Saagar Kote
Directed by David Wnendt, ‘The Sunlit Night’ is the story of a New York City-based painter named Frances, who struggles due to the negative evaluation of her works. She hopes to find meaning in her life while dealing with confusion in her family life with parents Levi and Mirela. With her aspirations taking a hit, she takes up a unique job offer from Norway to test her luck. She is hired by a Norwegian painter named Nils, who takes her under his wing as an assistant for a barn painting project.
With her temporary move to a strange country, Frances faces the risk of isolation and failure, despite her passion for her craft. The people she comes across in Norway and her vivid experiences may help change her attitude towards life. In the comedy-drama film, the ideas of redemption, connection, passion, and professional survival are addressed. The Viking Village, an idyllic coastal entity, also plays a pivotal role in driving the story forward. SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Sunlit Night Conveys the Spirit of Rebecca Knight’s Eponymous Novel
‘The Sunlit Night,’ written by Rebecca Dinerstein Knight, is based on her novel of the same name. While both the novel and the movie are fictional creations, they reflect poignant human emotions through the layered characters. In the book, Frances is a girl in her early twenties who still resides with her parents in Manhattan. After learning about her sister’s engagement and her parents’ upcoming separation, she is plunged into a state of sadness. On the other hand, a teenager named Yasha deals with the death of his father. Both Frances and Yasha end up traveling to Lofoten in Norway for different purposes, where their paths finally cross. The basic plot details of the novel are replicated in the film, which actually gives more space to Frances, compared to Yasha.
Despite Yasha playing a vital role in the story, Frances’s perspectives and experience of Norway are at the heart of the narrative. The novel and the film delve into the intricacies of Norwegian-Viking culture. In the movie, Frances engages in the painting of the barn with Nils, but also explores the mystery of Norway, which provides her with fresh perspectives on life. In the novel, there is a slightly more detailed look at Yasha’s life, which isn’t the case in the movie. The cultural elements, the experiences of the main characters, and the element of finding oneself make the fictional story feel grounded. Ultimately, the film provides a fresh, cinematic, and unique visual flavour to the core story of the novel.
Rebecca Knight’s Own Experiences May Have Partly Inspired the Film’s Creation
Some of the inspiration behind the novel and the screenplay for ‘The Sunlit Night’ may have come from the author Rebecca’s own experiences in Norway. Talking specifically about the subject in an interview with Screen Rant, Rebecca stated, “I went on up to the Arctic of Norway, about 95 miles north of the Arctic Circle. And I lived there for a year, which is basically two seasons. The winter season, during which the sun doesn’t rise, and the summer season, during which the sun doesn’t set. I wrote a book of poems about those two extreme seasons.” The authenticity of the novel and the movie presumably stemmed from this phase in the author’s life.
She added, “I wound up writing the first draft of The Sunlit Night as well, which I then took back to New York and edited, and it came out in 2015. Before it even came out, I had the opportunity to send it to Jenny, and she really connected to it, and we started developing this movie right around the same time it came out.” It can be presumed that the author was somehow representing herself through Frances in the film and the book. Although there is no evidence to prove this point, the way that Frances’ journey is depicted in the film makes it a possibility. Like Frances, Rebecca was also in a stage of her life where she was trying to find her voice. It is perhaps not unreasonable to assume that Frances represents more than just a fictional character, but the feelings and inspirations of the screenplay writer.
In an interview with Collider, Jenny Slate, who portrays Frances in the film, stated that the central struggle of the story is about a woman discovering where her power truly lies. So, the film and the novel are poignant explorations of the female experience as well. Ultimately, the story and characters of the film remain predominantly fictional, but the grounded nature of the narrative and the life experiences of Rebecca Knight make it feel more realistic.
Viking Village is a Fictional Creation That Closely Resembles Reality
In ‘The Sunlit Night,’ Viking Village is where most of the action takes place. Frances and Yasha’s lives converge in this place, which aims to recreate the lives of the legendary Vikings. The village is essentially a tourist attraction that contains buildings, cultural centres, and museums that exhibit the beauty of Viking culture. It is not restricted to locals, but encourages and welcomes people from across the world who want to “live like Vikings.” Staying here gives Frances the opportunity to understand cultural dynamics better, ultimately giving her the inspiration to paint better. The Viking Village in the film may be fictional, but there are real-world places that serve a similar purpose.
One of the most relevant examples in this case is the Viking Valley in Gudvangen, Norway, which houses a Viking Town called Njardarheimr. It is an active international community dedicated to Viking enthusiasts, offering an immersive experience of Viking lifestyle and culture. Visitors are invited to explore the authentic houses and participate in recreating history. Although Gudvangen and Lofoten are separated by hundreds of miles, Njardarheimr may have partly inspired the crew to create its own Viking Village.
Njardarheimr is locally and privately funded, with all ticket sales directly supporting the operation and maintenance of the town. By visiting, guests not only experience the past but also contribute to building the future of Njardarheimr. The Viking Village in the film seems to be partly inspired by the system and concept of the Viking Town. In conclusion, the film authentically portrays this unique tourist-cultural experience through the creation of the Viking Village, where Frances discovers the meaning of life.
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