I’m sure we are all familiar with the lethargic feeling after laying in the sun for hours, or the melancholy that washes over you at the end of a vacation or on the last day of summer vacation. These are the sensations that Charlotte Wells manages to perfectly capture in her 2022 debut Aftersun.

I first heard about this film from one of my favorite movie reviewers: Kirsten Runquist. As I have always had a similar taste to him in movies, I decided to give this one a go; little did I know that it would end up becoming one of my favorite films of all time. Throughout the essentially plotless 92-minute runtime, Charlotte Wells manages to capture the strange ways we remember our childhoods and explore the complicated nature of mental health and depression through the eyes of a young girl reflecting on a summer vacation with her father. Now, being a diehard Normal People fan, I was thrilled to learn that Paul Mescal was in this film, and I was blown away by every one of his scenes, (in my opinion he was robbed of his Oscar, but I rest my case). Even his costar, 12-year-old Frankie Corio plays protagonist Sophie in such an effortlessly beautiful and heartbreaking way, making both of their performances impossible to look away from.

Despite its relatively simple synopsis, Aftersun subtly creates an eerie sense of dread that hangs after every line and drips into every scene. I won’t spoil any specific scenes, but there are moments towards the middle and end of the film that had me genuinely feeling worried and sad, despite not being able to pinpoint exactly why. I highly recommend going into this film completely blind if you can, because that’s what I did I began by being confused as to what the message of the film was and finding myself searching scenes and clinging to dialogue in an attempt to understand what was happening and why I felt so uneasy. As the story unfolded and certain shots and lines alluded to the various themes of the film I began to comprehend the larger, more complicated story that surrounded this picturesque summer holiday. Then as soon as “Under Pressure” began to play in the final act I was hit with a sudden wave of sadness that I had never expected to feel so strongly.

It was only upon reflection that I found myself understanding what Charlotte Wells set out to do in having me cling to every word and scene in an attempt to make sense of Sophie’s nostalgic, often perplexing memories. She put the audience in the shoes of Sophie, forcing us to search her memories for signs of the inevitable sadness the future held and filter through dusty recollections to make sense of what we were feeling alongside her. Sophie’s journey of venturing into her past to try and get to know her father better parallels the viewer’s journey in trying to make sense of the film’s tone and characters, and that is what makes this film a simply masterful watch.

Aftersun is simultaneously a warm hug and a punch to the stomach, and it only gets better with every watch (believe me, I’ve seen it three times). Don’t let its slow start and deceptively simple plot deceive you! If you asked me for my favorite film of 2022, Aftersun would be my immediate answer without a doubt, and if you find yourself looking for a watch to leave feeling empty and cathartic all at once, this is definitely the one for you.