How to Watch Aftersun
This year’s Cannes Film Festival was packed with so many films that it’s hard to know which one to watch. In between Ruben Ostlund‘s Palme D’Or award-winning satire triangle of sadness, David Kronenberg‘s long-awaited return to body horror in crimes of the futureand Park Chanwook‘s Film Noir Oscar Submission decision to go, this awards season will be a battle between the festival’s best. However, the dark horse of the festival and the upcoming awards race does not come from these internationally acclaimed veteran writers, but from a first-named director Charlotte Wells. Her feature film debut After sun has quietly and steadily blown critics away with its earnest story, heartbreaking realism, and brilliant performances. Tells the story of the emotional roller coaster ride that comes from vacationing at a Turkish resort shared by a father and daughter, After sun is a revelation.
The most established actor in film is Paul Meskalknown for his role in the miniseries adaptation normal people, plays Calum, the young father. His 11-year-old daughter Sophie can be seen at his side Frankie Corio. Corio has no previous credits to her name, but has beaten 800 other applicants for the role. It paid off, with Corio’s performance being hailed as one of the best of her generation. The cast is rounded off Celia Rowlson-Hall who plays Sophie as an adult. Rowlson-Hall made her name as a dancer and choreographer working on the HBO show girl as well as music videos for artists such as Alicia Keys. She has also directed several short films as well as a feature film entitled MA in 2015.
For everyone who can’t wait to see this father-daughter story, here’s everything we know about how, when and where to catch this new family drama. But first, here’s the official synopsis for After sun:
In a fading resort town, 11-year-old Sophie cherishes the rare time spent with her loving and idealistic father, Calum. Twenty years later, Sophie’s tender memories of her last vacation become a powerful and heartbreaking portrait of their relationship.
When will Aftersun be in cinemas?
After sun will be in cinemas on October 21, 2022 at A24.
Will Aftersun be available in streaming on the same day as the cinemas?
Unfortunately, After sun won’t be available to stream on launch day, and there’s no news on which streaming service it will end up on. However, A24 signed an exclusive output deal with Showtime Networks in late 2019 to stream and air all of their non-Apple films out in theaters through November 1, 2022. That means that After sun should be released on Showtime and/or its affiliated channels after it leaves theaters.
What do critics say about Aftersun?
Since its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, critics have fallen in love with this quiet but effective portrayal of a moment in youth, with the film currently having a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Collider’s own Chase Hutchinson has described After sun as “one of the greatest films of the year so far” and said that it “reflects on how our memories, no matter how much we hold on to them, can get lost over time.” Hutchinson gave the film the score in his review of the film A+.
Much of the praise went to the film’s direction, as well as the performances of leads Frankie Corio and Paul Mescal, who appear to be on track to garner a slew of nominations this awards season. Based on the critical reception, After sun is developing into one of the best A24 films of recent years. Read on for an excerpt from our review of After sun or read the full article here.
There’s a boldness in the way everything shifts to more emotionally ephemeral, but there’s no better way to capture the elusive emotional states that are being expressed. The way the visuals dance across the screen in brilliant flashes, breaking down the barriers between form and feeling until they become one, is nothing short of spectacular.
More heartfelt movies about single parents you can watch now
To help you while you wait for your local cinema to show this masterpiece of contemporary independent British cinema, check out these three other films that explore the beauty and difficulty of being a single parent:
The Florida Project: director Sean Baker has established himself as one of the most sympathetic directors of his generation, who focuses on what is often forgotten in society. Until now, The Florida Project is the high point of his career. The film follows Moonee, a six-year-old girl who lives with her young mother in a hotel near Disney World. Along with her friends from the hotel, Moonee goes on adventures and gets into trouble. Through her innocent eyes, however, we see the dangerous and sometimes brutal world her mother is a part of. Baker is never the moralist, judging none of his characters and instead presenting those characters’ flaws and motivations with care and understanding. Without a doubt, this film will change the way you think or feel about the people that society often considers criminals or immoral.
Kramer against Kramer: Kramer against Kramer may be dated, but it was one of the first films to attempt to authentically portray the single parent. The movie begins when Joanna (Meryl Streep) informs her longtime husband Ted (Dustin Hoffman) that the burden of her life as a housewife has become too great and she is leaving him and her son behind. After this explosive event, Ted, a workaholic, must become a father to his son for the first time in his life. The first half of the film explores the day-to-day struggles of single parents, while the second half focuses on the custody battles that all too often result in one parent being unnecessarily belittled against the other. Featuring Oscar-winning performances by Streep and Hoffman, this 1970s classic is a must!
20th Century Women: Even though 20th Century Women didn’t get the Oscars it deserved, it will surely go down in history as one of the best films of the decade. After doing Beginnera film exploring his late relationship with his gay father, Mike Mills did 20th Century Women based on his teenage relationship with his mother. The film follows 55-year-old Dorothea (Annette Bening), a single mother who, hoping to better understand and help her son, hires a photographer and a young girl he is in love with to help her raise his son. It’s a beautiful and thoughtful tale of what it takes to raise a child and what it takes to truly love someone.