
Sunrise should have opted for more character depth than such generic dialogues but I appreciate the direction of the movie. Its dark gritty realism vaguely reminded me of Near Dark which is quite possibly the best vampire flick ever made. Unfortunately, that does not happen nearly enough. Once again, we’re in a place of darkness, a place where hatred can fester, and it’s not always the supernatural that does the reaping. I argue that the best elements of both genres in “Sunrise” were somewhat engaging as the character racists are pitted against bloodsuckers and I hate to slap at the director, but the film is more often than not about a MAGA monster that drowns an immigrant family in brutality which thought up vampire story and slapped it on, nut unsuccessfully. It tries to pull at various threads about outsiders being forced out of a place that was open to them but it was clumsy at being subtle when it needed to be and I think it hid too many things that could have been highlighted. The movie was a depressing funeral song of a film with an engaging performance from Guy Pearce who was wasted. When there were so many ideas hidden under the surface of the film.
Seems like it’s effortless for Pearce to play almost any part, and he embraces the deeply flawed Reynolds who comes on screen welcoming you with a mouthful of racial slurs. Among his finest moments, however, is a scene in which a polemic speech is delivered, particularly one about men cultivating the land and protecting the homeland. Pearce has a knack for a particular inadequacy of the character, which is that of a self-defeated man, who regards every trouble that befalls him as a conspiracy against him, and frequently takes liberties of a very forcible nature that he believes is his as a privileged white male. It’s not just how bad of a racist or a brute he is, there’s an air of self-pity around the character that Pearce tackles perfectly Reynolds is that kind of a man who, when asked to make America strong again, doesn’t need to be told why the present one has no place for him.
Of course, men like Reynolds feel insulted at the very mention of an immigrant family that has a place in their town, the Loi family. This family is portrayed as murderous villains in this scene as they bull-doze over Chike Chan, the main male character. Edward, the son of Yan, is portrayed by William Gao as a socially ostracized child. Yan, whose character is easily remembered as the mother of Edward and portrayed as Crystal Yu, appears to be in a never ending battle against existential conditions. They end up taking custody of Fallon, who is arguably the most complex and quiet character in cinematic history, played by Alex Pettyfer. However, he also happens to be a bitter man with a vendetta against Reynolds, making him interesting through his anger. In “Sunrise,” Pettyfer sulks as he plays a tired character who barely speaks and acts more through his eyes which are constantly icy and distant.
“Sunrise” is the sort of film that I thought would never come to an end as I kept wondering how much longer it would drag. There’s one strong performance here but nothing else to hold on to in a film that never comes together thematically or narratively. (I am also hesitant about how to manage my expectations about the whole thing as it does look fantastic for some reason with over-the-top lighting and a complete dearth of tactile depth that this cross-over flick so desperately requires). It’s a pretty crufty film, with too many works in progress, with the feeling that the short has been extended into feature-length for the sake of it. It is a movie that absolutely kills time trying to get to the closing credits.
For more movies like Sunrise visit 123movies