Review: The Aftermath

Release Date: March 15, 2019
Running Time: 108 minutes
Starring: Keira Knightley, Jason Clarke, Alexander Skarsgård

The Aftermath take place post World War II in Hamburg, Germany, where you find Rachael Morgan (Keira Knightley) reunited with her husband Lewis (Jason Clarke), a British colonel in charge of removing any Nazi presence in and rebuilding a city burned to ashes.  Rachael is ready to see what life brings the newly united couple as they set off to their new home.  However, the unexpected happens when Rachael finds out that the couple will be sharing a mansion together with its previous owners, a German widower Stephen Lubert (Alexander Skarsgård) and his troubled teenage daughter Freda (Flora Thiemann).

This movie gives you a vintage romance story set shortly after wartime; where the wounds have not healed and it is tough to have a true winner.  With the war being so recent, it is expected that all parties involved will have experienced some sort of loss.  Rachael, Lewis, Stephan, and Freda are all dealing with vivid recent losses that cause issues in the new tense home dynamic.  No parties tackle these issues head on, creating tension between the two families resulting in yet more drama.   

Overall I enjoyed this movie. I feel like the movie nails the plot points where it tries to elicit a vivid reaction from the viewers.  And this is accomplished by some solid, but not overly strong performances from the cast.  Alexander and Keira had great chemistry, an underrated aspect of Skarsgård's work (but which Knightley seems to always have in her roles).  Clarke is predictably solid as he is in any role he takes. My only issue with this film is that the plot is super thin and, quite frankly, predictable.  The movie tries to be an emotional roller coaster, and does pick the right spots to add some intrigue or serious aspects when necessary.  And with grief being a major factor, there is some part of the story that will resonate with all viewers despite its predictability.  The Aftermath is an emotional, yet predictable roller coaster with a solid cast and a story that can resonate with most anyone.  It is enjoyable and should be seen if you absolutely love the cast, but make sure to wait for it to come out on video / streaming.  


Rent it