Jason KingHereafter 6/10
February 10th 2011 05:52
:
Could have been much better!
Category: Reviews
A drama centered on three people who are haunted by mortality in different ways. George (Damon) is a blue-collar American who has a special connection to the afterlife. On the other side of the world, Marie (de France), a French journalist, has a near-death experience that shakes her reality. And when Marcus (Frankie/George McLaren), a London schoolboy, loses the person closest to him, he desperately needs answers. Each on a path in search of the truth, their lives will intersect, forever changed by what they believe might-or must-exist in the hereafter.
Sadly this one falls a bit flat of the usual Clint Eastwood standard of film making, it is not bad but just not his usual brilliance. It is one of those interconnecting stories that collide towards the end and there have been quite a few of these made over the years and a lot of those have been handled with much more success.
Individually the stories are very interesting and would all make for good films on their own as long as you do not mind an extremely subtle story that moves at a snail's pace. Paul, my viewing partner did not know that it was three separate stories, 30mins in he asked me if I thought they had missed a spool in the story and this is where I laughed and explained the general story. The three stories are so far removed but slightly sharing the similarity of death, and that's about it - there is generally nothing between them and I wondered 30mins towards the end and mentioned to Paul how interested I was in seeing how Clint would combine the stories to make them collide. It took so long to get there and by the time they did collide it was an anti climax and when Paul worked it out he actually laughed. It was too little too late and wasted a good 30mins of film in getting there.
I put the failure down to the writing - it would have looked good to read and the film and story are beautiful but generally it's pretty boring. The film was written by Peter Morgan, a writing genius, The Queen, Last King of Scotland and Frost Nixon to mention a few. I think it will be enjoyed by a lot of people due to the acting and the beauty of the story but for me it is very short of the mark. For a film dealing with the psychic world and the world of death and life there after it never really gives any form of opinion or explanation besides the fact it's there. It is more a romantic discovery story that takes too long to get there in the world where some paranormal things take place with great acting
.
That being said the acting is superb. First off there is Damon - the big name there to get funding and bring in the audience. He may be marketed as the lead but is a small cog in the giant wheel of a story. He plays this uber nerdy shy guy who feels ruined because he can see dead people, not only see them but whenever he touches someone a dead person from that person's life gives him messages for the alive person. It is so strong in his life it has ruined his life and left him without romance. Damon is brilliant in the part and I loved seeing him being all shy and nerdy, his love of Dickens I found very endearing and slightly amusing.
He has a relationship, however briefly, with Melanie, played by Bryce Dallas Howard. It was beautiful and had me googling night cooking classes - I want that!! Howard was great and I was surprised she wasn't in the film for very long, their chemistry was awesome. Also, note to Howard, red hair forever for you lovely - it looks HOT!!!
Then there was the story of famous French newsreader, Marie Lelay, played with ease by French actress Cecile De France. She is known for Around the World in 80 Days with Jackie Chan but more known in France. She is just stunning, I found her jaw droppingly superb and graceful. She embodied that European star character for an American film so well I want to hunt down her French films. Hers is a sad story where she is out walking in Indonesia when the Tsunami hit in 2004, the footage in the film of the Tsunami is brilliant - Clint did it very well and nearly recreated some of the scenes we would all remember from the news footage. But Marie is swept up in the tsunami and dies before being brought back to life thanks to some Indonesians who rescue her and the will of the dead people she meets when she is between worlds. Hers is a life set on a very famous course as the face of the news, she is happy in her bubble but the near death experience opens this other world to her and shatters her real life which loses a lot of interest for her.
Then there is the final story that brings it all together - the story of twins, Marcus and Jason, played admirably by Frankie and George McLaren. This was my truly sad story about a twin losing his other half. The pain this kid goes through not only losing his brother but also his junkie mother who puts him in foster care and having half your life ripped from you was enough for me - this is the one that made me shed tears. Poor bloody kid. Somehow they also managed to squeeze in another world tragedy in the movie by having Marcus on the train line for the London Underground bombings. After losing his brother Marcus does whatever he can to try and track down ways to communicate with his dead brother. The boys are just superb.
You may also notice that Clint dug out the music he wrote and played for Unforgiven and rehashed it for this film, not all of it but some of it. The film does have many moments of beauty and is filmed incredibly well. It just doesn't hit the mark. You will enjoy it for its subtlety and fine acting but don't hold out high hopes for an amazing ending.
