Film Archive

To the Night

Official Selection - Competition 2018 / To the Night / Austria, USA 2018

As a child Norman survived a fire that took the rest of his family. As an adult he is still struggling with the resulting trauma, and he finds it difficult to start a new life with his girlfriend and little boy. An oppressive atmosphere, subtle hints, and spectacular images playing upon the subconscious – these are the primary attributes of this brutally intimate study of a wounded individual. Captivating Caleb Landry Jones excels in the main role.

Synopsis

Norman has never come to terms with the fire that, in his childhood, took away all those closest to him. His inner sorrow and feelings of guilt prevent him from starting a new life with his girlfriend and son. Although the fire took everything, it now becomes a path to dealing with his trauma. Gifted director Peter Brunner ramps up the near physical intensity of the viewer’s experience via the thoughtful use of unspoken hints and images, which assail the associative processes of the subconscious rather than the rational mind. Starring the captivating Caleb Landry Jones, the story presents one man’s desire for a life unburdened by trauma, but while doing so it offers up a spectacular and brutally intimate study of a wounded individual.

Anna Kořínek

About the film

102 min / Color, DCP
World premiere
Director Peter Brunner / Screenplay Peter Brunner / Dir. of Photography Daniel Katz / Editor Peter Brunner, Oliver Neumann / Art Director Katie Hickman / Producer Oliver Neumann, Sabine Moser / Production FreibeuterFilm / Coproduction Loveless, Ulrich Seidl Filmproduktion / Cast Caleb Landry Jones, Eléonore Hendricks, Jana McKinnon, Christos Haas, Abbey Lee / Sales Reel Suspects