How a 2022 directorial debut redefined the cinematic language of memory and parental loss

Entertainment · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Charlotte Wells’ Aftersun is a semi-autobiographical drama that captures the elusive space between a daughter’s childhood memories and the hidden reality of her father. By blending MiniDV footage with dreamlike sequences, the film explores how we reinterpret our parents as people once we are old enough to understand their struggles.

Released in 2022, Aftersun follows 11-year-old Sophie Patterson and her 30-year-old father, Calum, during a holiday at a Turkish resort in 1999. While Sophie documents their trip on a MiniDV camera, the narrative reveals Calum’s internal turmoil and depression, which he attempts to mask with a facade of contentment. The film is not a linear account but a fractured recollection, interspersed with abstract, strobe-lit rave sequences where an adult Sophie attempts to reach her father across time.

Director Charlotte Wells, in her feature debut, drew from her own life to craft what she calls an emotionally autobiographical story. The film’s production involved a two-week rehearsal period in Ölüdeniz, Turkey, where leads Paul Mescal and Frankie Corio lived at a resort to build an authentic dynamic. Critics have noted the influence of Scottish filmmaker Margaret Tait, whose work, including Blue Black Permanent, served as a tonal reference; a volume of Tait’s writing even appears on screen alongside Calum’s self-help books.

The film has achieved significant critical status, with a 96% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 95. Beyond its technical acclaim—notably for Gregory Oke’s cinematography and Oliver Coates’ score—it has been cited by filmmakers like Christopher Nolan and Claire Denis as a profound work. By the mid-2020s, it was frequently ranked among the best films of the 21st century, praised for its ability to disclose the inner worlds of consciousness and the searing pain of loss.

The film’s emotional core culminates in a dance to Under Pressure, a scene frequently cited as a highlight of 2022 cinema. This moment encapsulates the central tension: the gap between the daughter’s perspective and the father’s hidden suffering. As the adult Sophie watches her old footage, the film suggests that we can never fully know our parents, only the versions of them we are capable of perceiving.

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