Aftersun (2022) and Depression

Dominic Robucci | Staff Writer

Aftersun (2022) is a feature film starring Paul Mescal and Frankie Corio. The film is a directorial debut by filmmaker Charlotte Wells. The film is an examination of the memories of a woman named Sophie, as she reflects on a family vacation she had as an 11-year-old, with her father Calum who suffers from depression. The film was a major success critically, with the film debuting in the Cannes Film Festival and winning the Grand Jury prize. Mescal would go on to receive an Oscar nomination for his performance as Calum. 

Aftersun (2022) and Depression I had an entirely unique experience with this where after crying for most of the runtime, once it ended, I just sobbed. one of those cathartic cries that I haven’t had for a while; like when you were a kid. Out of breath, exhausted, dry throat, just sobbing. 45 minutes straight after the film finished. I was an absolute mess. (thank God I was by myself) A film has never elicited such a reaction from me. 

Depression for me is always something I don’t see in the current moment when it’s happening. You’ll have a great couple weeks/month, but for seemingly no reason, after that you’re just down. Not explicitly sad, or angry, or any real emotion really, just kind of a husk. An empty vessel. And in these moments of emptiness, you don’t realize that you’re affecting the people around you, you’re too focused on your emptiness and self-loathing to pursue new relationships, new opportunities, new friends. Even reaching out to old friends seems like an impossible task, “why would they wanna hear from me? why should I bother them? they’re busy they’re not concerned with me, I don’t wanna worry them.” These alienating thoughts keeps you depressed too. That’s where depression wants you, it creates a void inside that feels impossible to break free from.  

Aftersun has the most honest portrayal of depression I’ve ever seen on film. Throughout the memories of Sophie and the home video clips, we see Calum try to give his daughter the best summer vacation possible, but his depression still weighs heavy on him in every moment. I see a lot of my depression in the way Calum navigates the world. Not seeing yourself past 40. Empty promises that come from a good place but hurts that you can’t fulfill. Self-loathing from seeing yourself reflected in the people closest to you. Wanting to make the people around you as happy as possible, while also trying to not show how miserable you truly are. Ruining memories by not allowing yourself to experience joy in the moment. These staples of depression are so obvious when looking back on memories, but in the moment, you don’t have that perspective.  

That’s what makes the narrative work so well here. What seems like effectively masking depression is still visible in broad strokes, even to an 11-year-old. Sometimes it takes until adulthood to see how much pain your parents truly were in, and that’s a heartbreaking realization. 

A masterwork through and through. And this is a debut? incredible.