The new adventure gameAs Dusk Fallsfrom former Quantic Dream-developers INTERIOR/NIGHT is a multiplayer story-driven experience that tasks players withmaking split-second decisionsin order to guide the narrative towards its best possible conclusion. The story is told through dialogue and one-shot vignettes, more akin to a graphic novel-turned-audio book as opposed to what players might expect from a Telltale or Supermassive Games release.
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The plot ofAs Dusk Falls, at its most basic, isa crime story gone wrong.It takes place over the course of 30 years, following the lives of two families whose fates become intertwined following a robbery that goes awry. This may sound like a familiar setup, but the story delves much deeper into these characters than players might expect from the outset. It also wears its influences on its sleeve, with plenty of nods to classic films in the genre. For players who enjoyed the game and are looking to fill the void left by its conclusion, here are the best movies to watch that play off the same themes.
9Pulp Fiction (1994)
Still one of the best films made by legendary director Quinten Tarantino,Pulp Fictionis an action-crime masterpiece that unapologetically upends audience expectations at every turn, with gloriously bloody results. Be it the life ofVincent Vega (John Travolta),Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis), or Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson), few films juggle multiple protagonists as effectively as this one, as each character stars in their own small chapter of the film, all of which overlap in unexpected ways.
This is the most obvious example of a crime film that spans across years like whatAs Dusk Fallsdoes. WhilePulp Fiction’stime frame is more condensed, it’s hard not to see the similarities in the way the two stories use broken chronology to play with their audience.
8Fargo (1996)
Another genre classic,Fargois set in the sleepy Minnesota town of Fargo, where an inept car salesman played by William H. Macy attempts a crime and fails spectacularly. What follows is both a hilarious misadventure and a haunting look at what happens when an average Joe enters into an underworld where they don’t belong.
While the comedic elements inFargoare more front-and-center than anything inAs Dusk Falls, the idea of an unwitting family being dragged into a world of crime and corruption is still a major part of both narratives. While the Walker family and Jerry Lundergaard may not share many mannerisms, their situations do bear a striking resemblance.
7Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
Based on a true story about a group of amateur bank robbers and a heist that should have been over in 10 minutes but instead took all day (and made national news as a result),Dog Day Afternoonis a 70s classic, and one of Al Pacino’s most underrated performances.
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There is a cut-and-dry comparison to be made betweenAs Dusk FallsandDog Day Afternoon:that being a robbery gone wrong. While the way events play out don’t necessarily mirror each other all that much, the two still share a similar plot point, with the developers at INTERIOR/NIGHT evenlistingDog Day Afternoonamong the many influences on their game’s story.
6Hell Or High Water (2016)
Starring Chris Pine, Jeff Bridges, and the criminally-underrated Ben Foster,Hell or High Watertells the story of a pair of bank-robbing brothers desperately trying to steal enough money to save their family’s ranch from repossession, and the old, tired police officer tasked with chasing them down.
The similarities between the Howard brothers in this film and the older Holt brothers inAs Dusk Fallsaren’t hard to spot. Even their family dynamic is similar, with one brother being more inclined toward a life of crime than the other. While the Howards don’t end up tethered to a civilian family as a result of their criminal activities, their characters still walk similar paths.
5The Town (2010)
Agroup of professional bank robbersfeels their bond begin to strain as one of their members begins to fall in love with the manager of a bank they targeted. One of Ben Affleck’s early directorial efforts,The Townputs a unique twist on the classic cops-and-robbers heist movie by blurring the lines between who the characters feel they can trust.
While the robberies and overall plot lines don’t overlap a ton betweenThe TownandAs Dusk Falls, the biggest parallels are in the way the characters on both sides of the crime slowly become intertwined as the story rolls along.The Towndoesn’t feature a time jump to really show how these events affect its characters long-term, but it does a good job of showcasing how similar people can lead shockingly different lives.
4No Country For Old Men (2007)
Another Coen brothers classic (along withFargo) although there isn’t much comedy in this one. Based on a Cormac McCarthy novel, a hunter, played by Josh Brolin, stumbles upon a large sum of drug money and decides to keep it for himself rather than report it to the police. This puts a psychopathic killer (Javier Bardem) on his trail, as he is tasked with recovering the money for his employer.
While the stories may not be all that similar, it’s hard to find a film that matches the tone ofAs Dusk Fallsas well asNo Country For Old Men.It’s a character study, an examination of the era it’s set in, andan unnerving lookat what humans are truly capable of.
3Good Time (2017)
Before they directed Adam Sandler inUncut Gems,the Safdie brothers directedGood Time, an intense thriller starring Robert Pattinson as Connie Niklas, who ropes his developmentally disabled younger brother Nick (played by one of the directors, Benny Safdie) into helping him rob a New York City bank. When Nick is the one who ends up in jail for the crime, Conniedives headfirst into the city’s underworldto seek out a way of setting his younger brother free.
There are lots of obvious parallels here, from the obvious ones regarding a robbery gone wrong to the relationship between Connie and his younger brother, who wants nothing to do with the crime.Good Timecan be a hard film to watch, but like with the Safdie brothers' other work, it’s also impossible to look away from.
2The Place Beyond The Pines (2012)
Nearly a thematic mirror toAs Dusk Falls,The Place Beyond The Pinesis about a motorcycle stunt driver named Luke played by Ryan Gosling, and Bradley Cooper as rookie police officer Avery. Luke has given up his life as a stunt driver in favor of robbing banks to provide for his lover and their newborn son. Avery picks up on Luke’s trail and makes it a personal mission to bring him in. About midway through the movie, there is a 15-year time jump, after which we see Luke’s son and Avery’s son as teenagers dealing with the fallout from their fathers' legacies.
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The decade-spanning narrative, the themes of family trauma and history, not to mention the protagonist as a reluctant criminal,The Place Beyond The PinesandAs Dusk Fallsshare a very similar space. While the film is not overly action-heavy -As Dusk Fallshas it beat in that regard - the two stories cover similar ground, and come to similar conclusions in the end.
It’s all about the themes of family legacy here.Road to Perditionstars Tom Hanks, Daniel Craig, and Paul Newman in his final live-action film appearance. Hanks plays mob enforcer Michael Sullivan, whose son witnesses a murder, forcing the two to go on the run from Michael’s former associates.
The mob angle doesn’t really tie in withAs Dusk Falls, but in this case, it’s the underlying message of what families leave behind for future generations that rings true in both stories. Obviously, there’s Michael’s past putting his son in danger, but there’s also Newman’s John Rooney, the head of the mob, and his fraught relationship with his son Connor, played by Daniel Craig. As John Rooney puts it: “Sons are put on this Earth to trouble their fathers.” It’s likely the father of the Holt brothers would agree.
As Dusk Fallswas released on July 19th, 2022, and is available on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC.
