Night Always Comes tells the story of Lynette, played by Vanessa Kirby, a young woman working multiple jobs. She lives with her delinquent mother Doreen (Jennifer Jason Leigh), and her older brother Kenny (Zack Gottsagen) who has Down syndrome; all of whom are in danger of being evicted from their Portland home. Lynette has a plan, however: She’s managed to negotiate with the landlord to purchase the house as long as she can make the $25,000 down payment. Unfortunately, the morning of the closing, her mother decides to spend the down payment on a brand new Mazda, leaving the future of her family completely up in the air. In addition to losing their house, Kenny is in danger of being taken away by social services, possibly forever this time. In desperation, Lynette decides she needs to find a way to raise $25,000, no matter what it takes. As she descends deeper into the seedy underbelly of modern America, we see that she will stop at nothing to protect what she loves.
The film is directed by Benjamin Caron ( The Crown , Andor ) who brings his stylish energy to this gritty neo-noir. A great deal of that style is thanks to cinematographer Damián GarcÃa – especially notable is the way in which Lynette becomes more bathed in a a red glow as she descends further into darkness – and is aided by the tense, dissonant score by Adam Janota Bzowski, which is easily one of the highlights of the film. But despite these neo-noir flourishes, the twists and the turns of Night Always Comes simply become too numerous and too preposterous to actually resonate.
Sarah Conradt adapts the film from Willy Vlautin’s novel, but regardless of whether the film’s narrative clunkiness originates with the source material or the adaptation, one cannot ignore the fact that all the style in the world cannot overcome a script that simply does not work. What should be a taut and tense thriller with a dash of social commentary often just feels like an overdrawn series of terrible decisions. There are inter-titles throughout the film to let the audience know how much time has passed throughout this harrowing evening, and while they are intended to remind the audience of a ticking clock, it only serves as a reminder of how much time has passed, and how much longer until the film finally will end.
In that respect, it calls to mind Uncut Gems , which deals with a similar series of bad decisions. But those turns worked in that film because they were designed for a man digging himself deeper and deeper out of greed. Here, Lynnette’s motivations are seemingly noble, and yet at no point does she stop to weigh the consequences of her actions–actions that will ultimately lead to her undoing, thus rendering her plans entirely fruitless.
Despite this, one cannot deny the remarkable performance that Vanessa Kirby ( Fantastic Four: First Steps , Napoleon ) gives here. She plays Lynette as hard-edged and driven, and you understand that this is a person who could have had a wonderful, successful life under the right circumstances. She feels fully drawn and authentic, even if her actions at times seem contrived. Caron has noted that Kirby’s ability to transition between “fragility and ferocity” is what anchors the film, and one is inclined to agree that her truly outstanding performance propels Night Always Comes . In the final scenes of the film we see her lay herself bare, and it’s very powerful and moving, even if the film as a whole isn’t. But it’s Zack Gottsagen ( The Peanut Butter Falcon ) as Kenny who steals the show here. His performance is absolutely electric, and the film is better every time he’s on screen. Too often, characters like his would be used as a mere plot device, but here Kenny is a fully realized character that leaps off the screen.
The film also features a number of minor performances from a who’s-who of great character actors (most of whom readers might know from other Netflix projects). Whether it’s her former “John” Randall Park ( Fresh Off the Boat, Ant-Man and the Was p), Lynette’s self-absorbed co-worker and “friend” played by Julia Fox ( Uncut Gems, Presence ), her chilling former pimp Michael Kelly ( House of Cards, Dawn of the Dead ) or the skin-crawlingly evil drug-dealing, party-loving Eli Roth ( Inglourious Basterds , Piranha 3D ) each supporting player give a commanding and memorable single-scene performance, even if they all can feel a bit cartoonish.
The performances aren’t bad, but they do seem to be at odds with the more nuanced and realistic portrayal that Kirby brings to the film. The one character who does feel more rounded is Stephan James ( If Beale Street Could Talk , 21 Bridges ), Lynette’s co-worker who’s “done time” but, much like Lynette, seems to be more a victim of circumstance. James’ performance is nuanced and measured, and the two play beautifully opposite each other. As for Jennifer Jason Leigh ( The Hateful Eight , Fast Times at Ridgemount High ), she gives a powerful performance, but ends up being criminally underused appearing in essentially only two scenes in the entire film.
Sadly, despite its stylish exterior Night Always Comes never quite rises to the level it strives for. Despite its commanding lead performance from Vanessa Kirby, it simply cannot overcome its contrived plot to rise to the level of a truly great modern neo-noir thriller.
