Visually bold and brimming with bisexual chaos, Lunar Sway, screening at BFI Flare, may not reach its full potential, but Noah Parker and Liza Weil truly light up the screen.
I open this review with a question. Are you a prospit or a derse dreamer? Any of you unfamiliar with astrology and Homestuck/Hiveswap will likely not have a clue what I am talking about, but this question relates directly to the title of Nick Butler’s sophomore feature, Lunar Sway. Prospit dreamers are extroverted, easygoing, and generally optimistic; they rely on their gut instincts and are prone to going with the flow rather than planning their journey. Alternatively, derse dreamers are cautious and reserved; they like to plan the journey and anticipate the obstacles, often through a pessimistic rather than an optimistic lens. Of course, the truth is that most of us sway between these labels depending on the day, month, or situation we find ourselves in. And it’s that human sway that sits at the heart of Butler’s vibrant, offbeat comedy about toxic relationships, Lunar Sway.
Cliff (Noah Parker) has lived in the Lynchian small town of Mooncrest his entire life. He scrapes together a meagre living making fluorescent signs, and floats around the town wondering when his life might truly begin. It’s not that Cliff hasn’t seen some adventure in his life, but it’s always fleeting, and it often leaves him with far more questions than answers. Take, for example, his sexual liaison with a travelling artist (Kaden Connors). The sexy, mysterious auteur of paint and canvas whom Cliff posed nude for should have been the love of his life, yet the universe once again stood in the way. Now every painting of Cliff dotted around town is a stark reminder of that failure, and of Cliff’s feeling that his destiny is to remain alone and single.
Of course, it’s not all bad. Cliff has loving adoptive parents (Michael Dyson and Irina Dubova) who regularly bail him out when money is tight, despite only just keeping their own heads above water in the dust-bowl town. Plus, Cliff has just met a tall, attractive cosmetic dentist in a local bar (Douglas Smith) and even shared saliva (and more) with him in a toilet and a karaoke bar! But even these nuggets of positivity can’t hide the fact that Cliff’s life feels like it’s going nowhere, fast. Heck, even his therapist doesn’t understand him or his needs. Cliff is a derse dreamer who longs to be a prospit one. It’s not long before an opportunity arises: a mysterious encounter with a woman claiming to be his birth mother, Marg (Liza Weil), offers escape, adventure, and a whole lot of spontaneous uncertainty.
Taking inspiration from creative forces ranging from David Lynch to Sam Shepard, Nick Butler’s Lunar Sway is a vibrant, eccentric, and at times dreamlike exploration of one man’s need to escape his desert town and the history that follows him. Brimming with bisexual chaos, Lunar Sway lights up the screen with beautiful cinematography from Dmitry Lopatin, which is only further enhanced by the haunting score of Adrian Ellis and Walker Grimshaw. But it’s the performances that truly shine in this low-fi Canadian film.
Noah Parker has already proven himself to be an outstanding lead actor in Philippe Lesage’s 2024 hidden gem Comme le feu. And that raw talent is once again on display here. Parker owns every scene he is in, and when he is alongside the equally brilliant Liza Weil, Lunar Sway truly comes to life as it morphs into a Bonnie and Clyde-inspired road trip through the Canadian wilderness.
However, by the time our road trip begins, Lunar Sway has already stumbled in its pacing despite its brilliant performances, creative vision, cinematography, and score. Butler spends too long focusing on the buildup to Cliff’s escape alongside Marg, and not enough time on the film’s core strength: the chaotic, often toxic road trip they embark on.
Rather than fully lean into and embrace Cliff and Marg’s road trip, giving them and us the space needed to flesh out their toxic and complicated newly formed relationship, Butler jettisons its potential in an attempt to pull together the strings left hanging in Mooncrest. It’s an understandable decision, but one that feels misguided as an emotionally bruised and battered Cliff returns to the town, leaving Marg behind him. While this flaw does not distract from the creative vision or the performances, it leaves us feeling that a huge portion of the story that could have made Lunar Sway truly shine was left on the cutting-room floor.
However, despite this, there is also enough offbeat humour, style and passion to keep you engaged. And when you add the enchanting performances of Parker and Weil, along with a cracking ensemble cast, the narrative flaw becomes less prominent as Lunar Sway enchants us with its Lynchian visuals and a host of characters it would be a pleasure to revisit. As we leave Cliff, he has finally embraced his prospit dreamer for better or worse, and it’s clear his journey is far from over as the credits roll; in fact, in many ways it has only just begun!
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