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Last summer, Zac Efron’s surprisingly dark DJ drama, We Are Your Friends, failed to inspire audiences at the box office. So, for Sundown, director Fernando Lebrija tries to improve on the story of wild parties and DJ culture with some Hangover-style spring break antics.
Sundown follows a couple of high school kids on an outrageous spring break in Mexico. After aspiring DJ Logan (Devon Werkheiser) gets in trouble for taking his dad’s beloved Porsche to a party, his parents decide to go on the spring break cruise that he’d planned and leave him home alone. Logan’s best friend, Blake (Sean Marquette), talks him into packing up and following the girl of his dreams, Lina (Sara Paxton), to Puerto Vallarta. But when he spends the night with a beautiful local girl (Camilla Belle) and wakes up the next morning without his dad’s vintage Rolex, Logan, Blake, and a crazy cab driver set out on a wild adventure to get it back.
With its driving beats and its over-the-top south of the border escapades, Sundown could have been a fun-filled party flick. But its ridiculous story and obnoxious characters often make for a frustrating experience.
The story here is full of holes and inconsistencies. The set-up, especially, makes very little sense. For instance, I don’t know of any parents who would punish their teenage son’s irresponsibility by allowing him to spend spring break at home alone with a priceless family heirloom.
The characters, too, represent everything that responsible adults dislike about teenagers. They’re reckless and defiant, rarely considering the consequences of their actions. They just want to party and get drunk and hook up with hot chicks in bikinis. Blake is every parent’s worst nightmare: the troublemaking best friend who has a gift for coming up with stupid ideas. And Logan is all too easily swayed by his rabble-rousing buddy.
The best part of the movie is Silverio Palacios’s Chuy, the scam artist cab driver who acts as chauffer, chaperone, savior, and sometimes unlikely voice of reason for the two clueless teens. He’s also the film’s true comic relief—the fast-talking local who’s always wheeling and dealing. And while the teens and their antics can quickly get annoying, Chuy and his ever-present “cousins” give the film a hint of quirky likability.
If you love dance music and the Hangover movies, you’ll most likely find something to enjoy about the spring break adventures of Sundown. But if you’re sober and over 25, the teen partying will get old before the story really begins.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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