Last month, we kept Austin weird—now, it’s time to do the same in the Big Apple. And by “weird,” we’re talking zombie beavers, British prison inmates, northeastern drug smugglers, and Brooklyn vampires not played by Eddie Murphy—all seen in one jam-packed week.
After last month’s excellent SXSW Film Festival experience, the Complex Pop Culture team is ready to right back into that state of mind for New York City's Tribeca Film Festival (running from April 16-27). Co-founded by Robert De Niro and veteran movie producer Jane Rosenthal back in 2002, Tribeca unites next-up indie directors from all around the globe to Manhattan for nearly two weeks’ worth of DIY filmmaking. Lower Manhattan turns into a cinema haven—many up-and-coming directors’ homemade dreams become worldwide distribution realities, others retreat to trendy Chelsea-area bars to drink away the pain caused by scathing reviews, and the rest fight for any attention whatsoever.
Getting that attention will be tougher than ever, too. Once again, Tribeca’s 2014 film lineup strikes just the right balance between starrier must-sees (led by familiar faces like Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, and Elizabeth Banks) and inconspicuous debuts from the filmmakers with whom those stars will want to collaborate in the near future. But there’s something extra special about this latest movie crop. The overall quality at Tribeca seems to be at its highest caliber yet.
Hence why trimming the fest’s 100-plus features into the following list of The Most Anticipated Movies at Tribeca was comparable to pulling teeth. Which, come to think of it, could very well happen in a few of these movies. Just not the one with Keira Knightley. Because, let's be real here.
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