Movie Breakdown: The Father

Pre-Screening Stance:

The Father looks like one of those oh-so-very heavy movies that you watch once and then never ever revisit again. Let’s give it a go!

Post-Screening Ramble:

If you have even the slightest fear of dementia, then boy is The Father going to rile you up! Seriously though, this movie is so fantastic but it’s really hard to watch. Anthony Hopkins – in what is an absolutely award-worthy turn – is a guy named … Anthony, and he lives on his own in a really nice flat in the UK. Or perhaps he lives with his daughter, Anne (Olivia Colman). Though, it’s possible that his daughter is Anne, but she doesn’t look like Olivia Coleman, she looks like Olivia Williams. Then again, perhaps Williams actually plays his caretaker, Catherine, or is the person that looks after him named Laura (Imogen Poots)? And where is his damn watch? This is how The Father is presented to the viewer – from the ever-shifting, totally unreliable perspective of Anthony as he is losing his grip on reality, as he can no longer recall who is who and what is what, and as he slowly becomes aware that this is what’s happening to him. As I mentioned, The Father is not an easy viewing experience, but it certainly registers as an important one, especially when it comes to showing dementia from the side of the person who it’s starting to consume. I highly recommend that you check it out when it gets a wide release later this week.

One Last Thought:

I’m really looking forward to whatever writer/director Florian Zeller decides to do next, as his work here is just incredibly sharp. I’d also like to meet him and personally thank him for instilling in me a fear of dementia so great that I now get a tinge of paranoia every time I forget even the tiniest of things. Neat!