Given Clint Eastwood’s last couple of films, you might be forgiven for thinking that Hereafter is either the further adventures of Gran Torino’s Walt Kowalski as he growls at people to keep off his heavenly lawn, or a second look at Nelson Mandela. But then you remember this is Eastwood, a man who has made a point in his recent directorial career of shifting tones every time. And so the trailer for his latest reveals that it’s a meditation on life, death, and the afterlife.
Three main stories intertwine here as we follow George (Matt Damon), an American who used to make his living as a psychic; Marie (Cecile De France), a French journalist who goes through a near-death experience during the 2004 Tsunami which struck Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand; and Marcus (Frankie McLaren) a schoolboy living in London whose life is altered when his twin brother dies in an accident.
Given the big effects sequences and musings on what happens after death, it’s a real gear change from Eastwood’s recent realism, though of course it appears to be loaded with his usual subtle character work and eye for great performers. Plus, with a script from Peter Morgan, you can usually expect something special.
Hereafter will be released on January 28.