Years after their last vacation, Sophie reflects on the rare time spent with her loving, idealistic father, as she tries to reconcile the father she knew with the man she didn’t. A film by Charlotte Wells, starring Paul Mescal, Frankie Corio, and Celia Rowlson-Hall.

The film opens with shaky footage from a handheld camcorder, then suddenly cuts to a shot of 30-year-old Calum (Paul Mescal) and his 11-year-old daughter Sophie (Frankie Corio) on a bus headed for a hotel in Turkey. Upon checking in, Calum discovers that the hotel has provided them with a king-size bed instead of the two single beds he had requested.

The filmmaker reels us in with an unconventional narrative that immediately hooks the audience’s curiosity. There’s no narrator or explanation of this father-daughter relationship, leaving us to wonder why they appear so young and why their age gap is so striking. They could easily be mistaken for siblings. What brings them on this solo journey? Are they truly blood-related, or is there another dynamic at play, such as stepfather and daughter?

The documentary-style storytelling, interspersed with candid video clips that Calum and Sophie have filmed of each other, offers a glimpse into their lives. We gather that Calum has separated from his wife, the reason for which remains a mystery. He decides to take his daughter on a summer vacation to a resort in Turkey while school is out.

The camerawork occasionally shifts between distant, detached shots and close-ups that blur the image, evoking Sophie’s perspective as a child observing her father. Her youthful innocence shields her from understanding the pressures that weigh heavily on Calum’s adult shoulders.

On the surface, Calum appears to be a loving father, attentive to his daughter’s needs and showering her with affection. Their bond is more akin to that of friends or siblings, a stark contrast to the traditional father-daughter dynamic. However, whenever the camera turns to Calum when he’s alone, the atmosphere around him takes on an unsettling, ominous tone, hinting at a darkness lurking beneath his seemingly composed exterior.

The film showcases several unforgettable and awe-inspiring moments that unfold almost wordlessly, such as the poignant scene where Calum walks towards the shore vanishes into the darkness of the night, the scene where adult Sophie reminisces about her childhood summer vacation with her father, and, finally, the dance sequence reimagines Queen & David Bowie iconic song “Under Pressure” in a way that has never been done before.

AFTERSUN, a coming-of-age drama film written and directed by Scottish filmmaker Charlotte Wells in her feature directorial debut, weaves a tale from hazy recollections and a father-daughter bond partially inspired by her own experiences.

The film’s most captivating feature lies in its ambiguous narrative, devoid of explicit details or explanations, allowing each viewer to construct their own interpretation through the lens of hazy memories from the distant past.

The chemistry between Paul Mescal and Frankie Corio is undeniable. Mescal delivers a mesmerizing performance as Calum, a young and troubled father, while Corio, who was cast out of 800 applicants, brings a natural charm to her role as Sophie, Calum’s daughter.

AFTERSUN premiered at Festival de Cannes on 21 May 2022. The film was theatrically released in the United States on 21 October, by A24.