In today’s episode of “What the Hell Did I Just Watch?”, we’re going to take a look at what may be the strangest movie of the year, the newest film from the writer-director-brother team of David and Nathan Zellner (Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter), Sasquatch Sunset.
Sasquatch Sunset is about a herd of sasquatches (Tribe of sasquatches? School of sasquatches?) that lives in the woods of North America. The movie is basically a year-in-the-life of the group as they deal with both the basics of daily survival and the encroachment of Man upon their home territories.
That’s it. There’s isn’t much more of a plot to Sasquatch Sunset beyond that. Well, there is a story to it, and even an arc, but all of it seems like it was made more from a basic plot outline than an actual script. From an aesthetic standpoint, it’s a beautifully made movie. The breathtaking Humboldt County locations are wonderfully captured by cinematographer Mike Gioulakis (It Follows, Us, Old) and the images are accompanied by a score from The Octopus Project (who has scored most of the Zellners’ work) that is both folksy and dark. The film has the feel of a nature documentary.
At least, it does to an extent. There’s no overdubbed narration like that which would be found on Nat Geo. In fact, there is no dialogue at all – the bigfoots (Bigfeet?) communicate with grunts and hoots, sort of like gorillas. Speaking of the sasquatches, two are played by A-listers Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network) and Riley Keough (Mad Max: Fury Road), with Christophe Zajac-Denek (Twin Peaks) and director Nathan Zellner portraying the other two. Not that anyone can tell, as everyone is in heavy sasquatch makeup. That’s a lot of talent to be hiding, especially without any spoken lines, but it really shows what the actors can do with basically just their eyes showing and their bodies moving.
It probably goes without saying that Sasquatch Sunset is a weird little movie. It boils down to being a family drama, with the sasquatches managing through their day-to-day life. Once the intrusion of man is introduced, it turns into a The Gods Must Be Crazy type of scenario, with the hairy beasts being equally confused and threatened by what they are experiencing.
And this leads to some of the more memorable bits in the movie. The first time the family sees their familiar trees painted with the unfamiliar red X that marks them for logging, they don’t know what to make of it. That’s nothing compared to their reaction after they wander a bit from their home and stumble across a logging road. It’s almost like the group is becoming a fish out of water while still in the comfort of their water.
So, on top of being a simultaneously hilarious and heartbreaking tale of a family in flux, Sasquatch Sunset has an ecological bend to it. It makes statements, both subtle and heavy-handed, about the concept of Leave No Trace and the deforestation of the American Northwest. For a silly little movie about four sasquatches doing sasquatch things in the woods, it really does make its audience think.
One thing that is worth noting going in is that if it weren’t for the costuming, Sasquatch Sunset would probably earn an X rating. There is full frontal nudity of both genders of Sasquatch, with the males being more…obvious. There’s nothing titillating about it, but it doesn’t quite have the nature documentary feel of the rest of the movie. It’s actually hysterical, in an immature Beavis and Butt-Head kind of way. But yeah. You get to see Bigfoot dong. Uh huh, heh heh.
Ultimately, Sasquatch Sunset is not going to be for everyone. It’s an oddball flick. But it does know its audience, and it gives them what they want. And, at 89 minutes, it gives them just enough of it – no more, no less. There’s laughter, tears, and anger. And who knows? You may even learn a thing or two before it’s done.
GRADE: B
MPAA Rating: R for bloody images, some sexual content, and full nudity
Release Date: April 12, 2024
Distributor: Bleecker Street
