The Aftermath

Starring: Keira Knightley, Alexander Skarsgård, Jason Clarke, Martin Compston

Director: James Kent

Set in a post WWII Hamburg, Rachael (Keira Knightley) arrives to join her husband Lewis (Jason Clarke), a colonel in the British Army, tasked with helping fight the remaining German resistance. Lewis has acquired a house previously owned by a German family led by Stephen (Alexander Skarsgård) and his daughter Freda (Flora Thiemann). Lewis, feeling remorse for displacing the German family, invites them to continue to share the house. While Lewis and Rachael begin to drift apart due to the death of their son years previous, she finds herself drawn to Stephen, whose wife was killed in the bombings. While they do their best to keep their feelings at bay, Freda finds herself drawn to a young German boy who still supports the Hitler regime.

This movie is exactly what it sounds like: an overwrought, made-for-TV movie that happened to land some good actors. The romance aspect is particularly laughable, complete with a scene of Knightly watching Skarsgård chop wood outside and then their eyes lock. There is also no real chemistry between either Knightly and Skarsgård or Knightly and Clarke. I didn't believe either relationship or want either of them to really work out. Equally as unbelievable is the relationship between Freda and the Nazi teen.

The film is also horribly underlit, which gives the film a cheap look that extends to the costumes as well. The low production value helps cement the made-for-TV feeling that permeates the film.

This could have been mildly palpable if the film wasn't centered around a completely selfish lead character. Yes, Jason Clarke's character isn't the greatest, but he is nowhere near the worst. His greatest crime is that he works too much to distract himself from losing his child. There would have been no movie if the characters had just talked to each other. The film didn't give the audience a reason to root for Knightly/Skarsgård. If she had been married to Burnham (Martin Compston), who is so over the top in his villainy, it would have felt more believable. The movie also has a forced "happy ending" that when you think about it, actually isn't happy and solved nothing.

This was a frustrating movie to watch, especially when there are so many talented people involved. Even if you enjoy period pieces, there isn't much here to enjoy.

D-