A Reel Review: HEREAFTER

Clint Eastwood’s HEREAFTER is less about death and more about life. The film spends a short time dealing with death and the beyond, and that can either be the blessing or curse of the story. Eastwood doesn’t go for a SIXTH SENSE or POLTERGIEST tale, and instead weaves a deliberately slow-paced story about three people searching for answers.

HEREAFTER is about three separate storylines that have nothing to do with each other until the very end. The first involves George (Matt Damon), a former psychic with a legitimate gift of being able to communicate with the dead. The second involves twin brothers Marcus and Jason (Frankie and George McLaren); with the latter dying in a horrific car accident. The third involves French TV anchor Marie (Cecile de France), who survives the Thailan tsunami, but not before clinically dying and seeing visions of the afterlife.

The 80-year old Eastwood seems less interested in the afterlife and more interested in dissecting the heads and souls of the three characters. Their situations are heartbreaking and grounded; always accessible by the audience. If HEREAFTER has one flaw it’s that the deliberate SLOW pacing makes the audience try to latch on something, and its George’s story that sticks out as the most interesting. The other two almost seem intrusive. The film trudges along at a pace that seems like its building up to something huge; and Eastwood makes the wise and mature choice of not offering a punch, but a gentle touch of humanity.

Eastwood’s gentle and caring touch is present throughout the film. Tedious pacing, sharp lighting accented by old-fashioned camera work make a grounded and believable atmosphere. The sequences involving the tsunami and the London bombing are perfectly executed; it makes one wonder if ol’ Clint could turn in a balls-to-the-wall action movie someday.

Matt Damon turns in one of his best performances here. The expressions of loneliness and inner turmoil on his face are always present and believable. His love interest (which lasts about 10 minutes), Melanie (Bryce Dallas Howard) is a great sub-plot (and perfectly played by Howard), and it’s almost a shame the little love tale got obliterated so quickly and early.

Eastwood doesn’t really seem to care about the afterlife in this film, and is focused instead on telling us how life events, no matter how chance-like they seem, always bring us to places that we need to be. Audiences looking for answers to the great beyond will walk away disappointed. Lovers of good film will walk away fulfilled.

BOTTOM LINE: See it.