Film Review: THE AFTER
by Karen Pecota

Misan Harriman, UK 2023

Misan Harriman is a social activist and photographer making his directorial film debut with the short film THE AFTER, in collaboration with screenwriter John Julius Schwabach.

A high-powered financial executive, Dayo (David Oyelowo) is spending time with his young daughter in the park during lunchtime before he heads back to work. His wife, Amanda (Jessica Plummer) meets the two as she will take their daughter to her scheduled recital. The daughter begs her dad to join them. He decides he must and makes arrangements to postpone his afternoon business meeting for a couple of hours.

The loving family is on the way to the recital when they are brutally attacked. His wife and child do not survive. Dayo is devastated at the dramatic tragedy and loss. He spirals into a depression, losing his job and allowing his grief to control his reality.

A year later Dayo, as a hired driver, is constantly listening to conversations of others and often their intimate stories. A family of three (husband, wife, teenage daughter) hire him for a ride. The minute they are underway, the husband and wife argue intensely ignoring anyone else in the car including their daughter, who is embarrassed and resentful.

Constant eye contact between the driver and daughter communicates non-verbally a sense of sorrow and regret. The daughter feels understood. The driver, missing his loved ones, longs to share how incredibly fortunate his riders are to have each other and to not take one moment for granted. Their self-centered behavior is time wasted in place of valuable family time. The ride ends, Dayo helps the family with their luggage and attempts to leave the scene but breaks down emotionally. To his aid stands the teenager. Simply her presence gives him comfort for his survival.