I am not a huge movie watcher, and I don't tend to fall in love with the films that I do see, but After the Wedding might be my favorite film of all time. It has everything necessary to draw an audience in: a slightly unbelievable (and unpredictable!) premise, family tragedy, scenes in India, and a great ending that left me in tears. While I thought everything about the film, including the acting, directing, and cinematography was phenomenal, what really makes this film stand out is the variety and depth of the relationships found between the characters.
The first characters we get to know in the film are Jacob, a middle-aged but still very attractive Danish man living in India, and Pramod, a seven-year-old boy who lives in the orphanage/school that Jacob has helped to establish. Jacob has developed a deep relationship with Pramod, who has lived at the school since infant hood, and Jacob serves as something of a surrogate father to the boy. When Jacob leaves for Denmark to search for more funding for the school, Pramod makes him promise to return by his birthday. Jacob agrees, but their relationship becomes complicated as Jacob is detained in Denmark, missing Pramod's eighth birthday and breaking his trust. At the end of the movie there is a break in their relationship which causes Jacob a lot of pain, but is unavoidable.
Another interesting relationship explored in After the Wedding is that of Jacob and Anna. Through a series of coincidences, Jacob discovers that he has a twenty-year-old illegitimate daughter in Denmark who has been raised by her mother and stepfather, Helene and Jørgen. Jørgen is a wealthy man and is considering giving Jacob money to fund the school. He encourages Jacob to build a relationship with Anna and to reconnect with Helene after so many years. Anna knew that Jørgen was not her biological father, but she loves him as if he were because she has lived with him her whole life, and she is not sure what to make of Jacob. Jacob is furious that Helene never told him that she was pregnant, but also seems unsure of how to act around Anna. One scene in the film shows them sitting together somewhat awkwardly over dinner while Anna shows Jacob a photo album that documents her childhood. Jacob seems sad that he missed most of her young life, but you can see that he feels more of a connection with Pramod, the surrogate son he left in India, than he does with his biological daughter. She is an adult and has had Jørgen as a father figure for most of her life, so there doesn't seem to be a place for him.
The most complex and tension-filled relationship in the movie is between Jørgen and Jacob. At first, it seems as if Jørgen holds all the power: he is older, wealthy, and apparently figures out exactly who Jacob is as soon as they meet. Jacob, on the other hand, is just trying to appease Jørgen so that he can get the funding for his school. Jørgen is extremely manipulative, detaining Jacob in Denmark when he obviously wants to get back to India, and eventually stipulating that Jacob must relocate permanently to Denmark if he wants to get the several million dollars that Jørgen is capable of donating. We find out later that Jørgen is terminally ill and is only trying to assure that Helene and Anna will have someone to care for them after he dies, but until that information was revealed I was very suspicious of Jørgen's motives. Jacob realizes that he is being manipulated and is frustrated by Jørgen's behavior, but cannot bring himself to turn his back on the money that will save his school.
For me, the most moving part of After the Wedding was finding out about Jørgen's illness and understanding his motives behind the manipulation of Jacob. I was afraid that he meant Jacob ill or that he was going to do something bad to him, but in the end he just turned out to be doing what he thought was best for his family. Whether or not it truly was the best thing to do is open for interpretation. Watching Jørgen deal with the reality of his illness and sharing it with his family was one of the most powerful things I have seen in a film. It was jarring to realize that he had had pure intentions the whole time, was really a good man, and was going to die anyway while his family went on without him, possibly with Jacob in his place. After the Wedding is a refreshing reminder that there really are good people in the world, and that they will do almost anything to protect those they love. Great film!
The first characters we get to know in the film are Jacob, a middle-aged but still very attractive Danish man living in India, and Pramod, a seven-year-old boy who lives in the orphanage/school that Jacob has helped to establish. Jacob has developed a deep relationship with Pramod, who has lived at the school since infant hood, and Jacob serves as something of a surrogate father to the boy. When Jacob leaves for Denmark to search for more funding for the school, Pramod makes him promise to return by his birthday. Jacob agrees, but their relationship becomes complicated as Jacob is detained in Denmark, missing Pramod's eighth birthday and breaking his trust. At the end of the movie there is a break in their relationship which causes Jacob a lot of pain, but is unavoidable.
Another interesting relationship explored in After the Wedding is that of Jacob and Anna. Through a series of coincidences, Jacob discovers that he has a twenty-year-old illegitimate daughter in Denmark who has been raised by her mother and stepfather, Helene and Jørgen. Jørgen is a wealthy man and is considering giving Jacob money to fund the school. He encourages Jacob to build a relationship with Anna and to reconnect with Helene after so many years. Anna knew that Jørgen was not her biological father, but she loves him as if he were because she has lived with him her whole life, and she is not sure what to make of Jacob. Jacob is furious that Helene never told him that she was pregnant, but also seems unsure of how to act around Anna. One scene in the film shows them sitting together somewhat awkwardly over dinner while Anna shows Jacob a photo album that documents her childhood. Jacob seems sad that he missed most of her young life, but you can see that he feels more of a connection with Pramod, the surrogate son he left in India, than he does with his biological daughter. She is an adult and has had Jørgen as a father figure for most of her life, so there doesn't seem to be a place for him.
The most complex and tension-filled relationship in the movie is between Jørgen and Jacob. At first, it seems as if Jørgen holds all the power: he is older, wealthy, and apparently figures out exactly who Jacob is as soon as they meet. Jacob, on the other hand, is just trying to appease Jørgen so that he can get the funding for his school. Jørgen is extremely manipulative, detaining Jacob in Denmark when he obviously wants to get back to India, and eventually stipulating that Jacob must relocate permanently to Denmark if he wants to get the several million dollars that Jørgen is capable of donating. We find out later that Jørgen is terminally ill and is only trying to assure that Helene and Anna will have someone to care for them after he dies, but until that information was revealed I was very suspicious of Jørgen's motives. Jacob realizes that he is being manipulated and is frustrated by Jørgen's behavior, but cannot bring himself to turn his back on the money that will save his school.
For me, the most moving part of After the Wedding was finding out about Jørgen's illness and understanding his motives behind the manipulation of Jacob. I was afraid that he meant Jacob ill or that he was going to do something bad to him, but in the end he just turned out to be doing what he thought was best for his family. Whether or not it truly was the best thing to do is open for interpretation. Watching Jørgen deal with the reality of his illness and sharing it with his family was one of the most powerful things I have seen in a film. It was jarring to realize that he had had pure intentions the whole time, was really a good man, and was going to die anyway while his family went on without him, possibly with Jacob in his place. After the Wedding is a refreshing reminder that there really are good people in the world, and that they will do almost anything to protect those they love. Great film!