The Father Review: 5 Ups And 2 Downs
Don't miss out on one of the best performances of all time in this hard hitting drama!
In one of the most powerful and heart wrenching films of recent years, The Father enthrals you into the difficult and sadly common world of a dementia sufferer starring an impeccable Anthony Hopkins as he struggles to live with his daughter played by Olivia Colman.
The film is tough to watch and can be especially draining but it needs to be to convey the horrors of the disease as honestly as possible. Hopkins gives a sensational performance as the character also named Anthony and does not hold back in any scene.
Nominated for six Academy Awards and clearly praised by critics, The Father is only now slowly making its way to audiences who can see the phenomenal storytelling for themselves. The film is very contained (literally) with little explosive action, instead the conflict is presented as Anthony's mind crumbles and turns on him and his reality continues to make an enemy of everyone in his life.
The film is tragic and a painful experience but its honesty and commitment to authenticity demands to be seen and discussed as one of the very best films of the year.
7. Down: The Restrictions Of Adapting A Play
Play adaptations are tricky and often lead to a varying degree of success. In the last 12 months alone, you have Ma Rainey's Black Bottom and One Night in Miami being prominent play adaptations in addition to The Father. As a play usually uses as minimal locations and action beats as possible, you can expect intimate stories with expansive amounts of dialogue. This does not always make for a great cinematic experience.
The Father is no where near the worst offender here, Ma Rainey struggled greatly to engage audiences amongst its several long monologues while One Night in Miami succeeded in keeping things fresh by moving around as much as it could.
The Father falls in between the two, it doesn't have too many elongated scenes with over-the-top monologues, but it is almost exclusively contained to Anthony's flat with minimal location changes.
The film does actually find a way to keep the flat cinematic (more on that later) and the visuals of dementia are strong but it doesn't change the fact that some viewers may not be used to such a restricted location.