Monday, October 25, 2010

CLINT SENDS US TO THE HEREAFTER


On the big screen Clint Eastwood has sent many a varmint to the hereafter to meet his maker, in fact in a couple of his westerns; “High Plains Drifter” and “Pale Rider” he even played avenging gunmen (that by all accounts were ghosts?)… still when I heard about Clint’s current project, I was surprised, but then again as a filmmaker Clint’s always full of surprises… “The Hereafter” is no exception.  Screenwriter Peter Morgan (“Frost/ Nixon” and “The Queen”) has penned a movie that features three stories; a French journalist (Belgium-born actress Cécile de France) who after escaping an amazing  trauma finds herself having strange visions, a young boy (Frankie McLaren) in London who’s desperately looking for answers after his own tragedy and a reluctant American psychic (Matt Damon) who is himself a lost soul of another kind. This is the bare-bones synopsis of the story, so not to give too much away.  

Bryce Dallas Howard and Matt Damon
Cécile de France; My compliments to the chef!
The public’s curiosity of what happens to us after we take our last breath seems to me at a heightened state as of late (I know that as I get older, it is for me) and perhaps it has for the old gunfighter Clint; who I can’t believe is now 80? As he told The Los Angles Times in a recent interview, "The question about what happens after we die is something that we all ask and when I read the script by Peter Morgan it was so intelligent and I knew right away that I wanted to do it.” And perhaps just as strongly the film also tackles the something that many of us have felt and have put way back in our minds; the feeling of grief and loss.
THE MAN
As a filmmaker Clint’s fearless, never being afraid to take his time with his stories; his pictures always have a cool jazz rhythm to them, he directs the way the greats like Charlie Parker or John Coltrane blew their horns (and in fact , Clint once again composes yet another haunting score for the film.)  With a splendid cast of actors (Damon good & sturdy as usual) many whom are unfamiliar faces to American audiences (the gorgeous, De France reminded me how much I love a women with French…well Belgian accents.) That’s all I’m going to say about the picture; except I really enjoyed this one, and I hope Clint "the filmmaker” has many, many more surprises for us.

2 comments:

  1. Good review Man Ray. I am intrigued by this movie and your review has only heightened those feelings. I'm looking forward to seeing this film and you in The Hereafter or sooner.

    Indescribably present in the here and now,

    Allen Rice

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  2. Hey Allen,
    Thanks for the feedback... see the movie, you'll enjoy it.

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