When the Hereafter trailer dropped, I noticed that it divided people sharply. I read a few commenters here who thought it was universal hate, but if you casually scroll through Twitter, as I often do, to get a more varied take, you would see that comments ranged from extremely positive to negative. I suspect the film will do the same. I also wonder if it, like Gran Torino, will end up doing very well with the public even if it does not do well with critics; I’ll tell you this much, Oscar Watchers, if Gran Torino had been given more time before nominations, and especially if there were ten slots, you can bet, with the box office it earned, that it would have to have been seriously considered.
That is neither here nor there, and I wasn’t particularly fond of the film. However, I must draw your attention to the fight heating up over Hereafter. One can sense the knives being sharpened and the fangs barred for this one. But the pro-Eastwood camp is also out in force. Check out this article by a critic (or blogger) who is gearing up to trash the film but knows he can’t just yet (it is also worth noting that he wasn’t that fond of 127 Hours either). And then check out the comment that follows:
“.. there seemed to be little reason to hide Eastwood’s audacious departure .. from critics, who if anything have a tendency to overrate Eastwood’s work”
“But let’s tread lightly for now, and simply suggest that maybe someone knew Hereafter—however admirable in theory—might not receive the kindest notices of Eastwood’s career.”
Ah, the Eastwood troll bashing brigade of cluless 20 & 30-something film nerds, spreading their BS just like they do every time Eastwood has a new film out.
Instead of wasting your time with Eastwood’s tender, mature films, why don’t you go & watch something flashy & empty like Black Swan for the umpteenth time while sipping your Latte Pinot Noir? I’m sure you’ll be much happier, you empty-headed hipster schmuck.
Fasten your seatbelts…
