The Sweet Hereafter

Name: The Sweet Hereafter
Genre: Drama
Released: 1997-09-25
Duration: 1 h 52 min
Rating: 6.9
Cast: Ian Holm, Sarah Polley, Tom McCamus, Gabrielle Rose, Alberta Watson

1997·Movie·R·112 min·★ 6.9(443)

Drama More English titles

“There is no such thing as the simple truth.”

A small mountain community in Canada is devastated when a school bus accident leaves more than a dozen of its children dead. A big-city lawyer arrives to help the survivors' and victims' families prepare a class-action suit, but his efforts only seem to push the townspeople further apart. At the same time, one teenage survivor of the accident has to reckon with the loss of innocence brought about by a different kind of damage.

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Where to watch The Sweet Hereafter in United States

Can I watch The Sweet Hereafter in United States? Yes — you can stream The Sweet Hereafter in United States on Criterion Channel, or rent and buy it on Amazon Video and Apple TV Store.

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Click a service to open The Sweet Hereafter there. Availability last verified on September 30, 2026.

Where is The Sweet Hereafter streaming around the world?

Country	Streaming on	Rent / Buy
United States	Criterion Channel	Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies
United Kingdom	Curzon Amazon Channel	Apple TV Store, Amazon Video, Google Play Movies
Canada	Criterion Channel, Hollywood Suite, Hollywood Suite Amazon Channel, Starz Amazon Channel	Apple TV Store
France	—	Sooner, Amazon Video
Spain	Amazon Prime Video, Filmin, Acontra Plus, Acontra Plus Amazon Channel	Acontra Plus

About The Sweet Hereafter

The Sweet Hereafter is a 1997 English-language drama film directed by Atom Egoyan. The cast is led by Ian Holm, Sarah Polley, Tom McCamus. It has a runtime of 1h 52m. Viewers rate it 6.9/10 across 400 ratings. In United States, it is currently streaming on Criterion Channel.

The Sweet Hereafter was produced by Ego Film Arts and Alliance Films and made in Canada. It was released on September 25, 1997, and carries a R certification. Made on a budget of about $5 million, it went on to gross $8 million worldwide.

Director: Atom Egoyan
Writers: Atom Egoyan
Release date: September 25, 1997
Original language: English
Age rating: R
Status: Released
Country: Canada
Budget: $5 million
Box office: $8 million
Production: Ego Film Arts, Alliance Films

#small town#canada#based on novel or book#suffering#village#paralysis#based on true story#tragedy#lawyer#car accident#school bus#british columbia

The Sweet Hereafter cast & crew

The Sweet Hereafter was directed by Atom Egoyan and written by Atom Egoyan.

The cast features Ian Holm as Mitchell Stephens, Sarah Polley as Nicole Burnell, Tom McCamus as Sam Burnell, Gabrielle Rose as Dolores Driscoll, Alberta Watson as Risa Walker, and Caerthan Banks as Zoe Stephens.

Behind the camera, the score was composed by Mychael Danna, cinematography is by Paul Sarossy, and it was produced by Atom Egoyan and Camelia Frieberg.

Is The Sweet Hereafter worth watching?

The Sweet Hereafter holds an audience score of 6.9/10 from 443 ratings, a solidly received drama films.

At 1h 52m, it's a standard feature-length watch.

If you enjoy drama, The Sweet Hereafter is worth a place on your watchlist.

How and where to watch The Sweet Hereafter

In United States, you can stream The Sweet Hereafter on Criterion Channel, or rent and buy it on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, and YouTube. Click any service above to open it directly.

Streaming rights change country by country and month by month, so the options above reflect United States today — switch your country at the top of the where-to-watch section to see availability elsewhere.