After.Life

Too bad that After.Life tries to be an enrapturing and mysterious thriller along the lines of Hitchcock or Shyamalan and it doesn’t content itself with being “only” an unsettling intimate drama, since thanks to its perfect visuals, solid haunted atmosphere and interesting ideas about a place between life and death, it quite succeeds in rousing the viewer’s curiosity. (30/08/2011)

Christina Ricci has a row with her boyfriend Justin Long, runs angrily to her car and dies in an accident. Her body is taken to a mortuary, where the charismatic owner Liam Neeson prepares it for the funeral, and when Christina wakes up, Liam is not surprised at all. That’s basically the whole plot and the rest of the film makes you wonder whether Neeson has the “gift” to speak with the dead and help them, or whether he’s insane. Fortunately, the debuting director has enough talent and this slow graveyard story never gets boring. After.Life has a very interesting atmosphere, one that I’m unable to compare to anything (it’s as strange as Ricci is strangely beautiful). In short, a very well made and very well acted horror film (though mysterious thriller would be more accurate). (20/07/2010)

Even after death, there is no peace. Or after life? Well, it doesn't really matter that much if one is already lying on “that" table, does it? This film surprised me in a similar way to The Rite with Anthony Hopkins. Apart from the honest atmosphere and a script full of interesting reflections and question marks, Liam Neeson's performance has something in common with that film. His cold and overprotective undertaker is an absolutely brilliantly played character, and I dare say that if someone else (even the originally intended Alfredo Molina) had been put in charge of it, After.Life would have lacked much of that special appeal. Kudos also go to Christina Ricci and of course to the director, who could be in for some good things in the future. I'm rounding up 3.5 stars. (26/09/2011)

I treated myself to a rewatch of this movie today, and I have no regrets whatsoever. Liam Neeson delivered a much better performance here than in his later roles as the perpetual avenger in movies with predictable plots. Christina Ricci also showcased her talent, and though she might not fit the conventional beauty mold for me, I've always found her incredibly interesting and attractive. I didn't pay much attention to the other characters because the duo mentioned above effortlessly carried the entire film. I find myself wondering what Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin would think of the unique development of his idea. As for me, I thoroughly enjoyed this chamber-morbidly-twisted-psychological piece, especially since I recognize several symptoms in myself that Anna also exhibited: being rather cold, having a faint pulse, feeling little pain, and possessing documents proving my death; so now I keep glancing over my shoulder, half-expecting flies, gravediggers, vultures, undertakers, or taxidermists to come my way. / Lesson learned: Stab every dead person in the heart with a wooden stake. Just to be on the safe side. (20/07/2022)

When compared to the also recent debut of Michael Lander and his Peacock, After.Life rates a bit higher in the overall totals. Both films have an interesting (and in the case of After.Life quite original) story and a decent atmosphere, but at the same time they fail to develop the story in such a way that they are able to impress as a whole and not "merely" with their individual parts (the cast is excellent in both cases – even more stellar in the case of Peacock; a few chilling moments can also be found in both films, and the direction is not completely without ideas...)) After.Life is a better mystery thriller with a few horror moments, which in the current production leaves quite an original impression – I just still can't get rid of the feeling that it could have been even better. 70-75% (01/10/2010)