May 12, 20217 min read

The Father: Like a Tree losing its Leaves

Updated: Jan 31, 2023

Reviews by:

@the_owlseyes
@movieejunkiee

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Ageing. It sires fear and casts insecurities. The slow, ineluctable and unstoppable decay of our body and our mind. A process which transforms us, bringing us to the zenith of our life and then plunging us in oblivion. We start to be slack, forgetful and, year after year, we become the shadows of ourselves. It's hard to get through it, hard to accept the fact that we're not in control anymore, that we're detaching from reality to prepare ouserselves for what's after all of that. Our relatives suffer with us, understanding that times is limited, but, after a while, it becomes unbearable. Sometimes this is what help a family in mending its past wrongs and finding a new unity. Reality isn't like that and most of the people aren't moved by it, because they don't want to lose their indipendence in favor of an elder and because there's a visceral egoism in our species code. Death, in the end, is the moment when thruth emerges.

PLOT

"A man refuses all assistance from his daughter as he ages. As he tries to make sense of his changing circumstances, he begins to doubt his loved ones, his own mind and even the fabric of his reality" or "What's the boundary between senile dementia and insanity?"

SCRIPT

It's simple but extremely well crafted. Every word has a weight and time isn't wasted in frivolities. It starts as the ordinary drama movie but it evolves into a haunting, eerie experience which will make you feel closer to the protagonist. A lot of things will seem random and werid at first but slowly and surely you'll start to see the big picture: the secrets, the role of every people who transits in the house and what's really happening. Most of the relevant informations are subtle and permeate through witty, emotional dialogues. At first you'll despise, just a little, the protagonist because you think that he's a bad guy but the plot twist, which occurs quietly, will get you all of a sudden. You'll rethink about it and all the movie will assume a different meaning afterward. And you'll understand the sadness and commotion which get all of a sudden the main character. You'll realize it because you'll take in the fact that you've been him all along and that his misfortune could happen to you too.

Script: 9/10

ACTING

Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman deliver an outstanding performance. The relationship between the father and his daughter is very believable and the actors are able to give a lot of gravity and emotionality to every scene they're in. Hopkins plays the ill father to perfection, creating a character both hateable and sympathetic. Olivia Colman does the same with her character, to the point that you're confronted with the hard choice of choosing between two flawed but likeable people who are going through a tough moment. The supporting cast keeps the level high, accompanying the central characters through their troubled journey. I liked the small part which was given to Imogen Potts, who is able to transform a simple meeting in an emotional experience which spans from discomfrot to dreariness.

Acting: 9/10

PHOTOGRAPHY

Lights is used cleverly to underline the tone and the sensation expressed by a scene but it isn't just about that. Colours are subtly used to underline the changes which occur to the protagonist. There's a great parallelism and opposition between the second shot and the second-last shot of the movie. This is pretty powerful symbolism which is strongly linked to the plot and helps you understand what is coming. It'sa also very noticeable the fact that lights become dimmer and dimmer toward the last act is a great gage of the impending desolation which is set to fall on the protagonist.

Photography: 8/10

EDITING

Usually it follows the soundtrack and the protagonist's emotions and mind. It's done in a way to create a sense of uneasiness and confusion, almost like gaslighting. Although it's well shooted, there aren't really original shots. I liked, as I said in the previous section, what has been done with the first and last establishing shots but it isn't enough to say that it uses interesting technics of editing. Surely it's appreciated the fact that the movie doesn't waste slow motion or things like that but sticks to realism.

Editing: 8/10

SPECIAL EFFECTS

This is a realist movie and there's no need for it. The fact that the director didn't use any kind of cgi is a merit in an industry which is satured by VFX.

Special Effects: 6/10

SOUNDTRACK

This is what propels the movie to sky high levels. The music fits the tone of every frame, setting your mood up for a creepy ride. I liked the fact that the recurrent classical piece, What Power art thou?-King Arthur by Purcell, is strongly linked with the movie's theme. There's nothing more to say, this is a beautiful and effective soundtrack.

Soundtrack: 9/10

COSTUMES

I've expected more effort in this section...and I got it. As everything else the protagonist clothes reflect how reality around him affects his life and the transition from the first scene to the last one is extremely noticeable because it seems like he has lost all of his freedom and indipendence. The other costumes serves their purpose but these don't bring something interesting to the movie.

