- THE FATHER
- Starring: Anthony Hopkins and Oliva Colman
- Directed by: Florian Zeller
- Rated: PG 13
- Running time: 1 hr 37mins
- SONY Pictures Classics
I turned 60 last September and, as I get older, one of my biggest worries is that I’m going to slowly lose my faculties. As someone that loves to write and communicate, I think that would destroy me. I preface this review with that statement because that MIGHT be what’s going on in THE FATHER.
Anthony (Hopkins in an Academy Award winning performance) likes to relax in his flat, listening to music and taking occasional glances out the window. He is looked after by his daughter, Anne (Colman) and things appear to be well. Until one afternoon when Anne informs him that she will be hiring a caretaker because she is moving to Paris to be with the man she loves. At least Anthony thinks this is what she told him. Things get more puzzling when the next moment Anne’s former husband appears, but claims to be her current husband for the past eight years. What the hell is going on here?
A true psychological thriller, “The Father” is a very non-linear descent into what could either be madness or gas-lighting. Director Zeller leaves it up to the viewer to decide which it is.
The film is brilliantly acted, with, as noted earlier, Hopkins winning his second Best Actor Oscar for his performance. Colman, herself an Oscar winner – and a nominee for her work here – matches him beat for beat. Supporting work by Imogen Poots and Rufus Sewell, among others, carry the story along smoothly.
With theatres opening up to usher in another summer of fast cars and explosions, take a moment to stay home and watch “The Father.”
Special Features:
- Homecoming: Making “The Father”
- Perception Check: Portrait of “The Father”
- Deleted Scenes