A film about what happens after you die does not seem like a project for Clint Eastwood. This genre seems to be unfamiliar territory for him, but it is nothing he cannot handle. That said, he could have done without directing this one. The emotion that we feel in his films such as Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby and Changeling is missing here. He handles the subject of death and where we go after with care and understanding. Hereafter is still a Clint Eastwood film, but it just does not feel like it.
There are three stories going on that all are about death in some way and eventually their paths cross. Matt Damon is George who is a psychic who has a strong connection with the dead. He use to make great money being one, but he couldn’t live his life so he gave it up to work construction. It is his chance to live a “normal” life. But any time he touches someone, he finds out too much. More than anyone or himself wanted to know.
This is exactly what happens when he meets and gets to know another student in a cooking class played by Bryce Dallas Howard. George opens up and tells her about his past and of course she wants a reading. And knowing it is a bad idea, he does it anyway and she should have listened to him. While it is a heartbreaking scene, Howard gives a stunning performance. The scene makes you understand why George will never have a “normal” relationship with anyone.
Cecile De France is a French TV personality/model named Marie who seems to have it all. But while on vacation, a tsunami makes her have a close encounter with death and while physically she seems to be fine, mentally she has changed. Once she gets back home, her relationships and her job take a backseat to her curiosity about death and the afterlife. She begins to write a book and you will never guess what the title is (hint: it’s the film’s title).
Marcus and Jason are twins (played by real twin brothers Frankie and George McLaren) who have no father and their mother is physically there but that is about it. After his brother is hit by a car and killed, Marcus is left by himself. He feels abandoned and all alone. With his brother’s baseball cap in hand, he begins to look for someone who can talk to his brother for him. And in one of the best scenes of the film, he meets George and whether all of it is real or not, he finds compassion and peace.
Eastwood is a great director/actor. I am not telling you anything you don’t already know. In his films, there is this certain mood and tone that is associated with him and how he tells a story. And it is there in Hereafter, just not as strong. And he takes on a subject that deals with things that we do not know or do not have control over and he walks a thin line when it comes to believability and structure.
The tsunami gets your attention right from the beginning and the introduction to the three stories is interesting and has you wondering about the outcome. But as the film goes on, the pace is slow and it becomes uneventful. Matt Damon’s story is the most fascinating but we do not get enough because his story has to share screen time with two other stories going on. It is a juggling act that is tough to do.
Clint Eastwood’s direction is good and the performances are strong. However, the connection that we usually have with characters in an Eastwood film is missing in Hereafter. And without that connection, the emotion and interest is lost.
“Nature Boy” Brandon Vick is the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and star of Brandon’s Box Office In Your Mouth. Follow him on Twitter@SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.
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