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Tension aplenty in ‘That Evening Sun’
The layers of tension that envelop the brilliant “That Evening Sun” could suffocate the hardiest of men.
And that’s what ultimately dooms Abner Meecham (portrayed by Hal Holbrook, an octogenarian experiencing a most impressive career Renaissance), a proud landowner of salty Southern stock who “escapes” a nursing home and returns to his acreage in East Tennessee. Problem is, that land has been sold by Meecham’s lawyer son to a redneck clan fronted by a lazy parochial type named Lonzo Choat (Raymond McKinnon) who perks up just enough to torment his family and animals with equal aplomb.
But such stereotypes exist only on the surface, and that’s why the adapted screenplay by director Scott Teems vibrates with nervous energy.
Sure, Meecham has whipped a piece of remote Tennessee land into a successful farm that produced enough bounty to send a son to law school. But his productivity doesn’t make him a saint; he takes great pleasure in demeaning Choat (“you even walk like white trash,” Meecham sneers) and admits to “meanness” to both his son and deceased wife.
Choat, too, ultimately suffers from Meecham’s darker instincts.
Choat’s no sympathetic character, certainly, but McKinnon and the sturdy script give him enough depth to draw some compassion, especially from those familiar with the traditional class divisions which tend to run deep in the South.
The chemistry between McKinnon and Holbrook helped “That Evening Sun” win the Special Jury Award for Best Ensemble Cast Tuesday, and it makes the film one of the festival’s most pleasant surprises.
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