Rent After Love (2020)

Wonderful Drama - After Love review by GI

A poignant drama with an excellent central performance from Joanna Scanlon. She plays Mary, a British woman who converted to Islam years before in order to marry her beloved husband Ahmed, a Pakistani man who is an officer on the cross channel ferries. They live a quiet life of domesticity with Ahmed often away due to his work. When he dies unexpectedly Mary finds herself a little lost amongst the muslim community she has become part of. But her life is thrown into emotional chaos when she discovers Ahmed had a secret life in France. She decides to go there in order to uncover it. This is a story of secrets and lies and a study of people caught between culture and personal identity. All the characters are seemingly leading double lives which causes anger and questioning of what people actually stand for. It's a subtle yet powerful story, wonderfully acted. Worth checking out.

Great performances. - After Love review by KD

The film is carefully organised with very powerful performances by an excellent cast. Engaging story with unexpected twists. Symbolic moments like a cliffs fall and an immersion on a beach added to the film. An interesting interview with the director and lead actors included on the disc is worth a look.

Joanna Scanlan is incredible in this powerful & moving story dealing with grief and tragedy - After Love review by TB

Joanna Scanlan has been a mainstay of predominantly comedy over the last 20-plus years.

Here, she finally gets a lead role worthy of her talents, with a meaty part dealing with extremely challenging and difficult subjects. And the sensitivity of how this is handled is absolutely to the film’s credit. The clashing in many ways of the different cultures is wonderfully and compassionately shown, all wrapped up in the unbearable grief of losing a loved one. Scanlan stars as Mary. She lives with her husband in what she feels is domestic bliss.

The opening of the film also perfectly builds to what is happening, the seeds of change set against the crashing waves. As Mary’s life is thrown into turmoil, she begins to suspect that her husband was unfaithful, before finding out about a whole other family which lives on the other side of the channel. I don’t want to say too much more, but the way the film moves at both a slow and also lightening pace, whilst still keeping you gripped, is masterful.

And at the centre of it all is Scanlan. She is amazing and richly deserved her BAFTA win. Please can she be given more of these roles in the future, so we can continue to witness this incredible actress break our hearts. 

Superb - After Love review by SKC

One of the best British films I have seen in a long time. I love everything about it. I would rather just say watch it as opossed to spoiling it. Must see.