Sundance review: 'Bunnylovr' has some rough bits, but it's a strong statement of a drama for writer-director-star Katarina Zhu

A couple years from now, you’re likely to hear about some new movie by a talented filmmaker and actor named Katarina Zhu — and the well-constructed drama “Bunnylovr” is the calling card that will get Zhu that movie.

Zhu plays Rebecca, a New Yorker with an unexciting day job as some rich guy’s personal assistant and a more exciting side gig: As a cam girl, streaming herself on a porn website, taking requests for actions from viewers in the chat room — for tips, of course. It’s a world that’s both intimate and anonymous, with Rebecca and her viewers all identified by their screen handles.

As Rebecca tries to maintain this double life, other things threaten to disrupt that balance. She’s still obsessed with her ex, Carter (Jack Kilmer), as her artist best friend Bella (Rachel Sennott) is working to set her up with someone new and nice. In Chinatown, Rebecca runs into her estranged father, William (Perry Yung), who wants her help with an old scam — standing behind William’s opposition in a card game, feeding William information on his opponents’ cards via hand signals.

The strangest wrinkle of all comes from one determined fan on Rebecca’s streaming account. He pays handsomely for private chats, then offers her a mysterious gift — which turns out to be a live rabbit, which Rebecca is reluctant to keep. What follows is a struggle for control of this situation, with the client seemingly in command — because he is in charge of something Rebecca wants: Access to his webcam, to get a look at who’s given her a rabbit.

Zhu as a director has a sharp eye for telling details, particularly in the transactional mechanics of Rebecca’s porn gig. Her script as serviceable for a first-timer, if a little thin. Her performance, trying to keep all the plates in her life spinning, is eye-opening, the sort of new talent the Sundance Film Festival is designed to showcase.

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‘Bunnylovr’

★★★

Screening in the U.S. Dramatic competition of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Screens again: Monday, January 27, noon, Broadway 3, Salt Lake City; Thursday, January 30, 5:20 p.m., Redstone 3, Park City. Online screenings Thursday, January 30, 8 a.m. to Sunday, February 2, 11:55 p.m. (All times Mountain time zone.) Not rated, but probably R for strong sexuality, language and suggestions of violence. Running time: 86 minutes.