As Sundance 2010 continued Saturday, celebs great and small proceeded to march their way into Park City while weary journalists bravely kept up the good fight despite lack of sleep, slushy conditions, and reportedly clusterf&*^ed  press screening schedules. But even Murphy’s Law couldn’t keep folks away from the night’s biggest genre film, co-starring Ryan Reynolds and one awfully tiny casket. Meanwhile, word has it deals are looming for two horror titles, and we wonder if Microsoft’s head honcho ever wound up at Tim League’s raucous Fantastic Fest-Magnet-BSide karaoke party…

Buried Plays Midnight; Bloggers and Celebs Approve
The Iraq “buried alive” film Buried was the big genre title of the day, with star Ryan Reynolds on hand to make Park City swoon with his dreamy presence. Celebs like Bradley Cooper and Renee Zellweger were reportedly in the house to watch Reynolds attempt to pull a MacGuyver while trapped for 90 minutes in a wooden box, and in the wee hours of the night, exhausted audiences who powered through for the 11:30 pm screening came away with mostly positive buzz for the claustrophobic thriller:

“94 mins in a coffin... F-ing awesome.” – Mali Elfman, Screen Crave

“The main problem is that this is a one-character study and yet it fails what is nearly the no. 1 rule of screenwriting: The hero's actions have to be central to his fate.” – Kyle Smith, The New York Post

“Buried: in which Ryan Reynolds is underground in Iraq getting better cell service than I do in Park City.” – Katey Rich, Cinema Blend

Watch the recently-released teaser trailer for Buried, which is still looking for distribution and is directed by Rodrigo Cortes:

Deals imminent for Splice, Tucker & Dale, and Spike Jonze?
We told you yesterday about the first two Midnight selections to make a splash at Sundance, Vincenzo Natali’s Splice (Read our review here) and Eli Craig’s Tucker & Dale vs. Evil. Both films debuted to positive reviews, and by Saturday afternoon both reportedly had multiple distribution offers on the table, according to Nikki Finke’s Deadline Hollywood Daily. Meanwhile, Entertainment Weekly reports that Spike Jonze’s well-received robot short I’m Here, which opened the first day of Sundance and sent many critics’ hearts afire, will air eventually on IFC. (Yay!)

David Hyde Pierce Talks The Perfect Host
Saturday’s other genre-focused Midnight selection, The Perfect Host, stars Frasier’s David Hyde Pierce as Warwick Wilson, a seemingly “perfect host” who entertains a deceitful bank robber (Clayne Crawford) one night over dinner, until both men’s true natures are revealed. (Plot details are best kept under wraps, but suffice to say this image of Pierce wielding a fireplace poker in a bathrobe will be haunting our nightmares tonight.) Movie Geeks United caught up with Pierce this weekend to talk The Perfect Host; listen to their interview here.

Amber Benson’s Drones Plays Slamdance
Buffy alum Amber Benson’s been making the rounds in Park City, where she’s promoting Drones, a sci-fi office comedy she directed with boyfriend and fellow Buffy the Vampire Slayer actor Adam Busch. Drones stars a cast of familiar faces, including James Urbaniak, Tangi Miller, Samm Levine, Angela Bettis, Paul F. Tompkins, and Buffyverse actor Jonathan M. Woodward (Angel). Watch the trailer below.

Party Time, Excellent
As always, no matter what films are screening, some people come to town just to party. We could give a hoot about D-listers from The Hills or the Kardashian clan showing up like it’s just another night in L.A., but one celebrity Twitterer got our attention when he announced he was coming to Sundance: Bill Gates. Gates, there to support the public education documentary Waiting for Superman, even made it to the aptly-named House of Hype to party at the boisterous John Legend-The Roots show, described by The Onion AV Club’s Nathan Rabin thusly: “Bill Gates was digging that shit and dancing on a bench although homeboy couldn't even clap on beat.”

Sounds fun, but for my money I’d rather have been at the karaoke party thrown by the Alamo Drafthouse’s Tim League, apparently hosted jointly by Fantastic Fest, Magnet, B-Side, and the British Slamdance entry, Down Terrace. (via Matt Dentler)