Sasquatch Sunset unique elements flew under the radar until its release at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, evoking strong responses from audiences, mostly positive. Since its initial release, some of its “secrets” have been shared but it is still a film that can not be fully understood until it is seen. Jesse Eisenberg, Riley Keough, Christophe Zajac-Denek, and Nathan Zellner play a family of sasquatches living free in Northern California as they are followed through one year of their lives.
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As one would expect, Sasquatch Sunset is low on dialogue and heavy on physical acting from its performers. Glimpses of a film focusing on family, pain, death, and community told in a surreal manner was provided, however the film did not fully capitalize on its strengths.
It is clear that Sasquatch Sunset was intended to be a slightly experimental film banking on the comedy unfolding between the family of sasquatches. As one may expect being part ape, the family does their fair share of farting, pooping, and other physical actions that fall under the sex/bathroom humor genre. It makes sense in the context of the story that these actions would be normal for such creatures and being a close-knit family would make a lot of these actions communal.
However the extensive use of this humor makes up a large portion of the film. Thus, if it is not the type of humor one gravitates towards, it can be difficult to sift through these scenes to get to the larger ideas the Zellner’s set forth. The film feels choppy because of the immense distinction between its comedic and dramatic sequences that do not blend but feel scattered without coming together fluently.
However, David and Nathan Zellner’s direction in the way Sasquatch Sunset is shot had its beautiful moments. The woodland forest scenery the sasquatch family calls home feels calming and quiet, allowing its members to engage with one another and their surroundings freely. In this, the film displays the relaxed feel of nature and the natural dangers that transcend past humans to all creatures in the wild.
Witnessing how nature and nurture interact with one another through a set of creatures that have characteristics of both humans and animals speak more to the state of parental influence and family values that stay with children as they grow. In these moments, this movie reaches its peak.
The comedic moments that worked best were the ones rooted in genuine curiosity among the sasquatches regarding their surroundings and each other. For example, in one sequence the family witnesses a road for the first time, amazed by how vast it is no matter what side they turn to. This is the type of humor that personally worked best in the context of the story.
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There is certainly a tender tale at the root of Sasquatch Sunset that is seen through the cracks of some of the more “humorous” prolonged sequences. Seeing more of this would have made the film stronger even if it maintained a fraction of its body humor. This film will be loved by many and may not work for others but it goes without saying it is a risk the Zellner’s were willing to take that filmmakers rarely attempt.
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