cinematographer Ben Richardson (who also shot Drinking Buddies and, most famously, Beasts of the Southern Wild), the film’s keen eye for composition helps give it a cinematic feel that comes across as a surprise given its dialogue-heavy approach. Swanberg has made films for over a decade now, and at a pretty quick pace too (remember when he directed six films in 2011?), but in some ways Digging for Fire feels like the start of a newer, more refined era for him. It’s exciting to watch Swanberg in complete domination of his craft, but it’ll be more exciting to see what he does next.

They’re heeerrree… and some of us may need to go check our underpants. Check out the new trailer for Sam Raimi’s Poltergeist reboot with Sam Rockwell.

Directed by Gil Kenan, who’s known for Monster House and City of Ember, this doesn’t look like any cheesy two-bit horror remake. Kenan and Raimi appear to give the original classic its due while putting a modern twist (with modern horrors) on this tale of terror. Though we’re happy to see they kept the iconic clown doll scene, even if it is something we’re still working through in therapy since the first film.

Rockwell and Rosemarie DeWitt, along with Mad Men’s Jared Harris, make up the most recognizable of the cast. Though, casting unknowns sometimes makes for a more horrifying thriller when nary a face is recognizable enough to shake our suspension of disbelief. They have managed to cast a young girl, Kennedi Clements, that gives Heather O’Rourke a run for her money in the creepiness category. Quite the feat.

The film is slated for a July release.

Fresh off the heels of its world début at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, The Orchard has acquired Joe Swanberg’s latest, Digging for Fire, for its North American release.

Digging for Fire looks to continue Swanberg’s recent trend of higher profile films with more notable casts. The film stars Swanberg vets Jake Johnson, Anna Kendrick and Melanie Lynskey, as well as Rosemary DeWitt, Orlando Bloom, Sam Rockwell, Brie Larson and Mike Birbiglia. The film follows the discovery of a bone and a gun which sends a husband and wife—each full of doubts about their future and anxiety about the present—on separate adventures over the course of a weekend.

The Orchard is a music, video and film distribution company, founded in 1997. It previously released 2015 horror film Preservation and the upcoming documentary Point and Shoot, which has found acclaim on the festival circuit.

The release strategy and date is not immediately known.

A day ahead of its Jan. 28th Sundance Film Festival premiere, the comedy Don Verdean is giving the internet a sneak peek at the upcoming movie. Deadline debuted the Don Verdean clip, featuring two of the film’s stars Sam Rockwell and Danny McBride, as well as Leslie Bibb and Amy Ryan. Don Verdean is the new comedy written & directed Jared Hess and co-written by his brother Jerusha (Napoleon Dynamite, Nacho Libre), also boasting the likes of Will Forte and Jemaine Clement in the cast.

Don Verdean is Sam Rockwell, a self-proclaimed biblical archaeologist that gets hired by a local pastor to uncover sacred relics to promote the Christian faith. When Don’s effort become futile, he must launch a comedic cover-up. Don Verdean already sold to Lionsgate ahead of the festival, one of the first entries into Sundance to sell this year.

Today might not quite be Danny McBride’s, “lucky day,” but tomorrow he and everyone behind the new Sundance comedy Don Verdean will premiere their film in Park City, Utah. Watch the Don Verdean movie clip below:

Coming off a disappointing previous film (Touchy Feely), director Lynn Shelton returns with Laggies to what she does best —examining likable but flawed characters at a crossroads in their life. Working from a script she didn’t write (a first for the director) and her largest budget to date, Shelton ditches her typical improvisational approach for a more conventional structure. But even with a more refined technique, Laggies still obtains excellent chemistry between its cast, giving off the authentic vibe that we’re used to seeing in Shelton’s work.

It’s been over 10 years since Megan (Keira Knightley) graduated from high school, and while her friends are getting married, having babies, and starting up their own restaurant, Megan twirls signs on the street for her father (Jeff Garlin). It slowly dawns on her that she’s lagging behind her peers and just floating through life. She needs some time away from her social group and her boyfriend Anthony (played by Mark Webber, who always gets typecast for these kind of roles) to clear her mind and to find herself.

This is when the film begins to test your ability to overlook and roll with the nonsensical developments. After buying beer for a group of underage high schoolers, Megan forms a close friendship with one of them named Annika (Chloë Grace Moretz). Megan decides to cash in her I-O-U from Annika for the beer and devises a plan to get away from her routine for a while. So she tells everyone she’s going on a weeklong self-development seminar, but instead stays with Annika at her father’s (Sam Rockwell) house. Like the audience, her father questions Megan’s motives but it doesn’t take much arm twisting before he allows her to stay. Everything goes according to plan until Megan develops feelings for Annika’s father, which threatens to ruin her relationships with Annika and Anthony.

Shelton continues to show her extraordinary ability to get the best performances out of her cast. Knightley puts on the best performance of her career by dominating her own scenes and enhancing everyone else’s around her. Moretz is very much in her comfort zone playing a snippy teenager and pairs well with Knightley. Rockwell has the luxury of getting the best material to work with, playing both the cool dad and the love interest with the effortless charm he’s known for.

There are some great life messages in Laggies, namely about gaining perspective on life while helping others avoid making those same mistakes. Another theme throughout is on the nature of relationships, their fragility and the constant attention needed to make them last. Unfortunately, there are also a lot of predictable moments in Laggies. It’s far too easy to guess how the story’s plot points will turn out before they happen. A predictability that is of course dissatisfying. Filled with solid performances from everyone involved, and an enjoyable original soundtrack by Benjamin Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie), Laggies is Lynn Shelton’s most accessible and crowd-pleasing film to date. Unfortunately it comes at the expense of believability and few moments that contain her unique style, making the film feel overly familiar and generic.

