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Hereafter Stars: Matt Damon, Cecile de France, Bryce Dallas Howard, George McClaren, Frankie McClaren and Jay Mohr Director: Clint Eastwood Scriptwriter: Peter Morgan Cinematography: Tom Stern Composer: Clint Eastwood Malpaso Productions/Warner Brothers Rating: PG 13 Running Length: 129 minutes Clint Eastwood is getting soft on us. “Hereafter” is a film with three stories about people with life-changing events happening to them. You know eventually, something will lead them to the same place and yet, there is a letdown---leisurely and contrived. What we do get are three well-acted stories, any one of which could have made a film, but when blended, come out homogenized. We lead off with Matt Damon (George) and his brother, Jay Mohr (Billy.) You gather that George has the gift to see into people’s lives and the lives of those who died (think “Ghost Whisperer“ here.) George once was wealthy with clients, but gave it up to work on a dock. He’s burned out, while Billy hungers for that money rolling in. Then comes Marie (Cecile de France from “Mesrine Part I.”), a television reporter who is on assignment in the South Pacific when a tsunami strikes her resort. In a wonderful display of special effects, Marie is swept up, away and under the water to die---until found and brought back. She has a vision of the beyond. Last, there are the twin brothers, Jason and Marcus (played by George and Frankie McClaren), who live with their drug-addicted mother. They cover for her when social services comes calling. Something happens to one of the boys and the family is split up. Mom goes to rehab and a son goes to foster care. The new couple want to help him, but he won’t give an inch. This is where George comes in, as people still want him to give readings while he tries to hide. Eventually, George, Marie and Marcus come together because of George’s unique gift. Along the way, George manages to give solace to people even though he doesn’t want to, and in the case of a potential girlfriend, Melanie (Bryce Dallas Howard), is frightening. For readers out there, one of the scenes takes place at a London Book Fair. An overhead shot shows us the Fair with various stalls, books, authors and book signings. There is a warmth here. “Hereafter” has wonderful special effects with the tsunami and Marie’s story starting the film. Cecile de France’s Marie is a television reporter who is taken aback by her experience. Cecile’s facial expressions and body language do a great deal to tell her story without words. Matt Damon's George is a quiet man, projecting sympathy and with soft features. Damon is not like his persona in "The Bourne Identity" series. The twins, Frankie and George McClaren, have good work, especially at the start of their story, when they hide their mother’s addiction. Which brings us to Bryce Dallas Howard, as Melanie, a potential girlfriend for George. They meet in a cooking class and Howard’s depiction of this character, with mannerisms of nervousness and rapid talking, is continually distracting. Each of the stories has side characters who brighten the plot, such as George’s greedy brother, or Marie’s boyfriend or the twin’s social workers. There is a richness of character there that, unfortunately, gradually winds down. As far as the point of the stories, we see that people are devastated by loss and want to contact and have reassurance of their lost one, but religion isn’t mentioned. In fact, in one story, a pastor is moving a family along to accommodate another funeral. There are no answers to the hereafter in “Hereafter,” except to say that unless you are George, you won’t really know. Copyright 2010 Marie Asner
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