After Darkness

Natalia Dyer,Kyra Sedgwick,Tim Daly,Valorie Curry

The world is suffering an inexplicable solar catastrophe that is causing the sun to burn out. As light and heat become scarce, Raymond (Tim Daly) and his wife Georgina (Kyra Sedgwick) await rescue in their massive country home from Raymond's senator friend who is supposedly coming to take them to some caves where they'll have a chance of survival. Raymond is a controlling, unfeeling, entitled, combative prick. Georgina is obviously mentally unstable and completely under Raymond's thumb. Joining Raymond and Georgina are their children Clara (Natalia Dye) and Ray Jr. (John Patrick Amedori). Clara is a spoiled and immature teenager who tries to pretend like nothing will really change. Ray Jr. is the closeted gay son who sees what is going on and occasionally comments on it, but he does little to stop it. Son Fred (Roberto Aguire) shows up with his hugely pregnant French girlfriend (Valorie Curry), who immediately takes a dislike to his family. Raymond almost immediately challenges them for their irresponsible behavior of bringing a child into this world at this time. Prior to the solar disaster, the Beaty family were mostly estranged thanks to dad Raymond's domineering nature and the death of another daughter named Abbey (Christina Mandrell), who committed suicide. At first, the family is hopeful rescue will still arrive. Raymond continually leave message with a senator indicating they are ready to depart to the safety of the caves. The family is kind of a nouveau riche hot mess. They spend their time moping around in their huge mansion and squandering their supplies and energy. They seem to figure that they have the golden ticket, so screw the rest of mankind. They spend time dancing to the playing of the piano, listening to opera music and laughing at nothing to break the tension. Clara is celebrating her birthday. Ray takes her outdoors to see steam rising from the ground. Clara and Georgina prepare her birthday cake. Raymond has forbidden the family from going outside. Raymond chastises her for this to tears just when she is to blow out the candles on her birthday cake. As the sun goes out and darkness and freezing temperatures descend, old tensions resurface, which is amplified by their supplies running out. Margot questions family members what happened to their sister. Ray claims that her father killed her. Clara reveals that Abbey died from eating the poisonous berries that grow on the estate and was found near the shoreline. Georgina, on the edge of mental collapse and highly medicated, keeps seeing Abbey in her daughter Clara. After one such incident, Ray flushes his mother's medications down the toilet. With Georgina resting, Raymond prepares dinner from a diminished and mouse ridden pantry. At dinner, Margot tells Fred she is leaving. Raymond tells Fred they are going hunting after dinner. They find a car with German Shepherd dog that is shot and butchered. Brian, Ray's lover Brian (Sam Daly) arrives but is threatened with a gun by Raymond. Ray, loyal to his sister Clara, refuses to depart with him. Raymond finally gets a call from his senator friend and finds out help isn't coming after all but leads his family to believe they'll be rescued the following day, except for Ray who overhead the call. Raymond drives off and slams his vehicle into a tree. Ray finds him and brings him back to the house. Margot gives birth to a healthy baby girl. Ray gathers a bunch of the same berries his sister used to commit suicide and gives them to his mother. After the birth, the family's strained happiness is short-lived when a pair of marauders break in and force Raymond to admit they aren't being rescued. Raymond kills one of the marauders in the basement and the other flees. Margot leaves wither newborn while the rest of the family discuss their impending death and what heaven is like if it exists. The Beaty family falls asleep together and when they awaken the following morning, it appears as though the sun has miraculously come back as they step outside and bask in its warmth.