After Image (2001)

Grammy winner John Mellencamp (FALLING FROM GRACE) stars with Academy Award(R) winner Louise Fletcher (ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST, Best Actress, 1975; CRUEL INTENTIONS) in an intense psychological crime story that delivers thrills in the must-see tradition of INSOMNIA and ONE HOUR PHOTO! Burned out after seeing one too many homicides, crime scene photographer Joe McCormack (Mellencamp) takes a leave of absence and returns to his childhood home. There he finds the aunt who raised him (Fletcher) ailing and being cared for by Laura, a young deaf woman (Terrylene -- NATUAL BORN KILLERS). Joe and Laura ignite an instant attraction but their romance is thrown off course when Laura experiences visions of upcoming murders! Together, the begin to slowly unravel clues about the gruesome crime! Stylish, suspenseful and highly entertaining -- you can't look away from AFTER IMAGE as Joe and Laura learn that the killer is closer to them than they could have ever imagined!

Kind of unnecessary...

I used to like thrillers over horror movies because I figured that the psychology involved meant a lot more thought needed to be put into the characters and plotline to make it work. Lately that kind of reasoning has been kind of failing me.

Not that this is a bad movie by any means. It's just kind of unnecessary. The idea is good and I'm attracted to it because of a similar situation in a Carl Hiaasen novel. A crime-scene photographer who is severely affected by the nature of his photographs decides to escape for a while, going to stay with his aunt. Unfortunately, a psychopath is loose and chasing down the photographer and his new girlfriend, who is deaf and sees visions of future crimes, a la something like In Dreams and whatnot.

I figured this movie would be interesting to see because of the idea of an "after image" affecting the photographer character and how he deals with his, erm, photographic memory, but it didn't really concentrate on that. I thought it'd be interesting seeing Louise Fletcher, the ol' Nurse Ratchet herself, in a different role than the one that terrorized Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Instead, besides her being older and a bit more heavy, it's not.

I can't really say for sure that this movie is that good or that bad. On one hand, it took the time to really develop an interesting group of characters. On the other hand, most of them were archetypes and presented half of the time in slow motion to create drama. The self-reflective element of the camera or the mirror, reflected and divided imaging and the like, wasn't really there. The director obviously took a lot of time finding ways to present the action through an "other" lens, but not really for any real reason except maintaining consistancy.

I want to say this to the director: good work, now go make something interesting. Maybe we just have someone who needs a bit of practice on our hands.

--PolarisDiB December 29, 2005

Most boring movie I have ever seen!

How could anyone give this movie a 5 star rating? Eight people watched this film with me and everyone strongly disliked it. H.G October 23, 2005

First Rate Film

Robert Manganelli's After Image employs an extraordinarily rich cinematic palette. Relying on a sophisticated use of sound and image, often working on different expressive planes, After Image brings together two characters at crossroads in their lives. Joe, understatedly played by John Mellecamp, is a crime scene photographer who can no longer find meaning in his difficult career and decides to return to his childhood home. Laura, beautifully played by Terrylene, is a deaf woman who experiences premonitions. Her most recent visions bring her physically and spiritually close to Joe as they attempt to find and stop a vicious serial killer who preys on the innocent.
There are a number of points that should be brought out. As director, Manganelli is in complete control of his medium and knows from scene to scene, moment to moment, where to lead an audience. Moreover, the subtle undertones of this film, slowly developed in rich poetic ways, makes it so much a cut above the ordinary American film offerings. Exquisitely using the backdrops of western New York and specifically the city of Rochester (home to Eastman Kodak), Manganelli reflects on the genuine human connections people make at very desperate moments in their lives. This is a film about being vulnerable, being melancholy, and also a film about extraordinary human acceptance and forgiveness.
You will not be disappointed in this film. You will walk away knowing you have just seen a film directed and acted by people who clearly are very talented and know how to make intelligent films. You will also not be able to forget it because, like many great films, After Image speaks to you long after you have left the movie theater. April 27, 2004

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