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“The Sun Never Sets” Film Details
- Director(s): Joe Swanberg
- Writer(s): Joe Swanberg
- Runtime: 1 Hour(s) and 42 Minutes
- Public Release Date (In Theaters): September 4, 2026
- Genre(s): Drama, Romance
- Content Rating: Rated R
- Primary Language: English
- Images © of / Courtesy Of Independent Film Company
Movie Summary
For two years, Wendy and Jack have been dating, and it has been peaceful. Jack is mature, has a good relationship with his ex-wife and two kids, but because he has been married and already has kids, he doesn’t want to do either over again. For Wendy, at 31, this feels like a major sacrifice, but she is growing to accept this.
Jack, maybe fearing she may wake up with regrets one day, proposes that for the summer, maybe into the fall, he and Wendy go on a break. That she rediscovers who she is outside the relationship, before the relationship, and then they can reconcile later on. Wendy doesn’t want this, but what Jack doesn’t realize is Wendy has options – specifically her ex, Chuck, who she still has lingering feelings for.
Thus leading to a constant loop of Jack and Wendy, often not at the same time, regretting taking a break, exploring their options, and wanting to get back together.
Cast and Characters
Wendy (Dakota Fanning)
- Character Summary: A 31-year-old construction worker who wanted to be married, have children, and start her own family, but after meeting Jack, began to question if she could be happy integrating into his family and not being married or having kids of her own.
Jack (Jake Johnson)
- Character Summary: Jack is a divorcee with two kids, with a job that is headquartered in New York City but remote, so he is raising his kids, alongside his ex-wife, in Anchorage, Alaska. Unlike Wendy, who is from Alaska, Jack isn’t outdoorsy and would rather be home than explore and camp in all Alaska has to offer.
Chuck (Cory Michael Smith)
- Character Summary: Chuck is Wendy’s ex, who is a pilot, and despite being out of her life for years, is still working on himself. He has made progress since they broke up, but he has imperfections that keep him from unquestionably being the one.
Sara (Karley Sciortino)
- Character Summary: Sara is an entrepreneur who is doing well for herself, is Jack’s sole love interest out of Wendy, and it is pushed that one of the reasons she is doing so well is because she is admittedly competitive.
Review and Commentary
Highlight(s)
How Wendy Is Crafted As A Character [82/100]
It could be very easy to have Wendy diminished to Jack’s girlfriend who has nothing going on beyond who she is in a relationship with. When she is introduced, it seems she has assimilated into Jack’s world and is a wonderful step-parent and partner, and is losing what made her uniquely Wendy, such as all the outdoor activities she liked and trivia night.
But, rather than allowing Wendy to just become a serial monogamous person, constantly adapting to whoever her partner is, you see a bit of what Jack wanted her to do, just not how she did it. Wendy starts putting plans, ideas, and what makes her happy to the forefront, rather than on the back burner or settling for the idea that, if her partner is happy and she is happy, she doesn’t need or have to do something.
This creates a means to put a positive spin on the film. For in showing Wendy working, exhibiting her skills in carpentry, going on hiking and camping dates, and doing trivia, you get to see her come back to life. It paints the picture that it isn’t just Jack who got complacent in the relationship but Wendy too, and by focusing on keeping the peace and being a good girlfriend, core elements of who Wendy was started to disappear. And even if it did bite him in the ass, Jack did Wendy a favor in pointing out how she was essentially settling for a life she didn’t want.
The Question of Whether Settling Is A Bad Thing Or Not [82.5/100]
Generally speaking, settling is spoken of with a negative connotation. It is presented as a means of betraying yourself, making yourself smaller, or foregoing what would make you happy because someone you love doesn’t want to join you in that joy. However, there are multiple times in the film where you have to question whether settling is a bad thing.
The best example comes from comparing the men Wendy dates, including Jack. Of them, Jack is perhaps one of the most stable, but he doesn’t like doing outdoor activities, doesn’t want to get married, have additional kids, and is stubborn about many of his stances. It’s easy to see this as settling.
But then Wendy’s ex comes into play, and he isn’t as stable as Jack financially and isn’t interested in cultured activities like art galleries. However, he will go camping and hiking without a complaint. Is being with him settling?
One could submit that, as much as the back and forth grows tiresome as the film goes on, there is this exploration of the burden of options. Was Wendy better off with a man who may not have aligned with her core values, but was stable for the most part? When it comes to Jack and a woman he meets, Sara, would he have been better off with someone in his age bracket with a career that was closer to his than Wendy’s?
Not diving too deep, you could easily say Wendy settled, and Jack took advantage of it. However, you could also overthink it and realize that, while settling could be treated as a negative term, it could also be about making the best of what works, rather than trying to risk it all by trying to have it all.
Getting Invested In Sara and Chuck [83/100]
For a time period, Jack dates Sara, and for most of the movie, Chuck is the main person Wendy dates. These two characters don’t present themselves simply as obstacles keeping Wendy and Jack from reconciling, but as two people you actually want to invest in and, at times, wouldn’t mind Wendy and Jack ultimately choosing.
Chuck is Wendy’s ex and is very much imperfect. But I feel like he is more aligned with where she is in life, just a chapter or two behind. Which makes them seem like a better couple, even as Chuck does things which could be seen as immature.
Then with Sara, there is just something about her with Jack which seems more authentic. Wendy and Jack’s chemistry is built upon the film’s marketing and them being the two most famous actors. Jack and Sara have that dynamic, which doesn’t feel like it is being sold to you. Instead, it pushes the idea that maybe Jack needed something different in his life too? That he needed a woman who, maybe similar to his ex-wife, is easygoing but, unlike Wendy, willing and able to challenge him. Be it in a fun way, like at trivia night, or by acknowledging and questioning how he lives his life.
And dare I say, while Karley Sciortino as Sara may not be a breakout role, it is the kind of role which piques your curiosity and pushes you to check their IMDb to see what else they have done and what they may have coming up.
On The Fence
The Drama Does Get Old [73/100]
At first, it can be funny watching Wendy fall for someone else and seeing Jack realize he isn’t the best thing Anchorage, Alaska has to offer. There is real competition out there. However, the problem that develops as the film goes on is the back and forth between the two, especially as other people get involved.
For it would be one thing if The Sun Never Sets was made out to be a love story complicated by where Jack is in life conflicting with where Wendy is in life, and their wants and desires long-term not being in sync. Thus leading to both exploring other options to see if they are really meant to be or if they simply got comfortable.
At times, you can see that story existing, but The Sun Never Sets doesn’t seek to be grounded, truly mature, and really look at these characters as individuals who love each other but aren’t sure if they are meant to be together. This is a soap opera type of drama. There is yelling in public places, being messy, if not outright toxic, the begging, doing things that are regretted the next morning, and dragging people into a situation that shouldn’t have gone beyond the two at the center.
And because there is active work on dismantling how cute Wendy and Jack were at one time, you eventually stop caring if they may end up together. If anything, when new partners are introduced, and it seems things could go well, you hope Wendy and Jack will move on. But the film continues with a “Will they or won’t they” long past you being given any reason to think these two should make it.
Overall
Our Rating (80/100): Positive (Worth Seeing)
When it comes to The Sun Never Sets, sometimes the struggle is not knowing what the end goal is with this movie. Is it supposed to be about the entertainment of a messy relationship or the complexity of dating, even in a town in Alaska? Because you can see it reaching for both, but not necessarily acing the execution of either.
Yet, despite that criticism, there is enough here to think this is worth seeing. The drama may get old, but you still will want to know how this ends. For behind the will they or won’t they are truly characters you will become emotionally invested in, even as their choices get on your last nerves.
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