Initially embarking on a physical trip for materialistic gain can ultimately lead to an emotional oddessy that offers clear insight into where their life paths and relationships should go for many people. That’s certainly the case for the estranged father and son protagonists in the new drama, ‘End of Sentence.’ The two characters must learn to rely on their sheer grit and determination to try to better understand each other while on a voyage together during a heartbreaking time in both of their lives.
Gravitas Ventures is releasing ‘End of Sentence,’ which was written by Michael Armbruster, today digitally. The movie was produced by first-time feature film director, Elfar Adalsteins.
‘End of Sentence‘ follows the recently widowed Frank Fogle (John Hawkes) as he reluctantly embarks on a journey to honor his wife, Anna’s (Andrea Irvine) last wish. She wanted him to spread her ashes in a remote lake in her native Ireland, along with their son, Sean tLogan Lerman), from whom he’s estranged. Between a disconcerting Irish wake, the surfacing of one Anna’s old flames, the pick up of a pretty young hitchhiker, Jewel (Sarah Bolger) and plenty of unresolved issues, the journey becomes a little more than the father and son had bargained for.
Adalsteins generously took the time recently to talk about directing and producing ‘End of Sentence’ during an exclusive interview. Among other things, the filmmaker discussed that he was drawn to helming the drama in part because he was interested in working with Armbruster on the script and story, which he instantly related to while he read on the initial draft. He also mentioned how the humane, wise acting abilities of both Hawkes and Lerman drew him to to cast them as the father and son duo.
The conversation with began with the helmer discussing what inspired him to make his feature film directorial debut on ‘End of Sentence.’ “The first thing that attracted me to this script is that it’s a father and son story at heart. The road trip element was secondary to me. I come from an unorthodox background; I was raised by my grandparents, and I’m a father of four kids, three of whom are sons,” he shared. “So I was interested in exploring these broken relationships and imperfect people, and how they were dealing with the trauma that’s presented in the film.”
Adalsteins further explained that the chance to work with Armbruster “also attracted me to the script. He’s very generous to work with and very facilitating. We worked on the script until it became a personal endeavor for us.
“In directorial terms, I was hoping that we’d attract good actors to portray the (father and son) characters,” the filmmaker also shared. “We got great actors to portray them.
“We got the man who was the top of my list (to play Frank); I’ve been a fan of John’s for a long time,” Adalsteins added. “I had seen him in (the 2012 biographical comedy-drama,) ‘The Sessions,’ as well as in (the 2014 biographical music drama,) ‘Low Down,’ in which he played the jazz pianist, Joe Albany. So the softer, more humane side of John really appealed to me. He’s very subtle in his delivery. So we sent him the script when we thought it was ready. Luckily, he liked it and agreed to meet with me. A little bit further down the line, we agreed to embark on this journey together.
“Shortly after that, Logan joined the cast. He’s experienced and wise beyond his years,” the director noted. “Then Sarah was cast. We chose her from a group of five young women who auditioned for the part. So I was blessed with a wonderful cast for this film, and I’m extremely thankful for that. I learned a lot from them.
“When I write and read scripts, I usually put someone in the parts. I think that helps bring the script to life in your mind’s eye. I certainly did that with John,” Adalsteins shared.
“But, as always, the finished product was a little bit different than what I initially envisioned. John and I really connected on a deep level, and it really was a joy working with him throughout this film,” the filmmaker divulged. “That was certainly also true with Logan, of course.
“At the end of filming, we said to each other that we really wanted to keep on shooting. We had a good feeling and sentiment throughout the production. Having seen them both in my mind’s eye, and them then bringing their characters to life on the set, was absolutely great,” Adalsteins added.
Once Hawkes and Lerman were cast in ‘End of Sentence,’ the process of working with them to create the estranged father-son relationship between their characters was an experience that the helmer cherished. “I worked with Logan on Skype for a few months before we flew to Ireland. John came to where we were filming a week before we began shooting, so his rehearsal period was more intense,” he shared.
“We went through the script to unpack the emotional landscape of the character, and really dug deep into the father and son’s relationship. We also looked into their relationships with (Sean’s) mother and late grandfather, both in physicality and emotion,” Adalsteins further divulged. “We did that by asking a lot of questions, which we answered in front of the cameras, once we started rolling. The father and son were estranged for a long time, so it fit that all three of us were in a different country while we were shooting the film.”
Further speaking of the actors’ physicality, the process of working with Hawkes and Lerman to create the physicality for their characters was also a process that the filmmaker enjoyed. “They brought that aspect to the set while they were in front of the camera. After the preparation time, they stepped in front of the camera, fully fleshed, and stayed within their characters during the duration of the shoot,” he noted. “So my job on set was to keep the balance between dramatization and reality in check throughout the shoot and edit.”
While the majority of the story in ‘End of Sentence’ set in Ireland, there were also several scenes in the beginning of the movie that took place in America. Adalsteins enjoyed the process of shooting the drama on location in both countries, and admitted with a laugh that the scenes that were filmed in the U.S., which are shown first in the drama, were shot last.
“Michael initially wrote the script as a U.S.-based road trip. But I wanted to make it a road trip story that’s set in Ireland. We actually took a road trip story there first, so that we could create, and relate to, the fish out of water premise, especially as (Frank and Sean) drive on the wrong side of the road,” the director divulged. “During our own road trip there, we quickly found out that the new setting suited the story perfectly.
“We went to the pubs and heard the bands playing, and got the welcoming spirit of the people,” Adalsteins added. “We also found out that the crew there was very professional, as they shoot so many projects in Ireland. So it worked practically, as well as artistically.”
In addition to helming the drama, Adalsteins also served as one of the producers of the movie, which was shot independently on a shorter shooting schedule. The experience of serving as both the director and one of the producers was one that he learned from, but wouldn’t necessarily always suggest filmmakers do.
“I wouldn’t recommend doing both jobs to anyone!,” Adalsteins admitted with a laugh. “I’m writing and directing the next movie I’m working on, and have two producers working on it. I prefer just writing and directing. So I think in the future, my role will solely move to just writing and directing.”
With Gravitas Ventures distributing the movie today, Adalsteins appreciates having the opportunity to still release it digitally during the current Covid-19 pandemic. ‘End of Sentence’ initially “was supposed to be released in cinemas in 10 cities in the U.S. for two weeks. So not having that theatrical release now is disappointing, but Covid-19 has obviously put a big dent into the film industry. But we’re taking it in stride. A lot of people are staying home, and watching content on iTunes, Amazon and all of these other streaming platforms, so I’m happy and proud that this movie is coming out in the U.S. that way,” the helmer concluded.