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Hereafter is a 2010 American fantasy drama co-produced, written by, and directed by Clint Eastwood, with music by Eastwood. The movie interweaves three parallel narratives based on characters emotionally affected by death and their fears of the afterlife.
Matt Damon plays George Lonegan, an ex-professional medium who yearns to have his gift taken away from communicating with the deceased. Cécile de France plays Marie Lelay, a French reporter who experiences a close brush with death while covering the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
Frankie and George McLaren play Marcus, a young Englishman mourning the death of someone whom he held most dear.
In Hereafter, the three cross paths in loss, visions of the afterlife, and a quest for meaning. Transcending continents, their lives cross as both exist on the precipice of the unknown, and discover auspicious understanding in the reverberations of beyond.
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If viewers liked Hereafter for its contemplative material of loss, the afterlife, and meaning after death, here are seven other movies that address these very same questions.
Disclaimer: The following list is ranked in no particular order, and the opinions expressed belong solely to the author.
Afterlife, and six other movies to watch if you liked Hereafter
1) What Dreams May Come (1998)
What Dreams May Come (1998) is a fantasy drama film written and directed by Vincent Ward, based on Richard Matheson's 1978 novel.
The film stars Robin Williams, Annabella Sciorra, and Cuba Gooding Jr. and is famous for its vivid visual imagery, as it won an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects and was honored for production design.
The film is about Chris Nielsen, a doctor who meets and marries artist Annie Collins. With a series of gruesome tragedies, Chris finds himself awakened to a highly imagined afterlife constructed by his own mind.
In the afterlife, Chris learns that Annie’s grief has led her to despair, prompting him to risk everything for love and a chance to reunite.
Much like Hereafter, What Dreams May Come explores the emotional aftermath of death, but delves further into a visually personalized version of the beyond shaped by love and grief.
Where to watch: Prime Video, Apple TV+, Netflix
2) After Life (1998)
After Life (titled Wonderful Life in Japan) is a Japanese drama film from 1998, written, directed, and edited by Hirokazu Kore-eda, and featuring Arata, Erika Oda, and Susumu Terajima.
Between life and death, the newly deceased must choose one memory to keep forever, vanishing once they relive it with the help of counselors.
One counselor named Takashi helps an old man relive his lifetime and finds that they share a shared past. Doing this, Takashi finally rests and selects one of his own memories, and the others prepare to escort the next group of souls.
Echoing the introspective tone of Hereafter, After Life gently ponders the power of memory and the one moment one might choose to define existence forever.
Where to watch: Apple TV+
3) Defending Your Life (1991)
Defending Your Life (1991) is a romantic comedy-fantasy film adaptation by, directed by, and featuring Albert Brooks, with Meryl Streep, Rip Torn, and others.
When ad man Daniel Miller suddenly dies, he finds himself in Judgment City—a peaceful but bureaucratic heaven where souls have to justify the decisions they made on earth. There, everyone goes through a trial to figure out if they have successfully overcome their fears well enough to proceed or need to go back to Earth and try again.
While Hereafter treats the afterlife with somber depth, Defending Your Life takes a more comedic yet reflective approach to the judgment and redemption that awaits.
Where to watch: Prime Video, Apple TV+
4) Soul (2020)
Soul (2020) is an animated fantasy comedy-drama by Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney Pictures. The voice cast includes Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, etc., and the movie is about Joe Gardner, who is an aspiring middle school music teacher and a jazz pianist.
When a freak accident leaves him in a coma, Joe finds himself in a universe of cosmic dimensions where he must reunite his soul with his body before he misses the chance of a lifetime.
Pixar’s Soul shares with Hereafter a curiosity about what makes a life meaningful, exploring cosmic realms to uncover the importance of presence and purpose.
Where to watch: Apple TV+, Prime Video, Disney+
5) City of Angels (1998)
City of Angels is an American romantic fantasy movie released in 1998, directed by Brad Silberling, starring Nicolas Cage and Meg Ryan. It is loosely adapted from Wim Wenders's 1987 Wings of Desire and takes place in Los Angeles and is about an angel who becomes infatuated with a human woman.
Seth is an angel who helps souls cross over to the afterlife but struggles with human emotions. When he finds himself drawn to a compassionate surgeon named Maggie, he begins to crave a human existence.
Like Hereafter, City of Angels blurs the veil between realms, with divine beings and mortals intersecting in a story driven by loss, love, and longing for more than just life.
Where to watch: Apple TV+, Prime Video, HBO Max
6) The Fountain (2006)
The Fountain (2006) is a US science fiction romantic drama directed by and written by Darren Aronofsky and starring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz.
In the 16th century, conquistador Tomás searches for the Tree of Life in Mayan territory. In the present time, scientist Tommy Creo races against time to cure his terminally ill wife Izzi using a tree with mysterious healing properties.
The Fountain parallels Hereafter in its layered storytelling across time and space, probing mortality and eternal connection through a metaphysical lens.
Where to watch: Prime Video
7) Wristcutters: A Love Story
Wristcutters: A Love Story is a 2006 dark comedy film written and directed by Goran Dukić. Patrick Fugit, Shea Whigham, and Shannyn Sossamon star as the inhabitants of an odd afterlife way station reserved for those who have committed su*cide.
The film is an adaptation of Etgar Keret's short story "Kneller's Happy Campers." The graphic novel adaptation was called Pizzeria Kamikaze.
After Zia takes his own life, he finds himself in a bleak afterlife reserved for su*cides—a dimmer version of the real world. Joined by Eugene, a Russian rocker, and Mikal, a hitchhiker who believes she’s there by mistake, Zia sets off to find his ex-girlfriend.
Where Hereafter treads with quiet reflection, Wristcutters journeys through a surreal purgatory with dark humor, both films ultimately investigating connection in places far beyond the living.
Where to watch: Prime Video, Apple TV+
Interested viewers can watch Hereafter on Prime Video and Apple TV+.
