How Aftersun Explores The Poetry Of Memory by Will Clempner

Aftersun by Charlotte Wells is one of my favourite films from last year. This video essay by Will Clempner made for Little White Lies magazine looks into the main theme of the film, memory.

The older I get, the less I trust my memories. Memories fade, get distorted or disappear altogether. I also wonder in today’s age where almost everything is recorded and saved on a phone, what would a version of a film like Aftersun set in the 2010-20s look like if made in 20-30 years time. 

If you’ve never watched Aftersun, I suggest you see it first before watching the video essay below.
Here’s a short synopsis:

At a fading vacation resort, 11-year-old Sophie treasures rare time together with her loving and idealistic father, Calum (Paul Mescal). As a world of adolescence creeps into view, beyond her eye Calum struggles under the weight of life outside of fatherhood. Twenty years later, Sophie's tender recollections of their last holiday become a powerful and heartrending portrait of their relationship, as she tries to reconcile the father she knew with the man she didn't, in Charlotte Wells’ superb and searingly emotional debut film.

“Memory is a slippery thing; details are hazy, fickle. The more you strain, the less you see. A memory of a memory endlessly corrupting itself.” from A Note from Charlotte Wells (A24 website)