After the Fall (2014)

After the Fall (2014). 1h 50m | R

“I doubt u0026#39;After the Fallu0026#39; was conceived as a sequel to u0026#39;Falling Downu0026#39; but the movies do have a similar subject. Wes Bentley plays the protagonist, who begins to have money issues after losing his job. His character is completely unsympathetic, a sociopath who lies easily to his family and goes on an increasingly reckless crime spree because heu0026#39;s too prideful to ask for money from his father-in-law. Instead, he robs complete strangers at gunpoint with an astonishing lack of anxiety or hesitation; he moves like a career criminal with no fear of getting caught. His occasional indulgence in rants and his spontaneous petty interventions suggest a desire for social justice, but his actions are transparently hypocritical and the film has established that nothing he says can be believed. Itu0026#39;s hard to see any arc of development at all in this character because Bentley doesnu0026#39;t emote. He never varies his facial expressions beyond a look of frustrated detachment – his eyes never change, his face doesnu0026#39;t move; he walks quietly through dry scenes set to meditative music posing with the same look in every shot, and he never experiences remorse. His wife (Vinessa Shaw) is a trophy, a prop to suggest his motivation, but sheu0026#39;s so completely oblivious and implausibly stupid, she doesnu0026#39;t interact enough to actually humanize him. There are plenty of scenes of his children happily playing or asking questions. The implication is that Bentley never swallows his pride because he cares for his family – that alone should justify lying to them and sadistically hurting whoever he wants. This movie will be of special interest to you if you think your wife is useless and your children are such a burden, it could justify murder and suicide.”