After Love — Like Walking on a Trembling Cliff

Love is known to overwhelm us with joy or sorrow but it can also lead to something deeper: to a conversion of faith. Faith is often not gained overnight but what if it has to face doubts? This is at the center of Aleem Khan’s feature debut which questions the main character’s belief and feelings with no mercy. Following his Bafta nominated short film, “Three Brothers”, Khan’s directing debut, written by himself, is a film about loss and grief. Starring Joanna Scanlan (Mary / Fahima) and Nathalie Richard (Genevieve), it also won a number of British Independent Film Awards. Joanna Scanlan does a masterclass by depicting a white British converted Muslim who is on the verge of losing all her achievements.

Mary has a happy marriage with his Pakistani husband, Ahmed (Nasser Memarzia), as we can see at first scene of the film. They met years ago when Mary was a teenager. Ahmed is a captain, and they live in Dover where she used to take a stroll on the cliff and gaze at the sea to find her husband’s ship like “a mad woman” as we hear repeatedly in Ahmed’s recorded voice. But Ahmed’s life comes to an unexpected life — and yet this isn’t the worst that will befall on Mary.

Looking through Ahmed’s wallet after the funeral, Mary notices another women’s ID card: Genevieve. She has never heard of her before. Probing further, she founds multiple text messages from the same name in Ahmed’s mobile. The doubt has now appeared in Mary’s mind and a splendid close-up shows us her bewilderment. On a quest  for truth, she takes a ferry across the English Channel to Calais, meeting up with the French woman. While the Dover white cliff is collapsing in her mind, she retreats from the deck of the ferry and her doubtful eyes go down in anguish. It is hard to Imagine anyone but Joanna Scanlan with her striking performance in all these touching moments. The 60-year-old Welsh actress shows her abilities in an overarching performance. She deserves the lead actress award she won at BAFTA 2022.

She crosses the borders and arrive at Genevieve’s house. Genevieve mistakes Mary for a cleaning lady and invites her inside for work. Shockingly, she accepts, wanting to discover more about Genevieve, who lives with her son Solomon (Talid Ariss); a son of Ahmed. Torturous days and nights are to follow as Mary’s love is tested like never before.

The contact between two women who are in love with the same man is reminiscent of soap operas. Yet, the director turns this encounter into an impressive work. As Mary and Genevieve smoke in the garden — one in Muslim-looking  attire, another in an outfit typical of an intellectual woman — both seek love and understanding, with thousands of questions left to each. When Mary stands in front of the mirror and squeezes her belly fat, touches her face wrinkles, or bursts intos tear while praying to God, it’s almost like we can her ask: “how did I reach at this point?”, “what was my problem?”, “I mustn’t have been enough for Ahmed”.

“Betrayal occurs when you or your partner cannot reveal the different dimensions of your personality”, says Esther Perel, the Belgian psychotherapist who spent most of her life studying relationships. In his many interviews, Aleem Khan has spoken about the difficulties he experienced in his Islamic upbringing. He had to hide everything from his secular beliefs to his gay sexual orientation. He points out a double life experience that is evident in the story he narrates. Filming “After Love” in two locations and illustrating two female characters also marks this duality.

Not a film with the fastest rhytm, After Love still compels you to follow. Mary’s performance is a master class in nonverbal communication: her striking facial expression, gestures and body language. The wide shots of Dover scenery showcase her immense devotion for love and her journey of life.