I was really surprised how good this movie is. Beautifully filmed with brilliant acting performances and a great ending.
I would have settled for a drama about the post war struggles in Germany and looking at it from both sides. There is enough potential in that. You could go dozens of angles from there. Instead we get just another love story that is way too obvious in its occurrence, that obstructs from the good parts this movie has
Would have given this an 8/10 but for those gratuitously filmed scenes. Hinting is better, whether you're going for a romance type or a post-war drama movie more. Neither called for that much lingering. Ew. The rest of it was pretty good tho. Enjoyable, well-made, you root for almost everybody.
Despite some of the reviews on this page, the film isn't that bad. The aftermath of the war is shown in some interesting ways, and the acting is pretty strong throughout. It's the romantic aspect of the film that is the most problematic. While it's handled in a sensitive way, it does feel a bit rushed. Nit pickers will have a problem with this, hence some of the harsh comments written about the film. Still, the film isn't a waste of time, so while unsatisfying in some aspects, you might still gain some enjoyment from it.
This summer... Academy Award nominee... Keira Knightley .... gets sieg heiled her frikin' brains out .... by Alexander Skarsgård .... in post world war 2 Germany.....! :eggplant::sweat_drops:
Keira Knightley and Jason Clarke star in the rather dull and meandering war drama The Aftermath. In the months following the Allied victory in Europe during World War II a British housewife goes to Germany to be with her husband who’s part of the British command overseeing the occupation, however when they let a Germany family whose house they’ve been quartered at stay tensions rise and relationships begin to be torn apart. Both Knightley and Clarke give lackluster, underwhelming performances, and no one else is particularly good either. And the writing is especially poor, as the dramatic tensions and conflicts all kind of frizzle out. However, the production values are remarkably good, making for a beautiful looking film. Yet despite having a few things going for it, The Aftermath is incredibly disappointing and falls flat.
You don't see too many movies about post-war Germany during this era, so I was definitely intrigued, and wanted to check it out. I personally like all three of the main actors, but they can't save the mess that is this film. I wish it focused more on the big picture, instead of the whole romance angle.
Review by Saint PaulyBlockedParent2019-05-06T20:39:23Z
Ok, sure it was bland and cliché, but at least it was also totally offensive. A romance / period piece set in the rubble of post-war Germany? Seriously!? The French title (which translates as Enemy Hearts) is a better indicator of the rubbish that lies within. Here, wait, I have an even better one: The Nazi and The Colonel's Wife: A Post-Holocaust Harlequin Romance. Ffs.
To make matters even worse, there is absolutely no reason for the love affair! An English woman arrives in Germany 5 months after the war has ended with a hatred of the people who killed her son in a London bombing raid, and one scene after spewing bile on her German host, she's got her tongue so far down his throat she can tickle his schnitzel. One minute she's in the throes of grief and the next she's in the throws off her skirt to bang the first man she meets for no reason, no explanation and, like me on Saturday morning, no motivation.
When making costume dramas, Keira Knightley has as much self-control as I do when it comes to men with hard nipples or all-you-can-eat Tex-Mex buffets. But as much as I'd be interested in seeing a film about Germany in the immediate aftermath of World War II, and that nation coming to terms with defeat and the stigma of the Nazis (whom some still supported), a romance set in this climate is an awful idea.
Hey, Keira Knightley, I have some better suggestions for your next period romance. Let me know what you think about Posy and Pus: Crazy Plague Love, Genocide for Two, or Romancing the Stoning?