The Aftermath

THE AFTERMATH - Fox Searchlight

Arguably the biggest surprise of The Aftermath is that it is not a rudimentary, quintessential lifeless bore that falls into the grounds of convention. While undoubtedly the formula optimised is nothing necessarily new in terms of narrative, Kent's film takes quite a few nice twists and turns to keep the audience on edge, especially the latter half of the film that extensively absorbs both social tension and lust with unexpected and coy returns.

Keira Knightley, playing Rachael Morgan, greatly impresses with a multi-faceted and dynamic performance — crafting a role full of tension and spite as her character evolves and expands in an authentic manner that brews away in inner turmoil. Alexander Skarsgård as Stefan Lubert should have the greatest of depth and development on hand, but much of his exploration is lost and deterred in the fact that film covers his arc with an excessive amount of material based in his and Knightley's relationship. Due to this, a rather massive amount of tension begins to dip in the films second act. Jason Clarke — slowly being typecast as Hollywood’s in-demand cuck — suffices with a captivating performance; if anything, he is incredibly underutilised for either atmospheric effect or to indulge the films more emotionally captivating ideals.

The Aftermath looks and sounds tremendous with a fabulously evocative sense of place and setting, thanks to cinematographer Franz Lustig capturing claustrophobia and freedom with a convincing and seducing eye. The score by Martin Phipps is a slow, methodically tortuous and effective underlining to the overall impact of the film.

James Kent's The Aftermath is a surprisingly effective and compelling tale that pushes the morally conscious boundaries of what could easily fall in the parameters of an ultra conventional narrative but thankfully results in a playfully tense, wonderfully performed and remarkably astute looking film.

The Aftermath is released March 1, 2019,