“Aftersun”- did any of you watch it?

I did see this movie, it was interesting , I wish they had more context to what situation the father got into the night he got drunk and ended up naked in bed.

R1 I don’t think there was any situation. That was the night he went up to bed early and his daughter didn’t wanna come. He fell asleep early and she was locked out.

Maybe he had some drinks but I don’t think there was much there to think of.

And Mescal dong in the movie?

R3 no.

Any gay content or themes?

the father is handsome and has a nice ass R5

R5 no. Because the world doesn’t revolve around us. I said what the movies about. A father and daughter. Jesus.

So what are his personal struggles

R8 wait… you think sexuality is the only struggle someone can have?

R8 men and women can have many issues in life that have nothing to do with sexuality. Maybe you should get off the internet and go out into the real world. Clearly the internet is doing you zero favors.

Paul Mescal is lovely. I need to watch him in other projects.

Such an odd film. There's a lot to respect in this - raw and creative cinematography, perfect acting, clever and observant script. But those detail describe a well crafted "small" film. Yet the film had such emotional power. The total way more than the sum of its parts.

R12 the girl who plays the daughter was wonderful, but Paul Mescal really kept me interested. He was so good. I loved this small film. I didn’t expect to.

Raw and creative cinematography, prefect acting, clear and observant script, such emotional power, and made me ravenous to lick Mescal's shitter.

R 10 is spot on. Stating the obvious but nobody cares

R10 you’re a jerk

It's a beautiful film. Really moving.

R16 It trolls a lot - block worthy

It was a beautiful film - I found it heartbreaking - even though it was so well done, I could never watch it again!

Does he show his cock?

R20 Already that failed attempt at R3.

I do not, and r10 is still a jerk.

Why do I get the impression one of the posters on here hasn’t even watched it?

Since I probably will never see it, could someone just provide spoilers:

Why is this trip the last time sophie sees Calum? Does he die or does he simply exit her life?

What is the significance of the rave scenes and the ending of his walking into the room with the rave?

What is the takeaway regarding theme?

Thank you for sharing this, OP! I love films like this - it's definitely on my 'must watch' list for the coming weeks.

Wasn't there stories of Mescal being a homophobic bully in drama school?

R24 One of its virtues is not supplying easy answers. None of your questions have clear answers,

I just assumed he committed suicide, but that was not shown in the least. Like great poetry, it's not what you make of the film, but rather what the film makes of you.

R27 is right. We can only assume what might have happened. But we will never know. We only know that he is severely depressed, hurting and broke, and he has made many mistakes. We also know that he adores his daughter. We see him crying at one point. He runs away one night and looks like he might have died that night (I know that he comes back to the room but....we never see him getting out of the water on a very dark, windy night). And that, whatever happened to her father, she might never get over what happened. It is heartbreaking.

He saw her off at the airport so we know he was still alive then.

Yes, but did you realize how strange the background was when he finished filming? Also, since it deals with her memory (even though there are recordings, they are still memories) we are never sure what is what or when is when. It is a puzzle that is missing too may pieces for ours to solve.

Spoiler alert (or rather, interpretation alert):

R28 R29 The scenes were not chronologically arranged always. Cuts back and forth in time. The scene of his walking off into the dark tide was presented as his "lost night" where he left her locked out of the room... but I took it to be what happened after he left her at the airport. He went back to the resort. The darkness overwhelmed him.

One of the few times I’m happy to see spoilers.

The trailer didn’t get me interested in seeing this film but I thought I might check it out on streaming but after reading about it here I’m definitely not going to watch.

R27 there isn’t an ounce of implication he committed suicide. He just cut ties with her and her mom.

[quote]Interspersed throughout the film are strobe-lit dance rave sequences featuring a crowd of dancing people, Calum in a stupor dancing, and a confused adult Sophie watching the rave unfold from afar. She attempts multiple times to close the distance between herself and Calum but fails, and an adult Sophie appears and angrily pushes her father over when she reaches him.

[quote]Later, Calum and Sophie are at the airport, signalling the end of their holiday and the last moment they spend in each other’s presence. He, waving goodbye, sends her off on her flight back home to her mother. Calum then turns around and walks down the hallway to the room of the dance rave.

Any interpretations of the importances of the raves?

Also, how does the title, Aftersun, fit in?