Freaked out by a sudden marriage proposal, Megan (Keira Knightley) takes a week to lay low at the house of a high schooler (Chloë Grace Moretz) that she’s only just met. Sometime after Megan’s bought her new teenage hangers on beers, made out with her young friend’s father, and tweaked the nipples of a Buddha statue, it becomes clear that Moretz isn’t playing the only adolescent in Laggies.

From Humpday and Touchy Feely director Lynn Shelton, her first feature based on a script she didn’t pen (that credit goes to first-time scribe Andrea Seigel), Laggies debuted at this year’s Sundance film festival to mostly positive reviews. Many noted that the Megan role is one of the best Knightley’s had in her career, and makes for great use of her abilities as an actress. Coming off of her starring role in Begin Again, Knightley’s established a side to her career that doesn’t need to involve the Pirates franchise or Jane Austen novels but instead sees her playing far more normal characters.

The film also stars Sam Rockwell. Which is good news, because he’s Sam Rockwell. Check out Keira Knightley, Chloë Grace Moretz and Sam Rockwell in the new trailer and teaser poster from director Lynn Shelton’s upcoming coming-of-age comedy Laggies — opening in select theaters October 24h!

Laggies trailer

Laggies movie poster

From the Oscar winning minds behind the story of The Descendants, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash bring a similar family oriented film that aspires to be a charming crowd-pleaser, but ends up with the same underwhelming results. The Way Way Back features a coming-of-age story about a teenage boy who feels like an outsider wherever he goes, including his own house. There are some satisfying qualities and charm found in the film (mostly from Sam Rockwell) but The Way Way Back plays out just as you would expect, failing to break from its formulated structure.

For most people spending the entire summer at a beach house out in Cape Cod sounds delightful, but for 14-year-old Duncan (Liam James) that is not the case. That is because Duncan is an introverted teenager who is forced to put up with his mother’s (Toni Collette) overbearing boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell), a man who is constantly trying too hard to act like a father figure towards Duncan but ends up being much more condescending than affectionate. Duncan cannot catch a break even when an opportune situation presents itself as their neighbor just so happens to be a good looking girl his age, but his shy awkwardness still gets the best of him.

With seemingly nowhere else to go, Duncan manages to escape off to a nearby Water Wizz waterpark after running into the boisterous manager of the park, Owen (Sam Rockwell). Their friendship takes off with minimal effort (or much interest) from Duncan as Owen seems very eager to take him under his wing for no reason other than he is bored. This is where The Way Way Back begins to get good as Owen’s 100 mile-per-hour wise cracks energizes the picture and subsequently loosens up Duncan’s boarded up personality.

While Liam James plays the awkward side of his always-slouching and timid character spot-on, he is much less convincing when his role calls for him to show a bit of confidence. Though he is not totally to blame, the script has a few cringe-worthy moments such as a completely overengineered dance routine involving James that would even make Napoleon Dynamite shake his head. And there are multiple times where the film forces him to dance.

Meanwhile, Rockwell completely steals the show with his sarcastic lines and give-no-shit attitude. Even though he is supposed to be more of a supporting character, he is so good that he becomes the best asset of the film. In fact, all of the smaller roles were more redeeming than many of the leads. Faxon makes a hilarious appearance as a lifeguard who knows how take advantage of his powers at the park. And Rash channels his inner Kip (yes, another Napoleon Dynamite reference) which makes for an entertaining sidekick.

If there is one thing The Way Way Back does well it is making the story feel relatable, unfortunately it does so by sporting an all-too-familiar backdrop of characters, circumstances, and outcomes. Granted, this coming-of-age tale is not aiming to be wholly original, but in the end the film only plays to half of its strengths. The Way Way Back does generate a fair amount of laughs throughout the film, but misses on the emotional level because of the underplayed drama between mother and son—a shame because Collette’s character had real potential to be more than just a naïve mother who is content with looking the other way for everything in life.

The Way Way Back trailer:

Moon is an imaginative space sci-fi thriller that won’t ever have anything more than a cult following. Which is really too bad because it deserves a little more credit than that. A little more.

Moon starts off with Sam Rockwell playing an astronaut, Sam Bell, who is working on a 3 year mining contract on the moon. The company he works for is gathering resources from the moon that provides Earth with valuable power resources. Sam is there alone with only his computer named GERTY whose voice is eerily done by Kevin Spacey.

It would be impossible to not compare this film with Stanley Kubrick’s classic, 2001: A Space Odyssey. The computer GERTY is very familiar to that of the intelligent computer HAL which is found in Kubrick’s film. There is also a scene near the beginning that has a shot of the earth with classical music in the background, which was perhaps director Duncan Jones’s not so subtle way of showing respect for 2001: A Space Odyssey.

I have to give Rockwell credit in that he basically had no human supporting actor throughout the entire movie, in that sense it’s sort of similar to Tom Hank’s performance in Cast Away. However, there were a few times in Moon where I thought the acting got a little awkward which is hard to explain without spoiling the movie.

It’s a beautifully depressing independent film that you don’t need to be a regular fan of the genre to enjoy, but you will have to be in the right mood to fully appreciate it.