DebraGranik-ParkerPosey(Winter’s Bone director Debra Granik accepts her award from Parker Posey)

Roadside Attractions bought the distribution rights for Winter’s Bone for the low to mid six figures, with plans for a theatrical release this summer, according to Deadline Hollywood.  Winter’s Bone was probably the best film I saw at Sundance (if perhaps not as fun as Hesher) and it’s criminal that Lionsgate spent 10 times as much on Ryan Reynolds’ awful, 90-minute torture porn.  God that movie sucked.  Anyway, Winter’s Bone also took home Grand Jury Prize in Drama.  Here are the rest of the awards:

  • Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic – Winter’s Bone
  • Grand Jury Prize: Documentary – Restrepo (Didn’t see it, heard it’s a fantastic, intense Afghan-war documentary)
  • Audience Award: U.S. Dramatic – HappyThankYouMorePlease
  • Audience Award: U.S. Documentary – Waiting for Superman (No, it has nothing to do with Superman)
  • Cinema Audience Award: Dramatic – Contracorriente
  • World Cinema Audience Award: Documentary – Waste Land, about the world’s largest landfill
  • World Cinema Jury Prize: Dramatic – Animal Kingdom, about the Australian underworld.  Really wanted to see this one.
  • World Cinema Jury Prize: Documentary – The Red Chapel

Full list here.   Other notes:

Josh Radnor, writer-director for Audience Award: Dramatic winner Happythankyoumoreplease, countered the perception that his charming crowd-pleaser didn’t fit into the Festival’s call for a “cinematic rebellion.” “I think it is rebellious,” he said, “because it’s about people saying no to cynicism, and saying yes to love.”

Hold on, what’s that?  Right, it’s the sound of millions of people all over the world dismissively wanking simultaneously.  Speaking of which, just for a laugh, let’s revisit the official theme of this year’s Sundance Film Festival:

REBEL. This is the renewed rebellion. This is the recharged fight against the establishment of the expected. This is the rebirth of the battle for brave new ideas. This is sundance, reminded.

And keep in mind, this was everywhere.  On posters, playing on a scroll before movies — they were even selling Rebel baby onesies for $25.   Either that’s another genius piece of subversive humor from the Miracle Whip marketing department, or someone in a Che shirt and keffiyah scarf is in serious need of a swirly.