The Aftermath-2019
Director-James Kent
Starring-Keira Knightley, Alexander Skarsgard, Jason Clarke
Scott’s Review #940
Reviewed September 13, 2019
Grade: B-
The Aftermath (2019) is a heavily melodramatic post World War II period film riddled with cliches and proper plot setups but is nonetheless a moderately enjoyable experience. With a marginal romantic triangle in play and good-looking stars, this can only go so far as predictability soon sets in.
Exquisite to look at with a bright and lush European ambiance, the picture is easy on the eyes but lacks in good story or surprises. The film will be forgotten before long.
The period is 1945 and the murderous war is still fresh on the minds of all affected and animosity remains between the English and the German.
Rachael Morgan (Knightley) arrives in Hamburg during the bitter winter season to reunite with her British husband, Lewis (Clarke), who is tasked with helping to rebuild the decimated city.
The Morgans reside with a handsome German architect, Stefan, (Skarsgard), and his teenage daughter, Freda. Resentment exists between the four since Morgan’s son was killed by a German-caused explosion.
Both positives and negatives are contained within the film.
The casting of Knightley, Skarsgard, and Clarke brings professionalism and A-list sensibility so that the viewer is keen to be watching a glossy Hollywood affair. The offering of a robust romantic triangle is not fair to say since from the moment Rachael and Stefan meet they can barely take their eyes from one another.
As if this is not enough, the largely absent Lewis leaves plenty of alone time for Stefan and Rachael to lustfully watch each other. Nonetheless, Knightley and Skarsgard share great chemistry.
The time and setting are also well done. The gorgeous German house in which Stefan and daughter reside feels both grand and cozy complete with a piano and enough open space to go along perfectly with the snowy and crisp exterior shots.
The coldness mixes with the fresh effects of those ravaged by war. Music is played frequently, and a female servant dutifully waits on all principles during dinners and desserts adding classic sophistication to the film.
So, the look of it all is quite lovely.
Despite the elements outlined above the story is a real weak point of The Aftermath. It is riddled with cliche after cliche and seems to want to take a page out of every war romance imaginable. Rachael at first loathes Stefan simply for being German despite clearly being in lust with him.
Her constant gazes into the distance (thoughtfully pondering what, we wonder?) grow stale and the product is just not very interesting.
A silly side story involving Freda’s boyfriend being involved in Werwolf, a Nazi resistance movement, seems unnecessary and merely a way to momentarily cast suspicion on Stefan.
The film is plot-driven rather than character-driven, and this makes the characters less than compelling.
The final sequence, set on a train platform as Rachael, Stefan, and Freda eagerly decide to steal away into the sunset and begin a new life together, is standard fare. Lewis, the odd man out, is a bit too okay with the circumstances of Rachael and Stefan’s passion to be believed.
The farewell scene is stolen from the superb 2002 classic Far from Heaven and nearly identical in every way.
Marvelous to look at and nurturing a slight historical lesson within its bright veneer, The Aftermath (2019) is a soap opera story-telling of a romance between two individuals who are not supposed to fall in love.
The film has pros and cons and is an okay watch, mainly because the talented cast rises it slightly above mediocrity, adding some measure of realism and avoiding it from being a disaster.
Recommended for anyone who adores melodrama mixed with a classic period piece.