Another outdoor adventure appealed to me when I saw that Sasquatch Sunset was available to watch.  Being a big Abominable Snowman / Yeti / Bigfoot fan — I once did an article on Yeti movies (Volume 2, Issue 3, Winter 2001) — it was inevitable that I would see this.  I have to admit that nothing prepared me for this movie, because it is the most unique AS / Y/ B tale that one could imagine.  And it isn’t for everybody — mainstream film fans will probably feel it is too weird to watch.

David and Nathan Zellner’s movie takes place in the Pacific Northwest sometime during the 1990s, as a quartet of Sasquatches roam the forest.  And that’s pretty much all they do; the four Sasquatches (Jesse Eisenberg, Riley Keough, Nathan Zellner and Christophe Zajac-Denek, all in full costume) simply move from meadow to meadow through forests and across streams looking for food and doing the elemental things that Sasquatches do.  All without dialogue.

I usually find movies with “gimmicks” like this tiresome and irritating.  I didn’t feel that way about this movie.  There is real technique and skill involved in pantomiming communication and emotion without dialogue and this cast does a fine job.  This Sasquatch group is relatable, kind of fun to watch, eventually pitiable.  Tragedy follows them through the forests, perhaps emphasizing the idea that they are out of time, a phrase with multiple meanings.  I loved seeing the various animals which casually, naturally share the frame with them.  The scenery is beautiful and the film develops and sustains the illusion that they are all alone in the world for a long time.

Still, it’s weird.  Watching the cast eat the vegetation and the bugs made my stomach ache, even if it was fake.  The film is very sexual and scatological, showing things that most audiences have not seen or don’t care to, but which seem to be perfectly natural in the Sasquatch world.  It’s also charming and even funny at times, and as an experiment proves that it can be done and done well.  It’s just not for everybody.  ☆ ☆ 1/2.  9 April 2025.