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AFTER.LIFEMovie Reviews
Horror thriller about a young woman caught in the realm between life and death and trapped in a funeral home from which she may never escape. Cast:Liam Neeson, Christina Ricci, Justin Long, Josh Charles, Celia WestonDirector:Agnieszka Wojtowicz-VoslooRelease Date:April 9, 2010DVD Release:August 3, 2010From:Anchor BayRating:RLength:1 hr 44 min
After.Life played in key cities to poor reviews. • Joe Morgenstern wrote in the Wall Street Journal, "...some of its images of imprisonment — not to mention injection and evacuation — stay with you... But the whole bizarre venture eventually succumbs to rigor mortis." • And Michael Phillips wrote in the Chicago Tribune, "Clean, precise and terribly sullen..." More Reviews Below...
David Germain, Associated Press: WEAK(cg) "...decomposes and stinks up the joint faster than a body rotting in a desert swarming with flies. At its most titillating, it amounts to necrophiliac porn..."(See all of David Germain's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 646 words, 04/08/10
Thelma Adams, Us Weekly: POOR(cg) "Given the pretentious direction, drab dialogue and flat acting, the only thing noteworthy about this supernatural dud is that Ricci plays most of it stark naked."(See all of Thelma Adams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 67 words, 04/08/10
James Berardinelli, Reel Views: VERY GOOD(cg) "...there are flaws aplenty in 'After.Life,' but the criss-crossing between drama, thriller, and horror is nothing if not arresting. It is also unsettling."(See all of James Berardinelli's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,085 words, 04/08/10
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...enjoy the suspense of the opening scenes, and some of the drama... toward the end, there is a certain impatience. It's as if our chain is being yanked."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 720 words, 04/08/10
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: WEAK(cg) "The only thing worse than bad horror is pretentiously bad horror. From title to finish, 'After.Life' takes itself far more seriously than you will."(See all of Elizabeth Weitzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 308 words, 04/09/10
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: POOR "...an undertaking so tortured that it digs a deeper grave with every passing scene.... just as it gets intriguing, it goes ridiculously rogue, and red, as in blood red, get it?"(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 589 words, 04/09/10
Lou Lumenick, New York Post: MODERATE(cg) "...unnervingly creepy... the writer-director couldn't possibly be serious about a movie in which a mortician named Eliot addresses the corpses he's fixing up as 'you people'..."(See all of Lou Lumenick's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 373 words, 04/09/10
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...enjoy the suspense of the opening scenes, and some of the drama... toward the end, there is a certain impatience. It's as if our chain is being yanked."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 720 words, 04/08/10
Nicolas Rapold, Village Voice/LA Weekly: WEAK "Somewhere in Agnieszka Wojtowicz-Vosloo's awkward debut feature is a macabre and almost quaint Gothic mystery begging to be left alone."(See all of Nicolas Rapold's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 211 words, 04/06/10
KEY CITIES (4 Reviews)
Walter Addiego, Houston Chronicle/San Francisco Chronicle: POOR(cg) "So many horror conventions are at work in 'After.Life' that either the filmmakers are parodying them or couldn't come up with anything better."(See all of Walter Addiego's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 417 words, 04/09/10
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...creepily entertaining... Ricci is good... Long's role is less rewarding; he's fine... Best of all is Neeson, who is nicely creepy."(See all of Bill Goodykoontz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 592 words, 04/09/10
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: POOR(cg) "A movie as annoying as its oddly punctuated title... a misguided and empty-headed attempt at psychological horror that succeeds only at talking the viewer to death."(See all of Rene Rodriguez's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 435 words, 04/09/10
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (3 Reviews)
Nicolas Rapold, Village Voice/LA Weekly: WEAK "Somewhere in Agnieszka Wojtowicz-Vosloo's awkward debut feature is a macabre and almost quaint Gothic mystery begging to be left alone."(See all of Nicolas Rapold's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 211 words, 04/06/10
Scott Tobias, AV Club: FAIR(cg) "...the neither-here-nor-there quality gives it some distinction, but it is so maddeningly inert, caught in a pretentious no-man's land between horror and melodrama."(See all of Scott Tobias's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 288 words, 04/08/10
HIGHBROW PRESS (3 Reviews)
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: POOR "...some of its images of imprisonment -- not to mention injection and evacuation -- stay with you... But the whole bizarre venture eventually succumbs to rigor mortis."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 244 words, 04/09/10
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: POOR "...an undertaking so tortured that it digs a deeper grave with every passing scene.... just as it gets intriguing, it goes ridiculously rogue, and red, as in blood red, get it?"(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 589 words, 04/09/10
MOVIE INDUSTRY (5 Reviews)
Brian Lowry, Daily Variety: MODERATE "...spins a strong visual web... But the potent imagery never meshes with narrative logic in Agnieszka Wojtowicz-Vosloo's first feature, promising more than it can deliver."(See all of Brian Lowry's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 654 words, 04/07/10
Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter: WEAK "...the seriousness of purpose is undermined by the gratuitous exploitation of the comely Ricci... it might be time for the talented actress to keep her clothes on."(See all of Frank Scheck's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 427 words, 04/08/10
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: POOR "...an undertaking so tortured that it digs a deeper grave with every passing scene.... just as it gets intriguing, it goes ridiculously rogue, and red, as in blood red, get it?"(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 589 words, 04/09/10
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: POOR "...some of its images of imprisonment -- not to mention injection and evacuation -- stay with you... But the whole bizarre venture eventually succumbs to rigor mortis."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 244 words, 04/09/10
18.1 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
After.Life's reviews are separated by an average 18.1 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
After.Life (21 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:After.Life's reviews cover 44.7% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 8,921 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 425 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 8.7 Hours Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
After.Life's reviews on average broke 8.7 hours before opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is After.Life's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
After.Life (21 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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