Out now and worth 6/10.
Sadly this one falls a bit flat of the usual Clint Eastwood standard of film making, it is not bad but just not his usual brilliance. It is one of those interconnecting stories that collide towards the end and there have been quite a few of these made over the years and a lot of those have been handled with much more success.
Individually the stories are very interesting and would all make for good films on their own as long as you do not mind an extremely subtle story that moves at a snail's pace. Paul, my viewing partner did not know that it was three separate stories, 30mins in he asked me if I thought they had missed a spool in the story and this is where I laughed and explained the general story. The three stories are so far removed but slightly sharing the similarity of death, and that's about it - there is generally nothing between them and I wondered 30mins towards the end and mentioned to Paul how interested I was in seeing how Clint would combine the stories to make them collide. It took so long to get there and by the time they did collide it was an anti climax and when Paul worked it out he actually laughed. It was too little too late and wasted a good 30mins of film in getting there.
I put the failure down to the writing - it would have looked good to read and the film and story are beautiful but generally it's pretty boring. The film was written by Peter Morgan, a writing genius, The Queen, Last King of Scotland and Frost Nixon to mention a few. I think it will be enjoyed by a lot of people due to the acting and the beauty of the story but for me it is very short of the mark. For a film dealing with the psychic world and the world of death and life there after it never really gives any form of opinion or explanation besides the fact it's there. It is more a romantic discovery story that takes too long to get there in the world where some paranormal things take place with great acting
.
That being said the acting is superb. First off there is Damon - the big name there to get funding and bring in the audience. He may be marketed as the lead but is a small cog in the giant wheel of a story. He plays this uber nerdy shy guy who feels ruined because he can see dead people, not only see them but whenever he touches someone a dead person from that person's life gives him messages for the alive person. It is so strong in his life it has ruined his life and left him without romance. Damon is brilliant in the part and I loved seeing him being all shy and nerdy, his love of Dickens I found very endearing and slightly amusing.
He has a relationship, however briefly, with Melanie, played by Bryce Dallas Howard. It was beautiful and had me googling night cooking classes - I want that!! Howard was great and I was surprised she wasn't in the film for very long, their chemistry was awesome. Also, note to Howard, red hair forever for you lovely - it looks HOT!!!
Then there was the story of famous French newsreader, Marie Lelay, played with ease by French actress Cecile De France. She is known for Around the World in 80 Days with Jackie Chan but more known in France. She is just stunning, I found her jaw droppingly superb and graceful. She embodied that European star character for an American film so well I want to hunt down her French films. Hers is a sad story where she is out walking in Indonesia when the Tsunami hit in 2004, the footage in the film of the Tsunami is brilliant - Clint did it very well and nearly recreated some of the scenes we would all remember from the news footage. But Marie is swept up in the tsunami and dies before being brought back to life thanks to some Indonesians who rescue her and the will of the dead people she meets when she is between worlds. Hers is a life set on a very famous course as the face of the news, she is happy in her bubble but the near death experience opens this other world to her and shatters her real life which loses a lot of interest for her.
Then there is the final story that brings it all together - the story of twins, Marcus and Jason, played admirably by Frankie and George McLaren. This was my truly sad story about a twin losing his other half. The pain this kid goes through not only losing his brother but also his junkie mother who puts him in foster care and having half your life ripped from you was enough for me - this is the one that made me shed tears. Poor bloody kid. Somehow they also managed to squeeze in another world tragedy in the movie by having Marcus on the train line for the London Underground bombings. After losing his brother Marcus does whatever he can to try and track down ways to communicate with his dead brother. The boys are just superb.
You may also notice that Clint dug out the music he wrote and played for Unforgiven and rehashed it for this film, not all of it but some of it. The film does have many moments of beauty and is filmed incredibly well. It just doesn't hit the mark. You will enjoy it for its subtlety and fine acting but don't hold out high hopes for an amazing ending.
Out now and worth 6/10.
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Comment by worldfilmfest
World Film Festivals
I too thought it was a bit soft and at times confusing and disjointed. Not the usual eastwood fare you're right.
Acting superb, direction a little slightly off but I love almost everything Eastwood does, so he is forgiven this time.
Simon
Comment by Jason King
Sydney Table
Salty Popcorn
Total Randomness
Well said