THE '80s ARE BACK...AGAIN The Reagan era is well represented this year, not only by Finn Taylor's dazzling ''Cherish'' -- in which Robin Tunney is haunted by a Hall & Oates-obsessed stalker -- but by former karate kid Ralph Macchio, who makes his directorial debut with the well-received 9-minute comedic short, ''Love Thy Brother.'' ''It's the perfect time for me to be here,'' says the 40-year-old Macchio, who still possesses an uncanny, Dick Clark-like ability to defy aging. ''I've always wanted to come, but I never thought it was right to come without a film. If you're an actor here without a film, it's kind of sad.''
THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT Sundance has always drawn a young, hip crowd, but several breakout stars this year are barely old enough to go out and shovel snow off Redford's driveway. There's the Teen People-friendly ensemble cast of ''The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys,'' which stars Kieran Culkin, Emile Hirsch and Jena Malone as rebellious private-school students; Alicia Fulford-Wierzbicki and Aaron Murphy, who play siblings coming to terms with their parents' slowly degenerating relationship in ''Rain''; and Agnes Bruckner, whose performance in the coming-of-age drama ''Blue Car'' is getting the Next Big Thing buzz.
'SUMMER' LOVIN' The ''Project Greenlight''/''Stolen Summer'' mini-phenomenon continues, as the bittersweet family comedy by Pete Jones -- the ''Greenlight'' contest winner whose first foray into filmmaking has been chronicled on the weekly HBO series -- leaves curiosity seekers Jonesing for tickets. ''I get the feeling the other filmmakers here are happy for me,'' says the director, who beat out hundreds of aspiring aueturs for the chance-of-a-lifetime gig. ''But maybe I'm just being naive. I've been told that hundreds of times.''
Coming on Monday, Jan. 21: EW.com's Sundance Festival wrap-up
Related Sites: Get more Sundance coverage on CNN.com and InStyle.com
