3 out of 5

Director: Nacho Cerdà

This is an example of a well done film experiment that works much better as a short film than it would if extended to feature length. Aftermath – for anyone who has sought this out, or has read the reviews will probably know – is basically about a guy preparing a corpse through mutilation for some sexual deeds. Now this film made it on to my list after sitting through some other films from the darker edge of horror, particularly the August Underground series. For those unawares, the original AU series was pretty much about trying to make a realistic snuff film as shot by a group of serial killers. My detailed response to these films is unimportant here, but in general, I came away with the notion that blood and guts is hard to make disturbing when it is presented without context. This is why film-making is important versus just throwing images on a screen. Aftermath, I dont think, is disturbing, and in a way I dont think its meant to be. It takes place in a morgue and is presented in a very sterile environment, where the only color is the blood, the only music is peaceful, and while theres plenty of viscera on the screen, theres certainly plenty that was chosen to not be shown. Whether or not director Cerda has a point is hard to say, but thats the benefit of a short film. By the time you might get around to wondering why youre watching this, the experience is over. Certainly not for the light of heart, but also perhaps boring to horror fans. As mentioned, Aftermath is an interesting experiment that was a proper stepping stone for a developing director.