Aftersun (2022)
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2025-09 to 2026-08
A daughter and her father share a final summer holiday at a Turkish resort, captured through the lens of a MiniDV camera.
The story
In 1999, 11-year-old Sophie Patterson travels to a Turkish holiday resort with her 30-year-old father, Calum, who recently moved to London after a separation. Sophie documents their time together on a MiniDV camera, capturing the atmosphere of the resort and their interactions with other tourists. While Sophie enjoys the holiday, Calum struggles with internal turmoil and signs of depression, attempting to maintain a facade of contentment for his daughter. The film intersperses these memories with abstract, dreamlike sequences of an adult Sophie reflecting on the past, creating a layered exploration of memory and the complexities of their relationship during this final summer together.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 1999, 11-year-old Sophie Patterson and her father, Calum, vacation at a Turkish resort. Sophie records the trip on a MiniDV camera. While Sophie befriends other tourists and plays games, Calum hides his internal turmoil and depression behind a facade of contentment. Key moments include a scuba diving trip where Sophie senses Calum's distress, a visit to a rug shop where he struggles with costs, and a karaoke night where Sophie sings alone while Calum watches. On his 31st birthday, Sophie surprises him with a song, and he is later seen sobbing alone in his room. The final night, they dance to 'Under Pressure'. In the present, adult Sophie lives in New York with her wife and child, watching the old footage. The film features dreamlike sequences of adult Sophie in a rave, trying to reach a dancing Calum, who eventually falls from her grasp. The final scene shows Calum packing the camcorder and walking into the rave.
- First release year
- 2022
- Runtime (minutes)
- 101
- Production countries
- United Kingdom; United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Charlotte Wells
- Writers
- Charlotte Wells · writer
- Cast and characters
- Paul Mescal · Calum Patterson; Frankie Corio · Sophie Patterson; Celia Rowlson-Hall · adult Sophie; Brooklyn Toulson · Michael; Sally Messham · Belinda; Spike Fearn · Olly; Harry Perdios · Toby; Ruby Thompson · Laura
- Genres
- drama; coming-of-age
- Themes
- memory; parent-child relationship; grief; identity
- Tone and mood
- melancholic; dreamlike; intimate
- Setting
- A Turkish holiday resort in 1999 and New York City in the present day.
- Premise and plot tags
- semi-autobiographical; coming-of-age; drama
- Source material / true-story basis
- Based on the director's childhood.
- Content notes
- depression
- Reception
- The film received widespread acclaim from critics, who praised the direction, screenplay, cinematography, visuals, and performances of Corio and Mescal. It was noted for its 'universal acclaim' and was included on several 'best of' lists for the 2020s and 21st century.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 96% · scale: percentage · review count: 245; Metacritic · score: 95 · scale: 100 · review count: 46
- Awards and nominations
- Best Actor · Academy Awards · nomination
- Production trivia
- The film's 'Under Pressure' sequence was named one of the best movie scenes of 2022.; The director's collaboration with Paul Mescal was described as the start of a potential 'De Niro–Scorsese relationship'.; A copy of a book by Margaret Tait is prominently displayed on screen.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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