Although
it is significantly downplayed, suicide is a very present
issue in our society today. Each year, it claims the lives
of 30,000 people in the United States -- twice as many as
AIDS, and outnumbering homicides by three to two -- and
is now the 11th leading cause of death in the US. It still
remains a social taboo, but confronting said taboo is what
the film Long Time Sunshine is all about.
Paul
is stuck in crippling depression. He sleeps late each day,
and only gets out of bed to take medication that doesn't
seem to be helping. Paul even cuts his arms in a semi-serious
attempt at suicide. When his friend Steve discovers this,
he decided it's time to get Paul some help. He calls a friend
and is given the name of a man known as Dr. Bird aka "Black"
who can provide Paul with the help he needs. The two of
them then make the long journey to Black's house, but neither
one knows what may be waiting for them when they get there.
Content
Suicide
is a rather difficult subject to tackle, and as it has affected
so many people, it's very difficult to create a film that
doesn't disturb or offend a good portion of the audience.
The director has said that he considers this a very personal
film, and as such has refused to take money for the copies.
And though I don't know if this was in fact a personal experience
of his, the nature of the film seems to indicate that fact.
In which case, I think it was a good choice, as making up
a suicide story might serve to offend and/or disturb a large
number of people.
There
are a lot of elements in the film that make it look somewhat
like an art film. The takes are very long, and often nothing
seems to happen during them. For instance, the series of
scenes in which Paul and Steve are driving to see Dr. Bird.
These shot montages probably comprise over half of the entire
film, and consist mainly of music over shots of the two
characters in the car. It's difficult to tell what purpose
these montages are meant to serve, although by the end of
the film that purpose becomes a little clearer. There are
some nice moments in the driving sequence, such as when
they stop momentarily and Paul walks through the woods to
a set of railroad tracks. Or even a brief slow-motion shot
of an insect crawling on Paul's arm, then flying out of
the window.
There
are some shakey camera moves, and it looked as if the entire
film was shot handheld. The handhelds add a great visual
element, but sometimes the shake gets to be a bit much.
[Note
to the Director: If you haven't already, you
may want to check out Microfilmmaker's articles on how to
make a few different homemade
steadicams --it really comes in handy if you're wanting
to do a lot of handheld shots.]
There
are also many scenes that don't really contribute to the
film at all - such as at the beginning when Steve wakes
up on Paul's couch, goes out to his car, pulls out a makeshift
bong, and tokes on it for a few minutes. Steve's use of
pot is never brought up again in the film, and I actually
think that's unfortunate, as Paul could clearly point out
some level of Steve's hypocrisy. Steve is using drugs as
self-medication of some kind, and yet he insists that Paul
needs help while using both medication and cutting as a
way to escape his emotional pain. In addition, there's a
scene in which Steve goes outside and swims in a lake for
a while, then returns to the house.
