The Father - Movie Review

The Father - Movie Review

Critic Score - 9 of 10

General Audience Score - 8 of 10

The Father is the story of Anthony, played by Sir Anthony Hopkins, a gentleman who suffers from some form of cognitive dissonance. The work Hopkins has done here has been lauded as one of the finest performances on the screen, but does the performance make the movie?

PROS - The film tells the tale of an aged man coping with memory loss as things take a turn for the worse. As we watch Hopkins bring Anthony’s struggles and emotions to life, one can only sit in stunned silence at the performance that only a handful of people alive are able deliver at this caliber. It’s truly breathtaking. Hopkins deserves all the praise and awards that he can get for this role, but Coleman and the entire cast are excellent as well.

The acting aside, this film is another one of the years' directorial debuts by Florian Zeller. The directors vision that is brought to the screen is simply masterful. The editing and production design are used to precision, without getting into spoilers, to help the viewer get a taste of what life must be like for someone dealing with this type of mental deterioration. The twists and turns the movie takes are simply brilliant and the score and music heighten the impending gravity of the situation. With those things said, is this a perfect movie?

CONS - The Father is almost flawless. The acting, directing and many of the technical elements are all in sync to a high degree. My main criticism is that this film feels very stagey, mainly because it's a stage to screen adaptation. Like Ma Rainey or One Night In Miami, it feels very claustrophobic and takes place in a confined area, which limits some of the movies ability to feel “cinematic”. In some ways this actually adds to the volatile, emotionally charged situation.

It is also very short. At just over an hour and a half, this film gets where it’s going quick and the credits are rolling before you know it, almost leaving you wanting more.

SUMMARY - All in all this movie is a rock solid 9 of 10 and among my top 3 of the year. Any nitpicks are so minor, they’re hardly worth mentioning. This is a movie you should make the effort to see when it becomes available to you, it’s a film that’ll make you fell the whole gambit of emotions  


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