January 27, 2000

Want to know the movie that's on everyone's lips at Park City this week? Get this: It isn't even playing. "Happy, Texas," the sweet-natured comedy that sparked a bidding war last year and lured Miramax into a multimillion-dollar distribution deal yet failed to earn $2 million at the box office, has become the unhappy example used to explain the lackluster reaction to this season's slate of Sundance films. Though several features have been snapped up by distributors ("Girlfight" by Screen Gems, "Two Family House" by Lions Gate, and "Groove" by Sony Pictures Classics), the feeding frenzies of previous years are nowhere to be found.

But a lack of biz drama hasn't stopped the media from descending on the fest in droves. One Sundance-affilliated employee estimated the number of reporters to filmmakers at 8 to 1. Luckily, there are plenty of celebrities wandering the streets to make MTV and "Access Hollywood" feel right at home. Eddie Furlong and main squeeze Natasha Lyonne made an appearance at the Fine Line Pictures party Wednesday afternoon; Trey Parker and Val Kilmer were spotted roaming Main Street; and Sugar Ray put on a show at Harry O's, while "Amargosa's" unsigned singer-songwriter Amy Cook created next-big-thing buzz with her eerily Shawn Colvinesque act at Mother Urban's Ratskeller.

Unfortunately, the abundance of star power both on and off screen in Park City can be a cross to bear for filmmakers trying to get their less glitzy, star-free films noticed. "Amargosa," a Slamdance documentary following the life of eccentric Death Valley artist Marta Becket, is a potential Academy Awards nominee, but that hasn't made the struggle to get the word out any easier. "It's really a shame," says writer-director Todd Robinson. "It's kind of a circus here now, not a celebration of film as much as a market. The media pulls the emphasis away from filmmakers and puts it on agents and deals and the big music shows. It wasn't like that even five years ago."...

Here is the link for this story: Entertainment Weekly