Title: Hereafter
Year: 2010
Country: USA
Language: English, French
Genre: Drama, Fantasy
Director: Clint Eastwood
Writers: Peter Morgan
Cast:
Matt Damon
Cecile De France
Frankie McLaren
George McLaren
Bryce Dallas Howard
Thierry Neuvic
Jay Mohr
Lyndsey Marshal
Steve Schirripa
Richard Kind
Marthe Keller
Stephane Freiss
Derek Jacobi
Jennifer Lewis
Rating: 6/10
It’s a fascinating premise that the prolific Clint Eastwood would make a film about hereafter, as the supernatural franchise does not sound like a safe area for our alchemist.
The film starts with an astonishing tsunami attack, then diverts into three subplot stories happening in France, US and UK respectively, they have doubts about death and the afterlife (including a gifted psychic who cannot contact with others due to his super power), in the end these three trajectories converge in London and the curtains fall with a seemingly happy-ending.
The main problem which hurt my expectation is that the film does not convey anything new in the genre, the melodramatic part is full-on (it is worth mentioning the performance of Bryce Dallas Howard, against a wooden Matt Damon, her presence is the scene-stealing moment) while the fantasy-related afterlife maze is narrated as banal as in any other Hollywood potboilers (enough the hand-touching interaction, the affected GOODNIGHT JOSE moments).
Also the script from Peter Morgan (THE QUEEN) is diametrically disappointing, in order to knit three non-related stories into a final peak, the endeavor is rather abrupt even though the film has underlaid it for more than 100 minutes. In spite of her poorly written part, Cecile De France has managed to empathize us with her mood-shifting commitment to her role and does leaven the emphasis of the whole film, thus fairly propel other two branches into a more insipid corner.
Nevertheless Clint Eastwood is still among one of my favorite directors who are still active in the business, maybe the film will work among those who share some analogous experiences, and luckily I am excluded.