The Sweet Hereafter (1997)
Genre: Drama
Duration: 112 minuten
Country:
Canada
Directed by: Atom Egoyan
Stars: Ian Holm, Bruce Greenwood and Sarah Polley
IMDb score:
7,4 (38.099)
Releasedate: 25 September 1997
The Sweet Hereafter plot
"There is no such thing as the simple truth."
In a peaceful village somewhere in British Columbia, Canada, a school bus goes off the road and collapses through the ice. Fourteen children are killed. Mitchell Stephens, a renowned big-city lawyer, tries to get the parents of the young victims to sue the authorities. He wants to use the teenage girl Nicole, who survived the bus accident, to prove his point.
Actors and actresses
Mitchell Stephens
Nicole Burnell
Sam Burnell
Dolores Driscoll
Risa Walker
Zoe Stephens
Wendell Walker
Allison
Stewardess
Wanda Otto
Reviews & comments
blurp194
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- 5543 messages
- 4226 votes
An example of the kind of movie I appreciate Egoyan for. In the words of Donkerwoud, a master at showing the things that cannot or should not be spoken and which are still slumbering on the surface. Also a master at telling a poignant story about the less happy and positive emotions and events that we may not all experience every day, but which we do know that they really do happen.
However, this film is one of his lesser ones as far as I'm concerned. The subject itself is certainly catchy enough, but somehow it still lacks to touch me. It's not clear to me exactly what that means - whether it's in the narrative or in the subject. It's not the actors and the acting, that is - as I actually expect from Egoyan - perfectly in order; the cast is largely from the ordinary Egoyan circle, and there is not really a pin in between.
Maybe seen at the wrong time. So be it.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Lovelyboy
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- 3953 messages
- 2955 votes
A pretty heavy drama that didn't really sink in at first.
Beautiful atmosphere in that snowy desolate and gray landscape where a considerable tragedy happened that is not completely clear from the start. The past and present are played very nicely, a scene and dialogue with questions and answers, followed by the relevant images from earlier. In this way, we slowly work towards the accident in question. What is striking, of course, is the grief of the people and the community itself with the usual things, pitfalls and idiosyncrasies.
Unfortunately, despite the beautiful dreamy atmosphere, at some point I have trouble keeping my attention on those people. Stevens, Holm, in particular, remains a mystery to me. Of course he has his past with his daughter, but the unsympathetic drive and will to push those people to a trial remains a question mark. Why is that man so bitten on that? Only when he crosses swords with Greenwood/Billy, who is not happy with Stevens' involvement, and briefly calls on the others not to do business with him, does the film start to come to life, unfortunately there is also soon the sting out when the girl starts telling lies during her testimony. Something where little explanation follows about why she does that, especially because it has quite a downside for her parents.
It's just a bit too sluggish for me, despite the good acting and the good story about loss and grief that is sometimes quite gripping, and the thought of that bus sliding onto that ice and sagging gives me goosebumps again. Damn you'll see like Billy did.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Shadowed
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- 11421 messages
- 6719 votes
egoyan.
A director I think I should know, but actually mainly see appear in films. It's a name that has delivered many titles including apparently some titles that are really seriously good. With those expectations I stepped into The Sweet Hereafter, which one day I could just pick up for free and for nothing.
This movie puts a lot of emphasis on drama. You will not find cheerfulness in this film, especially a kind of compilation of how sad life can be for some people. Despite the limited and scarce sparks of hope, it should above all become clear that this film is heavy on the stomach. And on your retina, because I am not surprised if this film has an emotional impact on many viewers.
For me, however, not at all, because even though I can place myself in the film quite well, it didn't captivate or touch me at all. The events are completely boring as well as the acting. Not that everyone plays a really bad role, they are mostly very similar. Few unique features to be seen, everyone pulls the same face and seems to have the same attitude.
Visually it lacks some power and the slow pace means that you would rather go into another room and think about how bad your own life is than feel empathy for these people. While it is certainly a relevant film in its own way, there was little I could do with this. I was hoping it would be over soon, but actually almost 2 hours is quite long. Unfortunately.
Translated from Dutch · View original
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