The tale of three people who are touched by death, Hereafter isn't exactly what you'd call a Clint Eastwood film but then what exactly is a Clint Eastwood film? Even with two Best Director Oscars nods and over 30 films as a director you don't know what to expect from someone like Eastwood. Musing over what happens to us once we die, for a better part in Eastwood's hands Hereafter remains unusually absorbing.
Even though Marie Lealy (Cecile De France), a French television star, survives a tsunami while holidaying she can't get over her experience of being clinically dead for a few minutes. The entire episode transforms her and she spends most of her time thinking about what she saw and how she felt in those few minutes.
In San Francisco George Lonegan (Matt Damon), a former successful psychic, shuns all kinds of social interaction for his gift is his curse that destroys any chance of a normal existence. George works in a factory, spends his evenings taking cooking classes, and puts himself to sleep every night while listening to Charles Dickens' audio books.
In London twins Marcus and Jason dodge the child welfare officials as they handle their mother's substance abuse; Marcus splits to pieces when Jason dies in an accident. The three find it difficult to explain what they feel to people around them; Marie's office romance and a successful career ends the moment she starts losing herself to her thoughts; George's own brother Billy (Jay Mohr) keeps pushing him to restart his 'business' and Marcus evades bonding with his foster parents while his mother, Jackie (Lyndsey Marshal), is in rehab and he chases every clairvoyant to communicate with Jason. A year later the three meet in London at Marie's book launch and find in each other the person they can connect to.
Even at a little over two hours Hereafter is a film where much doesn't happen. It's not like Peter Morgan's story lacking drama and depth; no, there is enough of that and Eastwood makes most of it. He keeps the interest levels intact and jumps effortlessly between the three parallel story tracks, something that has perhaps become a little too common in Hollywood films. Eastwood, however, manages to circumvent the standardized treatment that accompanies a narrative with multiple story tracks. They don't seem to be playing up for the one big scene where the three lives will finally traverse and neither do they look like three different stories forcefully bundled up together.
Hereafter is a story that asks big questions in an unassuming manner and Eastwood makes it engrossing by keeping it minimalist and never lets anything--the acting, James J Murakami's production design, Tom Stern's cinematography or even his own background score to lose to sentimentality.
In Hereafter Eastwood takes his actors, just like the characters they portray, to places that they might not know how to react in and this is what forms the spine of the film. A very restrained Matt Damon is much at home unlike his François Pienaar that looked lost at places in Invictus, his previous outing with Eastwood.
Cecile De France plays Marie with great honesty. Almost effortlessly as Marie, it's difficult to imagine that this troubled soul was played by same person who survived a mysterious killer in High Tension.
The twins Frankie and George McLaren pitch in very credible performances and along with Lyndsey Marshal perform some of the sweetest scenes on cinema.
There is no denying that Clint Eastwood is a master storyteller and in Hereafter he offers one of his most thoughtful works. Yes, the film is slow and yes it might even seem dull, boring and while there might not be a 'payoff' in the true sense, Hereafter will stay with you.
Hereafter Rating: 3/5
Hereafter Cast: Matt Damon, Cecile De France, Jay Mohr, Lyndsey Marshal Frankie McLaren and George McLaren
Hereafter Written by: Peter Morgan
Hereafter Directed by: Clint Eastwood
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