Hereafter

This supernatural drama explores the possibility of life after death from the view point of three characters whose lives are fatefully intertwined.  Directed by Clint Eastwood, "Hereafter" stars Matt Damon as George, a sad and lonely man who has given up his lucrative career - as a psychic that can communicate with the dead - in order to have a semblance of a normal life.  Across the world in Paris, a beautiful and successful journalist attempts to recover from a near-death experience, while a young boy in London desperately searches for a way to communicate with his deceased twin brother.  The story definitely has the feel of an intentional tear-jerker, so I have to dock it some points for that.  But in Eastwood's adept hands, the execution of portraying the melancholy of these characters and the urgency in their need for answers is genuinely moving.  Damon's performance here is extremely effective in its subtleness - from the quiet and tentative way that he speaks, to the slouched-shoulder way he carries himself.  Cécile De France, who plays French journalist, Marie, and Frankie and George McLaren, who play twins Marcus and Jason, are equally up to the challenge of evoking sympathy from the viewer as you watch them trying to piece their lives back together after suffering major tragedies.  Overall, the movie is well-acted and exceptionally-directed, and despite the calculated, weep-inducing plot, "Hereafter" delivers such a satisfying catharsis that you end up forgiving the deliberateness behind it.


4 out of 5 stars