The Vast of Night is a science fiction film in which the story takes place in Cayuga, NM in the 1950’s. Andrew Patterson serves as director, and the script is credited to James Montague and Craig W. Sanger. The main cast is comprised of Sierra McCormick, Jake Horowitz, Gail Cronauer, Bruce Davis, and Greg Peyton.
The movie has a supposedly clever hook in that is presented as an episode of a show similar to The Twilight Zone. Two small town high school students become intrigued by a mysterious signal that emerges through radio and phone lines. Is it a malfunction, a government experiment, or something more unearthly?
I am not sure that the umbrella element of this being an episode of a science fiction anthology series was really all that necessary, however most of the film actually works quite well. The main cast leads were not those I found familiar, however they appeared to be well chosen. The dynamic between McCormick and Horowitz worked well. The depiction of a small town in the 1950’s did feel genuine as I was watching it. Of course, I have no first hand experience of 1950’s New Mexico, but it didn’t seem the producers were too far off. The movie had some moments where it dragged a bit, but it also had some pretty suspenseful moments. A character known as Billy calls into the radio show which is hosted by Horowitz’s role and has a very compelling story to tell. Although we only hear the voice of Bruce Davis, it really is quite a fascinating performance. I am not sure I was that fond of how the film ends, but I will not get too much into that. Overall, it’s a pretty cool film in spite of the flaws. The lead roles were solidly cast. The setting looks pretty convincing. There is some pretty engrossing intrigue for the most part. The main story still feels a bit overdone at times, but the presentation of this particular effort is executed well enough for me to exhibit some forgiveness for that. Yeah, I would say this one was worth the time.
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