Aftersun (2022)

Nominated for Best Actor    Ugh.  Don't watch this one either, unless you like seeing a suicidally depressed stranger's vacation footage.  This was supposed to go up on Monday but I had some computer issues.  

Sophie (Frankie Corio) is in Turkey on vacation with her father, Calum (Paul Mescal), capturing as many moments on home video as she can while navigating adolescence.

This actually is a very good film to show what's it's like hiding your depression from everyone around you.  Calum is trying very hard to be a good dad and make a memorable vacation for Sophie.  We, the viewers, get to see the cracks in the façade but Sophie only knows through hindsight.  Paul Mescal is excellent in this, especially for a relative newcomer.  I don't think he'll win but I hope it's a huge boost to his career.

Unfortunately, the handheld camera work and silent disco nightmare scenes detract from the message to an unsalvageable extent for me.  Also, it is only 1 hr, 42 minutes but it feels like eight hours.  It is excruciating.  No disrespect to Frankie Corio, she's an actress doing her best, but I found Sophie grating and annoying.

Aftersun is currently only available in theaters.