Sunset
Director: Jamison M. LoCascio
Writers; Adam Ambrosio, Jamison M. LoCascio
Stars: Austin Pendleton, Suzette GunnJuri, Henley-Cohn
Rated: 3 Stars (6 stars on IMDB)
Review by: AstilbeA diverse group of people grapple with the imminent probability of a nuclear strike on the east coast.
What would you do differently if you thought your life might be in danger?
Some of my favorite scenes were the ones that showed how complex relationships can be. For example, an offhand remark can really sting even if the person saying it was trying to be funny, and someone’s childhood experiences can still affect them decades later. The director and writers did a good job of exploring these topics in ways that also tied into the main storyline even when I didn’t originally think there would be much of a connection between them at all.
I would have liked to see more character development in this film, especially when it came to their pasts and how they all met. There were a few scenes that lightly touched on this subject, but I was still left with many questions about why certain characters behaved the way that they did. For example, Chris’ rough childhood seemed like it could have provided a lot of fodder for both the troubled relationship he had with alcohol that was obvious from the very first scene to how he ended up living with Henry and Patricia as their surrogate child.
The dialogue was fast-paced and topical. It was especially interesting to see how everyone reacted to the possibility of their neighbourhood being attacked by a nuclear weapon. Planning an evacuation is more complicated than it may seem, especially for people who are physically disabled or have other things going on in their lives that make it difficult to travel. The opening scene did a particularly good job of using dialogue to introduce everyone and share hints about what they were openly, or sometimes quietly, struggling with in their lives before the public service announcements began.
Sunset was a thought-provoking story.
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