Before/During/After

I caught this lovely film twice on the festival circuit. It was one of those films that stayed with me long after I watched. You can feel the story comes from an authentic and honest place. The acting is spot on and it was great to see familiar actors throughout. I'm always looking for honest female driven stories and this is one that I highly recommend!

This was a pretty run of the mill film. I give it a 6 which means I am on the fence as to if it was worth watching... the 10 ratings here are complete and utter nonsense and obviously bogus. As the film well what is there to say some vaguely funny moments, not completely plausible characters (trying to hard to be wacky) and I found the lead to be a pain in the neck.

I'm a popcorn movie kind of guy, so the prospect of a movie about a middle-aged New York City theater actress having to deal with the end of her 15 year marriage didn't immediately scream 'must watch.' Spoiler alert: I was pleasantly surprised by this movie.

In keeping with the title, before/during/after uses an interesting time structure. Rather than being told chronologically, scenes are intercut from various times in the relationship between Jennie (Finnerty Steeves) and David (Jeremy Davidson, who I remembered from short lived TV show Pan Am, but has also popped up on many shows you've probably seen). The script, written by Steeves, is the reason I liked this movie so much. Sometimes telling a story out of order can come off as gimmicky. Don't hate me, but I think Christopher Nolan overdoes it sometimes. In this case, the structure really pushes the narrative forward by clustering the scenes thematically. Perhaps because of the time shifting, the first few scenes were a bit confusing. However, it starts to make sense a few minutes in and everything ties together at the end.

Another strong point about the script is that it feels genuine and relatable, which is surprising since it is about an actress in New York whose husband is some sort of boat transporter. I found myself gritting my teeth for much of this movie, because what Jennie was going through felt so realistic and uncomfortable. There were some less realistic parts which bordered on parody. The various therapists were a bit over the top and there was a scene with a paperwork specialist that was so ridiculously funny that it seemed out of place, but I laughed out loud, so I'll give it a pass. Small chuckles aside, this is a sad film that avoids many of the overused tropes you'd expect from this type of story. You really feel for Jennie as her relationship slowly disintegrates.

Before/during/after is not the type of movie I gravitate to, but I'm glad I saw it. Steeves has written an excellent script, and in doing so, has crafted a role that she plays perfectly. The 'feel good movie of the year' this isn't, but it is an entertaining and thoughtful look at the death of a perfect marriage.

Before/During/After is a beautiful, touching and sincere slice of life drama. Finnerty Steeves is absolutely wonderful in it. I saw it when it won best film at the Dances with Films festival (well deserved!) and it stayed with me since. Funny, heartbreaking, and original. Highly recommended.

Amazon suggested this for me based on what I've watched-thanks, Amazon. A surprise pick that as a divorced woman (recently remarried) enjoyed very much. Nothing fancy, simple but sweetly nuanced. Beautiful acting. I loved the supportive female relationships. I wish it had gotten a little deeper into the layers of emotions we go through during and after divorce, this film barely touched the surface, but can only delve into so much in the 83 minutes. Found myself crying as the film ended with a hopeful message I remembered feeling myself years ago. A nice and easy early Saturday morning film.