Lost in the Sun (2015)

Summary :
The story of John, a small time crook, who finds an unlikely accomplice in Louis, a newly-orphaned teenage boy. As their open-road adventure progresses and John drags the kid on a string of robberies, the pair forge an unexpected and powerful bond.

Genre : Drama
Country : USA

Cast :
Josh Duhamel : John
Josh Wiggins : Louis
Lynn Collins : Rose

Director : Trey Nelson

My Opinion

“A scorned woman will tear your heart out, put it between two buns and eat it, just as your life slips away before you. Don´t ever forget that.”

This is a movie you look back to in retrospect and say : what a beautiful story about two loners, with some magisterial played interactions and lastly, magnificently shot. Such a pity there isn't really anything exciting happening in it. The pace is painfully slow. You can only conclude that this muggy road movie is terribly boring. The story itself is simple and also filmed that way. Unpretentious without unnecessary side plots.

It's all about this teenager Louis (Josh Wiggins) who just left the funeral of his mother and is taken by the local priest to a bus station, with his meager possessions and an envelope full of money. Just when he wants to get on the bus, that'll take him to his grandparents who are prepared to take care of him, he's approached by a stranger called John (Josh Duhamel). Apparently he knows his grandparents and he's willing to give him a ride all the way to the boy's grandparents. Louis doesn't know that John is a selfish, ex-convict who uses people. He'll experience that soon.

You could compare this film a bit with "Mud". A film that has an almost similar format. In "Mud" there's also a criminal who becomes friends with some young boys and uses them to outrun the authorities. It's also a slow, sluggish film about developing relationships between some individuals and without some exciting, action-packed scenes. Although at the end of "Mud", there is a momentary flare-up, in terms of action. In "Lost in the sun" the occasional robberies can provide some momentary excitement. But you still get the feeling this all happened by accident and looks as if it's just part of the trip. Similarly, the interlude with Mary (Lynn Collins) and her daughter Rose (Emma Fuhrmann). An accidental encounter just to point out that John uses others in an unscrupulous way and dumps them afterwards in an indifferent manner. It's also the introduction for a bit of functionally nudity.

Only the performances remain. No bad remarks in that section. Josh Duhamel demonstrates he clearly has some acting talent. He's way better than in "Fire with Fire". But I guess that was because of a crappy script. He won't win an Oscar for his performance here. But it was extremely interesting to see how this unscrupulous layabout gradually shows he actually has some human feelings. The one who really impressed me was Wiggins. This slender, young lad, who sometimes looked like a very young Matt Damon, ends up in a very bizarre situation and his feelings balances between hatred and affection. Although I actually wondered why he stayed with John. So it's all about character development and the bond created between two individuals. How those two are related to eachother, is quite obvious at a certain moment.

"Lost in the sun" is a road movie with a dash of drama. And what do you do when you're "on the road" just to pass some time? Indeed, you admire the scenery. And that's something you should do, while watching this smooth, calmly proceeding film, because the scenery is pleasing to the eye and skillfully portrayed. The cinematography is absolutely beautiful. But finally, it's not only appearance that matters.