R33 the man is depressed. When his daughter sings happy birthday, he is very uncomfortable, and he cries when he is alone. I am not saying that he has committed suicide, but it is not out of the question.

He is happy when he isn’t with her. He feels no connection to her anymore.

I think it's rather heavily implied he kills himself.

I think it’s heavily implied he said goodbye and never looked back.

The young actress playing Sophie deserves an Oscar for this.

Good lord OP. I actually followed this thread and watched the film a few minutes ago. This one made me cry. If you ever possibly had a single parent or a

parent die when you were young, I think this film will have special meaning.. There are alot of times now where I think about my mother/father and how they

dealt with certain things, and even wanted to wake up in the morning.. (and I have far more respect for them now as I get into my forties)

This was an outstanding film.

There are a lot signs and some really beautiful symbolism, etc..

There is pretty much no doubt for me what happened to the dad.

I even just checked out the WIkI page, and I think it explains the film as good as anyone can.

That one scene toward the end of the dad alone really got me, as well as the very subtle shot of the meditation books, etc..

One of the best films I have seen in years.

Mescal on Graham Norton alluded to his character as having mental problems.

Mescal was spotted out with Angelina

Interesting but lethargic film that is nowhere near the MASTERPIECE it's been touted to be since Cannes.

This person thinks Mescal’s character may have been queer. But don’t all gay men assume that with everyone?

“In an ideal world, best actor would be between Paul Mescal and Colin Farrell this awards season”

Agreed.

“Lee Byung-hun in I Saw the Devil Paul Mescal in Aftersun Two internalized performances that set up an emotional trap on you, and then release it so, so powerfully.”

Has anyone watched I Saw The Devil? Was it good?

I would love Mescal to at least get nominated.

For whatever reason this film gets into your bones- and he really had a charisma of a star in this film.

R44 — aha !

R5 and r8

Paul Mescal for James Bond?

R49 that’s a rumor.

Months ago the director, Charlotte Wells, posted a picture of her and her dad when they were on vacation in Turkey. He was about 31 years old and she was about 11 years old. The characters in the movie are a fair approximation of the real characters in this picture. The picture is posted at link, but you may have to click into it to see the entire picture(s).

I can't find anything where she states clearly what happened to her father, but she seems to refer to him in the past tense in interviews and press junkets for the film.

Here's the source for the information on the real picture of her and her father. From Charlotte:

[quote] This film is unmistakably fiction, but within it is a truth that is mine; a love that is mine. Photos, videos—records of different types—are enclosed in the film and so it felt appropriate to enclose one here. A photograph of my dad and of me—the starting point for this project—each a single shot because photos of us both are in short supply in that pre-selfie era. I am 10 or 11, Sophie’s age in the film. My Dad is 31 or 32, a little younger than I am now. We happen to be in Turkey.

Adult Sophie is a lesbian with a partner and child so there's some gay content.

I got teary eyed when I saw Paul received that Oscar nom. Much deserved for such a beautiful, poignant, understated performance. He was lovely.

R54- I am thrilled for him-

The linked video compares the Aftersun script to the last 6 minutes of the movie.

IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN THE MOVIE YET, don’t watch the video and skip this post. You’ll never get the impact of the scene without seeing what comes before it in the film.

IF YOU HAVE SEEN THE MOVIE, you may be interested in this presentation of the end of the film with the script comparison. It reveals a couple of interesting things:

The script makes it clearer what adult Sophie is doing while dancing with the memory of her father. It’s sometimes hard to make out her reactions in the strobe lights of the rave.

Also, the script doesn’t end with the last scene used in the movie. The script includes two small scenes that were to follow the movie’s last scene, but they were eventually discarded. They apparently decided it was too hard to add anything to the final scene in the movie where Calum walks down the airport hallway, opens the double doors, and enters his daughter’s everlasting memory. The audience is left alone in that cold, florescent lit hallway, staring at the strobe-light flashes leaking behind the double doors. THE END.

What a beautiful, heart-wrenching movie. I adored it, and it will stick with me.

R57 I loved it too. And I just happened to stumble across it. I never heard of it and saw a photo of it and read what it was about, so I looked it up and rented it on iTunes. I loved it and it really struck a chord with me, and that’s when I made the thread to recommend it to you all. It was lovely.