Hereafter

Hereafter (2024) is a short horror film directed by Max Bramley. The story follows mortician Archie (played by Max Gold) as he prepares the deceased Ellen (played by Safiya Shamji) for her funeral.

After Archie states he was going to apply makeup, but then strokes her lips inappropriately, Ellen abruptly rises, gasping and coming alive. This is to both of their shock after she apparently faced a ‘sudden death’. Ellen begins to question where she is, if she is still dead and what Archie was doing to her, considering her funeral was not going to be an open casket. Archie becomes more flustered during her questions and concerns, before his anxiety peaks when other bodies in the morgue can be heard coming alive. Their screams prompt Ellen to continue her interrogation as she gets closer to him.

This short film was simple yet effective; although it contained two characters in one setting, it was engaging and definitely has the capacity to get audiences thinking. The issue is that the narrative draws you in, only to leave you hanging with questions that never get answered. Although open endings can sometimes be successful with enough information offered, there was a lack of understanding of the plot of this film and this may lead to confusion.

As the tension peaked, the film ended, leaving audiences without any clarity of why Ellen and the other supposedly dead people are awake, if mortician Archie had anything to do with it and what events would now follow.

Despite this, the film was enjoyable and the narrative was interesting; it just needed some more context. The sound effects were impactful for the horror genre and the cinematography was strong and professional also. Audiences can appreciate the limited set design and lighting plan, as the performances take most of the focus. Although the performances were strong, they were not very convincing. Considering a dead body came alive, I suspect viewers will expect more shock value from the cast.

To conclude, Hereafter (2024) followed an interesting concept, with high production value; some simple backstory that still fits within the time constraints of a short film would elevate it.