The Sweet Hereafter Details

Excellent

I'd heard some good things about 'The Sweet Hereafter', but to be honest from the title and synopsis I wasn't expecting much. I was just expecting it to be some shameless, manipulative Hollywood melodrama that relied on it's sensitive subject matter to attract critical acclaim. But as it turns out, it is in fact an interesting, original and surprisingly honest film.

The film tells several stories, with the common thread of 'The Pied Piper of Hamlin' as an analogy for parents who have lost their children in one way or another. At the end of the film, you're left to decide just who the 'Pied Piper' really was. It is superbly directed and well-acted throughout. You may find it a little confusing the first time round, as the story isn't told in any kind of chronological order, but rather in an emotional order.

This is a movie I'd recommend mostly to arthouse fans, but most other film-lovers as well. Odds are it'll stay with you.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Sweet Hereafter

Poor weighting of scenes in relation to one another and the film as a whole. Script abysmal. Still trying to figure out why anyone would want to make a film in this way. Zzzzzzzzz.