Sunset
War is always in the backdrop of Jamison M. LoCascio’s “Sunset.” The film begins a week after a nuclear attack on Los Angeles, and the threat of further attacks, and how retaliation will commence, is at the heart of the story LoCascio and his co-writer, Adam Ambrosio, have crafted. But the film doesn’t delve into geopolitics too much, save for a heated argument at the beginning, and the war and attacks are heard about more than seen. This is about people, and how they would react to the threat of nuclear war. That is where its heart lies, and how it engages us.
The film starts with Henry (Liam Mitchell) driving his wife, Patricia (Barbara Bleier), home. There is a surprise party waiting for her- it is her birthday, and their closest friends are there waiting for her. It isn’t a very merry occasion, however, with the backdrop of nuclear war hovering around the world. Henry gets into a debate with Julian (Austin Pendleton), an old friend of Patricia’s who still harbors love her, and Patricia calls it an early evening. Over the next few days, the nuclear threat looms over the New York area where they all live, and we see as everyone has their own reactions to the news.
If this film sounds familiar, it might be because, like me, you are a fan of the great Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, and are remembering his final film, “The Sacrifice,” which also had friends gathered for a birthday party as the specter of World War III hangs over the proceedings. Like Tarkovsky, LoCascio is not interested in the political and military machinery of war, but individual reactions to the prospect of nuclear destruction. The argument between Henry and Julian is the only moment when what a country’s response to nuclear attack is brought up, and it serves the purpose of defining character, and setting up decisions that will be made later as, when New York is seen as a target, the characters must decide whether they will be staying or going. Those are the thoughts and feelings that matter to LoCascio, and they are will matter to us.
At 84 minutes, “Sunset” is about an hour shorter than “The Sacrifice,” but we come to understand the characters as they react to the threat. Whereas Tarkovsky had his characters defined by the time the jets passed overhead, and the announcement had been made over the radio, LoCascio and Ambrosio wait until after the announcement to real dig in to who these people are. Henry and Patricia are the main people we follow on this emotional journey, but there’s also another scene with Julian and Patricia; moments with Henry and Patricia trying to explain how they’re feeling about the choices they’ve made to Chris (David Johnson), who works with Henry, and is a bit slow; and scenes as Ayden (Juri Henley-Cohn) and Breyanna (Suzette Gunn), also friends of Henry and Patricia, have very different reactions to the danger. As we see them react, we understand why they make the choices they make, and honestly, we can’t really blame any of them. The film lacks the depth and spiritual nature of Tarkovsky, but the drama is palpable, and the emotions are deeply felt. “Sunset” captures all of the right moments to draw us in, and make us care, and think about what we will hopefully never have to experience ourselves.
"Sunset" Official Trailer from Halcyon Valor Productions Inc. on Vimeo.
