I had very little expectations going into director Sean Price Williams’ “The Sweet East.” What was initially portrayed as a charming indie film with its soft, quaint opening, quickly devolved into a psychological mess that completely threw me for a loop.

The aesthetics of the film instantly lured me into this uncanny nostalgia that never felt quite right. The use of extremely close-up shots and a prevalent handheld filming style — with film grain so thick you could almost feel it — made much of the film feel like a home movie from the early 2000s.

Very quickly, however, this style was flipped on its head. Lillian, the protagonist, played by Talia Ryder, falls further and further into a rabbit hole of eerie individuals, the jarring moments of which were enhanced by Williams’ filmmaking techniques.

In her role, Ryder acted as the lens through which the audience sees the film while she embarks on her own odyssey and flawlessly fulfills the role of the not-so-innocent young nomad.

Both she and her character were well-supported by the spectacular cast — Simon Rex, Jacob Elordi, and recent Golden Globe and Emmy-winner Ayo Edebiri, to name a few — which is crucial for a film in which so many different settings and environments are seen.

Rex plays a hyper-intelligent neo-Nazi — a combination of terrifying traits — and Edebiri plays a quirky, self-indulgent director who was unwillingly wrapped up in the story.

Elordi similarly had a minimal, yet unique, role in the project for someone who has seen such success lately. It was pleasant to see him in a setting where the audience isn’t meant to focus solely on him, unlike some of his more recent works.

The overall narrative of this film seems to be somewhat divisive among its viewers. While there are many moments in the film that one could argue are trite or overdone, each scene or story arc feels like its own polished work of art.

Aside from some new-age cinema tropes, like the unnecessary need to bookend each section of the story with a title card or to have a protagonist who inconsequentially escapes the most intense moments of the film, “The Sweet East” managed to keep my attention with its captivating side characters and visuals but didn’t overstay its welcome with the just-above-90-
minute runtime.