Genre Character of the Week: George Lonegan

Yesterday my wife and I watched the 2010 film Hereafter, starring Matt Damon and directed by Clint Eastwood. In addition to being a pretty good film, the movie also ended up including this week’s genre character, George Lonegan.

George is psychic. Whether or not he speaks to the dead or simply reads the spirit of live people well enough to think he speaks to the dead is up for debate, but what isn’t is his ability. He takes hold of your hands, makes a connection, and is then able to talk to you about someone you know who has passed on.

The last few years deluge-ion (delusion? – I mean a bunch), of Super Hero movies has shown me a number of varied and interesting super powers, but George views his as more of a curse than a blessing. Everyone he knows is enamoured with his ability, but also distant emotionally. There is an early event in the film involving a possible romance for George which seems to be working out well until the girl finds out about his ability, and then she needs to ask...

George works in a warehouse, doing a pretty basic job, as he has left his psychic job of the past behind and now merely wants to live life.

The movie itself works quite well, matching George’s story with that of a young British boy and a French reporter, and rotating between the three tales. The story is great, but the performances are what really got me.