{"id":16184,"date":"2021-03-25T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-25T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/?p=16184"},"modified":"2024-03-02T21:16:54","modified_gmt":"2024-03-03T05:16:54","slug":"review-the-father","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/review-the-father\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: The Father<\/i>"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

At first glance, The Father <\/em>appears to be a standard, senior-skewing Oscar-bait drama about an aging man\u2019s loosening grip on reality. Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins stars as 80-year-old Anthony, with the more recently crowned Oscar favorite Olivia Colman playing his daughter Anne, a summary that makes the movie seem like it was grown in a lab to take home gold hardware and add to the actors\u2019 already crowded mantels. The drama\u2019s six nominations on Oscar morning \u2014 somehow simultaneously Christmas and tax day for film nerds, for all the joy and stress it evokes \u2014 seemed to confirm its status, but The Father <\/em>is so much more than it appears. Of course, the performances are remarkable, but it\u2019s the film\u2019s script from Christopher Hampton and first-time feature director Florian Zeller that truly surprises. The Father<\/em> doesn\u2019t proceed linearly; instead, it loops and backtracks as our confusion mirrors Anthony\u2019s mental state, a perfect use of the structural conceit that feels true to the story it\u2019s telling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That story centers on the relationship between Anthony and Anne as she tries to hire Laura (Imogen Poots), the latest in a string of carers to tend to her father as his mind deteriorates. When he initially meets the young woman, he appears spry and winsome. \u201cHe\u2019s charming,\u201d Laura says to Anne when Anthony leaves the room. \u201cNot always,\u201d Anne replies, and soon that side of Anthony reveals itself. It\u2019s unclear whether this cruelty is something new or a symptom of his memory loss, but Anthony is sharp when it counts, landing blows against anyone in striking distance. The film advances toward its devastating conclusion, doubling back and repeating moments we\u2019ve lived along with Anthony and Anne, adding layers to our understanding as Anthony struggles to retain his.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Father<\/em> should feel like something we\u2019ve seen before, whether with Hopkins himself in 2005\u2019s Proof<\/em>, or 2006\u2019s Away from Her, <\/em>or 2001\u2019s Iris<\/em>. But Zeller, who adapted his play for the screen, somehow does something new here, while never making the film\u2019s construction feel like a gimmick. His structure is smart, but empathetic, discombobulating the audience alongside Hopkins\u2019 character. If anyone hasn\u2019t experienced a loved one\u2019s mental decline, they\u2019ll get an authentic look at the experience; meanwhile, the interactions between Anthony and Anne will ring true to anyone with a relative who suffers from dementia, with their repetition and wildly swinging changes in tone and demeanor.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though Zeller translated his play into the film, The Father<\/em> avoids the tells that often mark stage-to-screen adaptions. It is largely bound to the home where Anthony and Anne live, but you wouldn\u2019t know of its origins if you missed Zeller\u2019s on-screen credit for the work. It feels like a wholly original work written expressly for the medium, and Zeller doesn\u2019t seem like a first-time director. His visuals work well on screen, with cinematography from Ben Smithard capturing the well-composed blues on blues of the costumes and the sets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mark Gatiss, Olivia Williams, and Rufus Sewell are strong in supporting roles, as is Poots, but the performances most deserving of praise are the two you\u2019d expect. Colman keeps shattering before our eyes with each new sorrow, then trying to pull herself back together; it\u2019s at once awful and wonderful to watch. However, it\u2019s Hopkins that somehow still manages to astonish, after more than 100 roles in film and television. He\u2019s alternately charismatic and vicious, brittle and vivacious, sometimes within the same scene. If you haven\u2019t seen The Father<\/em>, you\u2019d see his name on the Oscar nominations this year without much surprise, but he deserves all the accolades here.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Father<\/em> is a stunning reminder of the power of the medium and how it \u2014 and even cinema\u2019s most familiar faces \u2014 can still surprise. This is a film that leaves you in awe of both its structural and performance feats, as well as impressed by its power to move you.\u00a0\"\"\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“The Father” is currently in theaters and is available on Premium Video on Demand Friday. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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