After is this summer's romantic drama film. Based on the 2014 novel by Anna Todd, it follows the story of protagonist Tessa Young fall for Hardin Scott, a guy that hides a dark secret.
The film follows the two of them through their rocky relationship through their first year of university where they meet. Tessa is the typical "good girl" who has ambitions and a sweet boyfriend back home.
She falls for Hardin, a bad guy with tattoos, piercings and an aversion to "good girls" like her but they begin a turbulent, albeit passionate romance. Tessa and Hardin meet at a college party during a game of Truth or Dare, and their encounters only intensify each time they meet.
After racked up 1.5 billion reads online to become the Internet's most talked about book. The character of Hardin was inspired by One Direction singer Harry Styles. Todd self-published the fanfiction novel on the online platform Wattpad. Publisher company Simon & Schuster then paid a "mid six-figure" sum to buy the rights to a three-volume series in 2014, according to Publishers Weekly.
However, the film has come under fire for potentially glorifying toxic relationships, particularly for young audiences who could confuse some of the behaviour as healthy. In the novel, there is a scene where Hardin grabs Tessa's arm during an argument and says "I want you and I should be able to have you whenever I want." Tessa describes his hand and says "for a second I think he may slap me."
Many are saying that this suggestion of violence portraying an abusive relationship as love is problematic."Why did they make a movie about an abusive and toxic relationship?"
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However others have pointed out that this is just fiction, saying: "This #AfterMovie is FICTIONAL. It's the fantasies of the writer and doesn't represent Harry or who he really is as a person." Either way, this film is sure to cause a stir.
After will hit UK cinemas April 12th, 2019.
Featured Image Credit: Aviron PicturesTopics: TV News, TV Entertainment