Jen’s mother is dead. Her relationship with her father, John, is fractured beyond repair. Her friends, all recent high school graduates, are moving on with their lives and leaving behind the small town they once called home. Jen is, in every sense of the word, alone. That is until John introduces Jen to his new girlfriend, Florence… a woman who looks and sounds identical to Jen’s dead mother.
For in-depth thoughts on After She Died, please see my colleague Mike Vaughn’s review from its theatrical debut here.
Video Quality
After She Died debuts on Blu-Ray with a 1080p presentation from a high definition master that captures the film pretty well. With this being an independent affair, it is impressive how crisp the film looks even with the occasional variances in aesthetics from the different locations. The project has a pleasing natural color palette with a great amount of detail and clarity. There is slight banding in certain shots, but it is not pervasive throughout. Black levels hold up nicely as they appear more inky than milky. Objects hold up pretty well in the shadows and retain their depth. The special effects are really well executed considering the limited budget they had to pull it off. The highlights border on blooming without inching quite into that territory. Overall, this is a really solid disc that showcases the work well.
Audio Quality
Kino Lorber delivers this new Blu-Ray disc with both a DTS-HD 5.1 and 2.0 Master Audio track that struggles to provide a consistent experience. Most of the issues seem to stem back to the source due to some scenes sounding pretty poorly captured. The dialogue can become a bit muffled at times, such as when Jen is talking to her friends after graduation. The environmental effects are delineated nicely with some creepy noises flowing out. The music maintains a strong fidelity and comes through the room really purposefully. You cannot blame the track itself for the deficiency in the original recording, but it is a bit surprising to find a modern film sound so lacking. Optional English and English SDH subtitles are provided on this disc.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary: Writer/director Jack Dignan provides a pretty decent commentary track in which he takes you through various aspects of the production including the details behind the opening shot, the difficulties of shooting a language you do not speak, the important connections he had at the school they filmed at, the changes from the script, the VFX shots in the film and much more that gives you insight into the production.
- Deleted Scenes: Four scenes of unused material totaling just over four minutes are provided here which finds Jen overhearing a conversation, Florence apologizing to Jen and more.
- Extended Scene – The Cops: A 32-second unused scene is provided here which gives you more time with the cops breaking up the party.
- It Feels Like Spring (2019): A ten-minute short film from Jack Dignan is provided here which finds a young woman trying to convince her doctor that she is from a parallel dimension.
- Trailer: The minute-and-a-half long trailer is provided here.
Final Thoughts
After She Died has a pretty intriguing concept, but this independent feature shows the limitations of its production more than most. The acting can be a bit inconsistent from scene to scene, and the sound work leaves a lot to be desired. This could be somewhat forgiven if the narrative greatly elevated the experience, but this also feels overlong and a bit scattered in the larger ideas. Kino Lorber and Cranked Up Films have released a Blu-Ray featuring a passable A/V presentation and a couple of special features. We love independent cinema, but this one needed a little more care taken with it.
After She Died will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital on January 17, 2023.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Kino Lorber and Cranked Up Films have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
