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Aftermath: Movie Review

Thoughts from a horror junkie

By Kelsey WindsPublished 2 years ago 3 min read
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Aftermath: Movie Review
Photo by Kamil Feczko on Unsplash

There is nothing better than sitting at home, cracking open a white claw, and turning on the ear-scratching sound of a horror movie. Those first few loud, usually sharp, notes that make you want to crawl into your skin and turn it off. Tonight's feature is "Aftermath," produced in 2021 and directed by Peter Winther. Nothing new, but an addition to my collection of horror movie picks on Netflix.

The opening scene starts with a classic "show what happens in the end without giving too much away" intro. Then as we watch the screen shift from body to body, we have to wonder, how did they get there? Who are they? And most importantly, who did this?

It turns out our dead friends who start off the ventures have nothing to do with our protagonists and are simply the backdrop of the story. Speaking of, let's talk about the plot. As our main characters, a married couple, attempt to fix their marriage by moving into a new home, they begin to encounter some paranormal-like events that intensify as the story progresses. The question is, are those events actually happening? Again, the plot is solid; while it has its cliche moments, overall, it unfolds nicely to events that both make sense and are still surprising to the audience.

Let's talk about the Spookiness factor. On a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being comparable to Beetlejuice, and 10 being comparable to Sinister 2), I would give it a solid 7. The movie does a great job using videography and the score to intensify moments of the film and make you want to pull your blanket up over your head. I've probably seen hundreds of horror films at this point, and this one made my heart pitter-patter as much as any other.

With all that being said, the movie could have been much more if we had some better leads. While our female protagonist does a great job portraying the "I'm not psychotic, the things I'm seeing are real" leading lady, her partner doesn't quite compare. His timing always seems off, and it's hard to take him seriously in most scenes. His lines and emotions seem pushed when they shouldn't be and nonchalant when they need more emphasis.

Now the ending. I have seen movie after movie of the horror genre, and at this point, I've seen just about every plot twist ending that could be thought of, good and bad. I had three possible endings for this one; option one, the perceived typical ending assuming it stayed on course as a paranormal horror; option two, the plot twist ending where it turns out there is actually someone in the house; and option three, what I like to call "the curve ball" where, for whatever reason, the writers decide to give us something completely different to try and "surprise us" but end up completely ruining the movie. I won't tell you which option they chose because I don't want to spoil it. Still, I will say the ending tied it all together and really showed me that this is a great horror movie and is now one of my new favorites.

Overall this started out a little rocky; I wasn't sure if it would live up to the expectation I now have regarding horror movies. However, after getting into it a little and seeing where the plot was leading, it turned out to be a great addition to my ever-growing collection of esteemed spooky movies. It's a classic story with just enough of a twist to make it riveting and suspenseful, leaving you with just the right amount of chills.

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Kelsey Winds

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