Sundown
A wealthy vacationer’s evasive response to a family emergency turns sunlit Acapulco into a study of illness, privilege, and moral withdrawal.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Slow
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- eerie
- austere
- paranoid
- quiet evening
- arthouse film night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised Michel Franco's austere existential drama, especially Tim Roth's acclaimed performance and its unsettling emotional ambiguity, while finding its meaning deliberately opaque.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Neil's behavior during the family's emergency foregrounds selfishness, secrecy, and refusal of expected familial duty.
The Bennett family's luxury vacation and Neil's ability to evade consequences sharpen the film's critique of wealth and social protection.
The film's slow, gently suspenseful progression and emotionally opaque protagonist make uncertainty itself the primary source of tension.
The vacation's routine surface is disrupted by a distant emergency, revealing simmering tensions and hidden personal agendas.
Films like Sundown, and why
The Stranger
shared existential drama, moral disengagement, emotional austerity, and a detached central protagonist
The Killing of a Sacred Deer
shared affluent-family dysfunction, psychological mystery, understated suspense, and social unease
The Square
shared wealthy characters, moral ambiguity, quiet dread, and corrosive family relationships
45 Years
shared minimalist drama, emotional alienation, privileged characters, and bleakly observational tone
Movie Details
- Director
- Michel Franco
- Release Date
- 2022-01-28
- Runtime
- 82 min
- Rating
- 6.2 / 10 (227)
Cast
- Tim Roth
- Charlotte Gainsbourg
- Iazua Larios
- Henry Goodman
- Albertine Kotting McMillan
- Samuel Bottomley
- Godriyah Faoziati
- Ely Guerra
- James Tarpey
- Roberto Medina
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Sundown about?
- A wealthy vacationer’s evasive response to a family emergency turns sunlit Acapulco into a study of illness, privilege, and moral withdrawal.
- What is Sundown like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Sundown as slow, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Sundown violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Sundown as mild.
- What did critics think of Sundown?
- Critics broadly praised Michel Franco's austere existential drama, especially Tim Roth's acclaimed performance and its unsettling emotional ambiguity, while finding its meaning deliberately opaque.
- Which films are like Sundown?
- Films with a similar feel include The Stranger, The Killing of a Sacred Deer, The Square, and 45 Years.
- How long is Sundown?
- Sundown runs 82 minutes.
- Where can I watch Sundown?
- In United States, Sundown streams on Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads.
