Sundance Pundit Poll: What Are Your Three Must-Sees?

Here at Movieline HQ we like to keep our fingers on the pulse of the film world, so we'll be polling film critics and bloggers in Park City on a variety of topics throughout the week. Check in each day to hear what our panel of experts have to say about the hot films, deals, and stories coming out of Sundance '11... starting with Day 1's Big Question: Which three films do you refuse to leave Park City without having seen?

Peruse the picks of our Sundancing friends and keep an eye on Movieline's continuing coverage on Twitter here.

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James Rocchi, @JamesRocchi

Critic and Columnist, MSN Movies

Three Must-Sees:

The Greatest Story Ever Sold -- Morgan Spurlock's last film, Where in

the World Is Osama bin Laden, mis-fired with audiences; can the court

jester of the over-corporatized age get his mojo back?

The Cinema Hold-Up -- I've had great luck with meta-movies like Brick

and The Escapist and The Missing Person at Sundance over the years;

this Mexican crime story has hints of that vibe in its pitch.

Take Shelter -- Michael Shannon as a man plagued by visions of the end

of the world. Catnip for lovers of great acting.

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Edward Douglas, @EDouglasWW

Associate Editor, Coming Soon

Three Must-Sees:

Fortunately, I'm all set to see all of them which would be Miranda July's The Future -- I absolutely loved Me and You and Everyone We Know; just rewatched it and it really stands up to the test of time and multiple viewings; Kevin Smith's Red State, more for the curiosity factor -- whatever you want to say about Smith he's a good writer and I'd love to see what he does with the horror genre; and Thomas McCarthy's Win Win, just because I love his cast and his sensibilities. Since I'm seeing all three of these in the next 36 hours, I guess I can be dragged kicking and screening out of Park City on Monday and be satisfied.

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Eric Kohn, @erickohn

Lead Film Critic, IndieWire

Three Must-Sees:

Having already seen the phenomenal Martha Marcy May Marlene, I'm committed to keeping Teri, Take Shelter and Page One on my schedule for the following reasons: Azazel Jacoobs's Momma's Man wowed me a few years back so I'm excited to see what he does with a slightly larger budget and a star in Teri; Take Shelter reunites the great Shotgun Stories team of director Jeff Nichols and Michael Shannon; Page One grapples the so-called death of old media through the lens of the paper of record, a matter that concerns all of us.

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Jenni Miller, @jennimiller76

Contributing writer, Cinematical

Three Must-Sees:

Submarine -- Aside from my love of Richard Ayoade's work in The IT Crowd, The Mighty Boosh and Garerth Merenghi's Darkplace, I've heard nothing but great things about this movie and his talent as a director. I also adore Sally Hawkins, who has a small part in Submarine and personally vouched for his awesomeness as a director and human.

The Future -- Miranda July is delicious in any format, and the fact that this movie is narrated by a cat seals the deal.

Higher Ground -- Vera Farmiga is a brilliant performer, and I look forward to seeing her directorial debut. I also really enjoy movies about cults, so there's that too.

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Ray Pride, @raypride

Movie City News

Three Must-Sees:

Interrupters: Director Steve James is a consummate observer and collaborator, and his work with nonfiction ace Alex Kotlowitz holds promise. Its running time (161 minutes by one report) suggests the Kartemquin crew is going for the same kind of observational, longitudinal work like Hoop Dreams.

HERE: Braden King's earlier work, including Dutch Harbor, builds off rhythmic accretion, a sense of the land, a drenching sonic texture. Why not make a movie about a geolocator gone astray in Armenia?

The Redemption Of General Butt Naked: Two years ago, one of the co-directors told me the story at a Sundance event in 2008. My reaction was physical: I leapt up and looked around the room for people to introduce her to. The title is provocative, but the tale, well, if it matches what I heard.

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Fred Topel, @fredtopel

Entertainment Correspondent, Screen Junkies

Three Must-Sees:

Hobo with a Shotgun, Red State and My Idiot Brother. Really just Hobo because it has the chance to be outrageous and fun. Pure awesome with no pretension. The others also fall in line as potential crowd pleasing events. Hobo is the kind of high concept indie filmmakers should strive for though.

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Mali Elfman, @malielfman

Editor, ScreenCrave

Three Must-Sees:

The Greatest Movie Ever Sold: Morgan Spurlock has yet to fail us, now he's taking on the drama of Hollywood, and I can't wait to see what he digs up. Red State: The most secretive, talked about film at the festival, with Kevin Smith taking on a serious subject matter, with real actors, and pissing off Christians. Yay! Win Win: Frankly when Paul Giamatti is on screen it's always a win, win... count me in!

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Alonso Duralde, @ADuralde

DVD Editor, Movieline

Three Must-Sees:

Red State, My Idiot Brother, and Shut Up Little Man!

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