Four days down and I had yet to catch a film in the fest's dramatic competition section (those are the ones eligible for the big awards). So I made up for it on Monday by catching four in a row.

The best of the bunch was "Phoebe in Wonderland," a strong contender for the dramatic competition's audience award (judging by positive buzz Katrina doc "Trouble the Water" seems to have the documentary competition audience award all sewn up).

"Phoebe" features two career high performances from two very different actresses. Elle Fanning (she's Dakota's little sister) has a true breakthrough role as the title character, a 9-year-old girl with a vivid imagination and obsessive compulsive tendencies. Felicity Huffman is equally impressive as Phoebe's mother, who worries that her daughter's quirks may be a reaction to her own failure as a parent.

Blending realism with fantasy in a manner that seems deeply personal, filmmaker Daniel Barnz's debut initially appears a bit too precious but it becomes more complex and darker as it progresses, without ever losing its way. In his pre-screening introduction Barnz said he began working on the screenplay before Fanning was even born.

People complain about how commercial Sundance has become, with studio vehicles masquerading as indies, but if the alternative is a festival made up of "authentic indie" films like "North Starr," I'll take Hollywood's professionally crafted, competently acted pseudo-indies any day.

The lackluster entry about racism in the South is nothing more than a seriously overlong student film (most movies here are in the 90 minute range—this was 120). But the problem doesn't lie with the filmmakers (they're inexperienced, so what? They're not alone).  The problem is the decision to slot "North Starr" into competition at a premiere film festival. It simply doesn't belong.

Of course just having name actors in your film doesn't mean it's going to succeed, as demonstrated by two other competition titles "Downloading Nancy" and "The Mysteries of Pittsburgh."

"Nancy" especially is very close to a trainwreck with its aggressively nihilistic approach to the story of a very damaged woman (Maria Bello) who connects with a dangerous stranger (Jason Patric) over the Internet to escape a husband (Rufus Sewell) who ignores her. It's suffocating and pointless.

"Pittsburgh" isn't quite as bad. Based on a novel by Michael Chabon (who also wrote "Wonder Boys"), it follows an unusual love triangle between three friends (Jon Foster, Sienna Miller and Peter Sarsgaard) in the summer of 1983.

It starts off like a quirky slacker movie in the vein of "Garden State" but by the time of an elaborate car chase in the third act, you're not quite sure what kind of movie you're watching. Punk rock, bisexuality and the mafia all play some role and the result is sporadically entertaining but not much more.

Both of my out of competition screenings were better, though "Smart People" is one of those movies that's more impressed with itself than it should be.

The unconventional romantic comedy stars Dennis Quaid as a self-absorbed college professor, Sarah Jessica Parker as a former student who re-enters his life, Thomas Haden Church as his slacker brother and Ellen Page as Quaid's overachieving Young Republican daughter.

Parker is actually the standout among the talented cast, mostly because her character feels least like the product of an overly-ambitious screenwriter. The movie aims for a "Sideways" sort of tone and though it falls short it's still mostly enjoyable.

Finally, "Red" may be one of the strangest non-experimental films in this year's fest. Bolstered by a stunning star turn by character actor Brian Cox, as an aging widower looking for justice (but not vengeance) after the cruel killing of his beloved dog, the film is close to unclassifiable. Suspense? Mystery? Drama? Contemporary Western? It's a little of all of that.

Consequently it's probably a long shot for theatrical distribution, but should drum up some cult support when it hits cable and DVD. And it's exactly the kind of oddball film worthy of any boost festival exposure can provide.