"Informer" to Make Sundance Dance to an 80s Beat!

"The Informer," director Gregor Jordan's (Buffalo Soldiers) new picture set around early 1980s Los Angeles and based on a book of short stories by Bret Easton Ellis (Less Than Zero, American Psycho) makes its Sundance Film Festival debut on Thursday. The sexually supercharged movie stars a mostly unclad Amanda Heard, Mickey Rourke, not entirely unfamiliar with the excesses of the era and Kim Bassinger, Rourke's co-star from the classic '80s erotic thriller 9 1/2 Weeks. Billy Bob Thornton and Winona Ryder are also on board, as was Brad Renfro in his final performance before his untimely overdose at the age of 25. The New York Times has more.

Rourke Soars in Cinematic Smackdown

The New York Times' A.O. Scott grapples with The Wrestler, Darron Aronofsky's no-holds-barred look into the world of professional wrestling, starring Mickey Rourke as Randy (the Ram) Robinson an 80s squared circle superstar trying to hang on to his glory days though he feels them slipping away with every match. Marisa Tomei also stars as Candy the stripper whose lap dances and small talk Randy mistakes for true lust. The ropes between reality and professionalism bend for the characters and make for interesting parallels between the actors as well.