That's it.
The Sundance festival, a showcase for American independent cinema which takes place this year in virtual mode, has found a darling with the British comedy
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande
and already sees it on its way to the 2023 awards season. Emma Thompson's eternal grace probably has something to do with it.
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In this intimate camera imagined by Australian filmmaker Sophie Hyde, the 62-year-old actress plays an aging teacher who hires the services of a prostitute on the death of her husband to finally experience orgasm. The relationship between Nancy and Leo will never turn into romance, but their encounters will allow them to forge mutual respect and face the unspoken of their existence.
"It's probably the hardest thing I've ever had to do!"
, said the star of
Love Actually
and
Reason and feelings
during an online press conference "
It's very difficult to be naked at 62"
on the screen, explained the Oscar-winning actress, who in the film shoots several sex scenes with 29-year-old Daryl McCormack stripping naked in front of a mirror while looking at her body “in a completely relaxed, non-judgmental way.”
In this scene, my character
“doesn't tuck her stomach in, don't turn around, try to alter what she sees
,” Emma Thompson explained, referring to the
“impossible demands”
placed on women to fight aging .
of their bodies, taboo on the screens.
“It is the great tragedy of the female body in the 20th and 21st centuries.
And it's a story that we absolutely have to change
, ”insisted the actress.
More reserved reception for Lena Dunham
Saturday at Sundance was also presented in preview
Sharp Stick
which also questions the pleasure of women.
The film from
Girls
series creator Lena Dunham follows a 26-year-old woman who has yet to lose her virginity about to embark on an affair with the father of the autistic boy she is babysitting.
Her lover will introduce her to pornography.
If
Hollywood Reporter
salutes a
"singular and provocative work"
, Variety regrets
"a story that rings false or none of the pieces of the puzzle fit together".
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Another highlight of the day was the screening of the documentary series
We need to talk about Cosby.
The series, which airs on Showtime from January 30, explores the chasm between Bill Cosby's sympathetic image as "America's father" and the sexual assault accusations against him.
Sundance will deliver its winners on January 30.