Review of Hereafter (2010) by Elliot N — 24 Aug 2011

Clint Eastwood has had an impressive career in front of the camera and behind the camera. Having directed the likes Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby and Gran Torino and to mention a more classic example Play Misty For Me would be a good example of his directorial talents. Eastwood as propelled himself up the ladder of the finest directors. Add to that an acting career that involved Dirty Harry in which Eastwood played the best onscreen cop of all time and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, Eastwood is one the largest figures in the film world.

Clint Eastwood's latest film concerns the afterlife. Hereafter follows three different people, in three different countries. In America, San Francisco; we have George Lonegan (Matt Damon on top form) a reluctant psychic who sees his 'gift' as being more of a curse. In France, Paris, we have Marie Lelay (Cecile de France) who suffers a terrible ordeal on holiday at the mercy of Mother Nature and in England, London; we have Marcus who loses his twin brother, Jason, in an accident (both played by Frankie and George McLaren).

Whether this is a plot spoiler or not, it's for you to decide, however this event happens in the first ten minutes and also happens in the trailer. So it's not a plot spoiler in the slightest. While shopping for gifts in Thailand, Marie Lelay is struck by a devastating tsunami. This tsunami is based on real event that killed over 200,000 people and the full horror of a tsunami crashing on a coast line is brought to life in stunning and horrifying realism for all to see. The GCI is put to mesmerising use as it displays that it's not really about size but about sheer destructive power of tsunami as people are dragged along by an unstoppable, powerful force. As the film is grounded into real events (2004 Boxing Day Tsunami and later the London bombings in July 2005) the viewer can relate Hereafter to the real world, allowing the viewer to draft their own memories of the events that take place and the emotions they experienced. The opening ten minutes are as intense, dramatic and effective as the sheer panic that escalates from a moment like this is superbly, respectfully and powerfully shown. The first ten minutes are never matched in terms of quality. The viewer is left in a state of shock by one the finest opening scenes of 2010.

Clint Eastwood has crafted three stories that range from decent to excellent, each of the three stories are good stories but they differ levels on emotional engagement. Apart from the opening ten minutes of Marie Lelay's story, which are very moving as all the viewer has to do is think back six years to that terrible event in the Indian Ocean, there is not a great deal to be engage with. The psychological trauma of the events is never shown in any effective manner, so the main reason to become engaged in her story is during the attempts to publish her book about her contact and experience with the hereafter. Undoubtly, Cecile de France is superb but without Peter Morgan's script displaying any trauma from the event there is significantly less to become engaged with.

On the other hand we have the excellent story of George Lonegan a reluctant psychic who's 'gift' brings him more grief than happiness, as his 'gift' is affecting his chances for a normal life, relationships, work, etc. George's gift means that he gets to connect with the recent diseased loved one and pass on any message. There is one outstanding scene in which he, rather reluctantly, tells a women, that he has taken a liking too, that he has a rather peculiar gift and he begs her not to ask the question he thinks she will ask. Matt Damon is superb as he brilliantly displays his characters emotions as George feels that he is being used for his 'gift', particularly by his brother who seems more interested in money than he is interested in George. Matt Damon shines in the role and brings out the full extent of his character allowing the viewers to be sympathetic to his cause, he wants to quit but his brother and others have different ideas. We also fully believe he has this 'gift'.

The third story is that of Marcus and his heroin addicted mother who lose their twin brother and son respectively in a car accident. We follow Marcus though his problems at home and his desperate attempts to contact his brother though various psychic's none of them turn out to be authentic and are only fakes conning people for their money. There is one rather amusing scene in which the psychic gets it completely wrong looking like a fool to the viewer. While Frankie and George McLaren's performances are not great (they are very young and have no acting experience) there is plenty of become involved with as some of the issues the twins face are common ones. The stories are best independently and the way they interlink is not entirely convincing but one tends to forget that as they are swept up by the journey.

Clint Eastwood has crafted an emotional and beautiful film and despite all the death related issues that surround the story, it becomes a feel good movie, it's a great moment when Marcus finally finds an authentic psychic and gets in contact with his brother. Derek Jacobi's cameo, as himself, reading aloud from a Charles Dickens novel is laugh out loud funny and the ending is slightly corny but Eastwood's, slow moving but thought provoking, fascinating and engaging film is a good watch. It may not rank among the best of his works but it's a good addition to his filmography.

4/5.