Sundance: Forgiven
Monday night, January 23, 2006. This one wins, in my opinion. Though it didn’t actually clear any official Jury awards at Sundance, Forgiven, was the best film at the fest in my opinion as well as that of my festival-going gang, Kelly, Molly and Molly. Writer, director and star Paul Fitzgerald delivered an amazing political thriller about a bible-beating politician and his face-to-face run-in with his past. The film features a standout performance by Don Henderson Baker as a recently pardoned death row inmate who was originally convicted by Fitzgerald’s character Jake Miles. This film hits on all levels: story, acting, plot and provocativeness. The scene that transpires about 2/3 of the way through the film, set in an unfinished home construction site, is one of the tensest and well-delivered 10 minutes of film I’ve seen. A modern day Greek tragedy, complete with political ambition, family drama, and the utterly intertwined fate of two seemingly disparate individuals, this film may catch some slack for its overt political leanings, but to me it is a timely and needed comment on a society that seems to find value in leaders who are unable to admit faults when they occur.
