Mads Mikkelsen and Sigourney Weaver star in the delightfully deranged Dust Bunny, the feature film debut from writer/director Bryan Fuller.
Writer/director Bryan Fuller has made big swing television. Wonderfalls. Pushing Daisies. Hannibal. It should surprise no one familiar with his unique vision that his debut feature film Dust Bunny, is as big a swing as anything he did on television. The film starring Mads Mikkelson and Sigourney Weaver is the kind of debut film in the same visually impressive genre-bending vein as the work of Jean Pierre Jeunet or Guillermo Del Toro. Part action. Part comedy. Part dark fairy tale. All Bryan Fuller.
Eight-year-old Auroa (Sophie Sloan) has the biggest problem that hides under her bed. That problem is a monster that has killed not one, two, but three of her foster parents. This kind of drastic problem calls for a drastic solution. That solution comes in the form of a hitman, or as Auroa sees it, a “monster killer” who happens to be her neighbor (Mikkelsen). Auroa refuses to take no for an answer from her neighbor, who indulges her flights of fancy, quickly realizing that there may be someone after her. Could it be his contact (Weaver) who doesn’t like him off task? Or is it the stranger (David Dastmalchian) they meet at the local dim sum restaurant? Or is it the social worker (Shelia Atim) who comes to find Auroa and her parents?
Part of the devilish delight of Fuller’s film is the surprises placed in plain sight that the story holds. The witty screenplay is matched by the sumptuous world created by Fuller, cinematographer Nicole Hirsch Whitaker, art director Adrienn Antal-Fogel, and production designer Jeremy Reed. The game cast, headed by Mikkelsen, understands the tone to play everything at. Though the biggest surprise is young Sophie Sloan, whose Auroa carries much of the film. This magic trick of a film works because of the work Sloan does.
Dust Bunny is the kind of eight-course meal that does not skim on calories. At every turn, there is something to delight in as a movie fan. Few, if any, films this year will awe you with their imagination, dark humor, heart, and love of pure invention.
Mads Mikkelsen and Sigourney Weaver star in the delightfully deranged Dust Bunny, the feature film debut from writer/director Bryan Fuller.
Writer/director Bryan Fuller has made big swing television. Wonderfalls. Pushing Daisies. Hannibal. It should surprise no one familiar with his unique vision that his debut feature film Dust Bunny, is as big a swing as anything he did on television. The film starring Mads Mikkelson and Sigourney Weaver is the kind of debut film in the same visually impressive genre-bending vein as the work of Jean Pierre Jeunet or Guillermo Del Toro. Part action. Part comedy. Part dark fairy tale. All Bryan Fuller.
Eight-year-old Auroa (Sophie Sloan) has the biggest problem that hides under her bed. That problem is a monster that has killed not one, two, but three of her foster parents. This kind of drastic problem calls for a drastic solution. That solution comes in the form of a hitman, or as Auroa sees it, a “monster killer” who happens to be her neighbor (Mikkelsen). Auroa refuses to take no for an answer from her neighbor, who indulges her flights of fancy, quickly realizing that there may be someone after her. Could it be his contact (Weaver) who doesn’t like him off task? Or is it the stranger (David Dastmalchian) they meet at the local dim sum restaurant? Or is it the social worker (Shelia Atim) who comes to find Auroa and her parents?
Part of the devilish delight of Fuller’s film is the surprises placed in plain sight that the story holds. The witty screenplay is matched by the sumptuous world created by Fuller, cinematographer Nicole Hirsch Whitaker, art director Adrienn Antal-Fogel, and production designer Jeremy Reed. The game cast, headed by Mikkelsen, understands the tone to play everything at. Though the biggest surprise is young Sophie Sloan, whose Auroa carries much of the film. This magic trick of a film works because of the work Sloan does.
Dust Bunny is the kind of eight-course meal that does not skim on calories. At every turn, there is something to delight in as a movie fan. Few, if any, films this year will awe you with their imagination, dark humor, heart, and love of pure invention.
Dust Bunny is in theaters on December 12th
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