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DVD Review


DVD cover

After.Life

 

Starring: Christina Ricci, Liam Neeson and Justin Long
Anchor Bay Films
RRP: £17.99
ABD4900
Certificate: 18
Available 06 September 2010


On the night which Paul intends to propose to his long-term girlfriend, Anna, an argument ensues and she drives away in a heavy storm. The next thing he knows is that she has been killed in a car crash. Paul is distraught, and her mother is simply angry at him for taking her daughter away. Anna wakes up lying on a mortician's table in a funeral home run by a man called Eliot Deacon. He tells her where she is and that she is dead. Her protestations fall on deaf ears, as he informs her he possesses a unique gift of seeing the movements of the dead in their transitional period prior to crossing over. Eliot refuses to let Paul see Anna's body before the day of the funeral because he is not family. But is she really dead? The answer might lie with a young boy at the school at which Anna taught...

After.Life is more of a psychological suspense thriller than outright horror, but the subject matter will be near the top of most people's worst nightmare scenario. The idea of being buried alive has been portrayed in literature and film for many generations, and some Victorians even had a bell tied to their toe - just in case! So the premise hooks you immediately. In a period when supernatural horror has proved so successful, it's interesting that you have no idea which sub-genre this is going to step in to.

The prominent acting performances are solid and convincing. Liam Neeson is cool and matter-of-fact in his role as Eliot, and it's nice to enjoy another realistic character from Justin Long (Paul) who was so memorable in the groundbreaking Jeepers Creepers. The entire film is somewhat downbeat, but nothing prepares you for the injustice of the conclusion. This is a very professional film which you will appreciate all aspects of the construction of, whilst harbouring a tiny resentment at the portrayal of such nasty but true investigation of the human psyche.

8

Ty Power

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