After Life

A group of strangers assemble at a way station in limbo. The staff gently interview them about their lives, and give them an assignment. They have one week to choose a single memory of pure bliss, a moment of joy. For this will be the paradise that they will inherit for eternity.

For all its fantastical premise, Kore-eda Hirokazu’s second feature film was born of hundreds of interviews he conducted with ordinary Japanese citizens. The result reflects keenly on the very fabric of Japanese society, and also our own priorities, be they business, sex, family or what have you. For many of us, After Life is a very special film, even in the context of Kore-eda’s rich and long career, which went on to include Still Walking, Shoplifters, Like Father Like Son, etc etc.

Tuesday’s screening is presented in our Talking Pictures series:

Movie theatres usually discourage talking but our latest series is designed to encourage it — before and after (not during) the show. Aimed at film lovers 55+ (but open to all), Talking Pictures offers audience-friendly festival films, refreshments, and an open invitation to chat about our shared experience of the movie. Tickets are just $10. Bring a buddy and get two tickets for $16!

Kore-eda’s brilliant, humorous, transcendently compassionate film.

Stephen Holden, New York Times

Kore-eda has earned the right to be considered with Kurosawa, Bergman and other great humanists of the cinema. His films embrace the mystery of life, and encourage us to think about why we are here, and what makes us truly happy.

Roger Ebert