The Sun Never Sets
In Joe Swanberg’s new film “The Sun Never Sets,” Wendy and Jack have been happily dating for the past two years. Wendy is a wonderful stepmom to Jack’s two elementary-aged children, and they adore her. Jack has a good career in finance, and Wendy is part of a construction crew in their home city of Anchorage. But Wendy still feels life is passing her by – particularly when her best friend Lindsay announces she’s pregnant with her first child. Wendy laments that she always hoped the two of them could cross that milestone together. But you see, Jack doesn’t want any more kids. He’s perfectly happy with the two from his previous marriage. So, even though Jack and Wendy are in love, what exactly is their future together?
The plot set-up
Early one summer, Jack (played with great earnestness by Jake Johnson) suggests Wendy (Dakota Fanning) take the summer and play the field a little. In his mind, she’d have a few ill-fated first dates, realize Jack is the one for her, and come back to him in September. She’s not entirely sold on the plan, as it sounds better on paper than she imagines it would work in real life. But Jack has an inherent need to over-analyze everything, and his constant aggrandizement is reminiscent of Greg Kinnear’s father character from “Little Miss Sunshine.”
Wendy reluctantly goes along with the plan, but then unexpectedly meets up with old flame Chuck, a small-plane pilot who transports the well to do all over Southern Alaska. Unlike Jack, Chuck shares Wendy’s interests and they reconnect so well you can feel the sparks fly. But not wanting to upset the proverbial apple cart, Wendy tells Jack about her affair with Chuck, only for Jack to realize his mistake. She really could leave him for someone else. And this is the set-up for a surprisingly refreshing film about modern-day romance.
Adult characters
And I say modern-day because these characters are adults. Swanberg writes them as adults in his original screenplay. Everything is on the table here. Jack knows about Wendy’s hook-up with Chuck. Wendy knows when Jack begins seeing someone else. She even confides in Jack’s first wife. There’s no sneaking around here. Perhaps that’s part of the impetus for the Anchorage setting. All the characters seem to know (or know of) one another. This isn’t New York, where a million others live within walking distance.
The cast
As Wendy, Dakota Fanning carries the film in what is perhaps her best performance yet. Johnson is properly annoying as Jack, yet he infuses just the right amount of pathos into the role. And Cory Michael Smith (who has appeared in darn near all Todd Haynes’ films) makes the most of the Chuck character. He’s earnest and, unlike Jack, completely non-judgmental, but he doesn’t have two sticks to rub together. And seemingly no way to ever advance up the corporate ladder. Or heck, even join the corporate ladder.
The conundrum
So, what is Wendy to do? Go back to the financial stability and ready-made family of a life with Jack? Or take a chance on a more fun and exciting life with Chuck, even though she would never be financially stable? It’s a conundrum for the ages, and here it’s treated with the utmost respect. Again, these characters are adults. And Swanberg’s screenplay doesn’t venture into the realm of comedy the way it would in the hands of Neil Simon or Woody Allen. There are a couple funny lines, but this is an engaging drama about young love in the outpost of Anchorage.
Anchorange
And the setting is important, not simply for the small-town, anti-New York environment. The title refers to the fact that the sun never (or rarely) sets during an Alaskan summer, but also that the sun never sets on a relationship. Even Jack and his ex (Anna Konkle) continue to communicate, particularly about the kids. And that is as it should be in a healthy relationship. These characters aren’t backbiting cads. And that’s why “refreshing” is the word that immediately pops into my head as a description of “The Sun Never Sets.”
Refreshing
To tell any more would be to give away too much plot. Suffice to say this is a small picture that probably won’t make anyone’s Top Ten Lists for 2026. But it’s certainly better than most junk coming out of Hollywood these days. “The Sun Never Sets” is certainly worth checking out – particularly for those tired of the big-budget superhero flicks and shoot-em-ups. It’s a concise, likeable film which deserves not to be lost in the shuffle.
Andy Ray‘s reviews also appear on https://townepost.com/tag/film-review/