L'Après

After losing a family member to a violent crime, a shattered rideshare driver picks up a passenger who forces him to confront his grief.

Short, but deep and painful, what is the meaning of life after we have stupidly and unfairly lost the only two important people in our lives? What is the point of continuing to live? I always ask myself these questions, which always go unanswered when I watch something so cruel and dramatic like this... They say that the pain doesn't diminish, we just reframe it, but how? Simple and magnificent production, well executed, and with a message of hope at the end...

No pun intended - I have to admit, I knew nothing about this other than the title. And Netflix suggested it to me - so why not try it? I do like a good short movie - and this definitely can be called that. Especially with the casting (getting a major star - at least that's what I would call him) - that was quite genius.

But I am certain that the script was responsible for that. If you get a role you can really get into ... with such depth in a short amount of time .. why wouldn't you do it? This deals with pain and loss and a main character who needs to cope with a lot. How would you react? It is easy to say, well I would do this or that ... but it makes sense ... well the journey let's call it that our main "hero" takes ... and where he lands ... I thought he might do something different ... but life is not easy. And the others will not understand him or his reaction ... may even see him as crazy .. but he is not! We feel for and with him - those with empathy that is. You do not need to have been in that situation ... and I hope you have not been ... very well done in every regard!

It's sad, pushing on dystrophic that this is an Oscar nominee. It is one of the slyest, most shameless gratuitous tear-jerkers I've ever seen. And it doesn't even do that well. It has NO INSIGHT, NO COMMENTARY, no richness of perspective (next to no perspective at all tbh), no message, no conclusion, no innovation. The acting is mediocre. The cinematography is standard TV, the dialogue even manages to feel a bit false as far as British English goes. The music is just You Tube audio library. I literally cannot find anything even slightly above mediocre in this movie. And barely anything above terrible. Thank Good it was relatively short.

Also, yeah, the subject is tragic but so is a news bulletin. If I mention the death of a child in this review, will it get a Pulitzer? No. BS.

David Oyelowo puts in Academy Award winning performance in this short movie. Spend 18 minutes that will redraw your entire perspective of those around you and where you belong.

His grief is visceral. It will grab you from the opening scene and carries you through "The After" until the end delivers the gut punch that will leave you wondering "How come I didn't know about this piece of film making?". Afterwards, you start reevaluating your own priorities. Many films have tackled this topic but none as beautifully as this one.

All I can say is take the time to watch. You will not regret it.

A masterful piece of acting ... in 18 minutes!!

People are complaining about the sparce script...I personally didnt miss any words. The acting spoke volumes. David Oyelowo never misses but here he really puts in the work.

I dont give spoilers but I will say I sobbed like a baby at 1 scene in particular..it really hit home. If you have ever been effected by grief, heartbreak or loss then this short will ruin your day. Lol

If people dont get it I am glad for them as they probably have no concept of real heartbreak and the knock of effects because that IS the main premise...so good for them.

A reviewer talked about how they should have invested money into script rather than expensive locations. Id say maybe, if you needed the extra words but movies use gorilla style filming all the time to get around permits..especially in expensive locations like london.

A solid 9.