Costumes: 7/10

CONCLUSION

Script: 9/10

Acting: 9/10

Photography: 8/10

Editing: 8/10

Special Effects: 6/10

Soundtrack: 9/10

Costumes: 7/10

AVERAGE: 8

This is an amazing movie made of great performances, a sharp script and a beatiful soundtrack. This is the kind of movie which could leave with a lot of thoughts afterwards, because it deals with heavy stuff and it's an emotional ride which brings you into the feeble mind of an aging men. Just see it with the correct mindset and try to get the deep meaning of all that's on display here. Because today it's one your parents but the next, the next one will be your turn. And a time will come, a time to understand if you've ever really lived your life or wasted it.

By @the_owlseyes

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Introduction

I saw this film last week in my local Omniplex (it was the first time I went to that cinema). The environment and atmosphere of the cinema was spectacular and seriously enhanced the movie experience. This film is one of the best depictions of any disease in film history! It shows the mental trauma that people with alzheimer's go through and you witness this madness through the eyes of the patient for just over an hour and a half. I was truly stunned by this film. I knew going in that I would like it, but coming out of the theatre I was blown away. Everything from the outstanding performances to the wonderful screenplay was simply perfect.

Olivia Colman

Obviously the acting is one of the biggest hilights of the whole film. Anthony Hopkins was unbelievable, but he wasn't the only good actor in the film. Olivia Colman also plays a big part in The Father. She represents the hurt that relatives of people with alzheimer's go through and how it affects them as well. Her facial expressions were on point, especially every time Anthony says something that simply isn't true. Also, the way she could show her sadness but also bring the Olivia Colman humour into the role was truly outstanding. Everyone else also gave great performances, but let's move onto Anthony Hopkins.

Anthony Hopkins

Hopkins might simply be my favorite part of the movie, and I'm sure lots of others feel the same way. He brought a sense of realism to the character and simply brought the whole film together. I also loved how he brought a couple tics to the character, which I'm guessing were improvised. The tics I'm talking about are when Anthony rubs his hands together, or when he brushes his left eyebrow when he's thinking. These tics made the character and his disease more believable/convincing. There are two moments from his performance that I find truly fascinating and they might just be one of the reasons he won Best Actor. One of these moments is when he is shouting that he will not leave HIS apartment. The other moment is the final ten minutes. He shows his emotional acting capability in the final scene and his long monologue is heart-breaking. Anthony Hopkins still has HUGE talent.

Screenplay

Florian Zeller and Christopher Hampton truly captured the realism of this disease. They created the script in a way that we were witnessing the disease through the eyes of Anthony. Also, this film is based off of the play by Florian Zeller, "The Father" and you can feel the play like vibe through this movie. The long takes and great dialogue adds to the play like feel of the movie. I also wanted to talk about the ending. The ending of this film stays with you weeks after watching it. You slowly piece what is actually going on during the final scene and it's really impressive writing. I also loved the dialogue in the final scene and the final shot is beautiful, and almost brings you to tears. Anyway, I feel that the screenplay is one of the best parts about the whole film.

Directing/Editing

I was actually pretty surprised by the directing and editing in The Father. I didn't know what to expect from it but I was actually really pleased. The editing made the long shots and takes seamless and it really added to the play like feel of the movie. One of my favourite parts of the directing, bar the long shots, is the framing through doors, doorways, and hallways. Most of this film is set in the one apartment and in-between scenes Florian Zeller took shots of doors and doorways to emphasize the feeling of being trapped. Whenever a character was in a doorway it would either be Anthony or Anne as they are the characters who felt the most trapped/restricted. At least that's what I interpreted from the framing.

Music

Finally, I want to talk about the musical score. The score for The Father was created by Ludovico Einaudi. He actually scored two films in 2020, those being Nomadland and The Father. Even though I think Nomadland had a better score compared to The Father, I still really like the music in The Father. It emphasized the confusion Anthony was living through. The music in the final scene slowly grew louder and more calming as the scene went on and it really improved the ending of the film.

Conclusion

This is a beautiful film with an on point representation of Alzheimer's and the affect it has on the patient and their close ones. The Father has unbelievable performances, a perfect script, great directing, heart warming music, and an excellent ending. I seriously loved this movie and if you haven't watched it yet I truly recommend you to. Anyway, that is today's review. I am sorry I haven't posted anything in a while. More regular posts coming soon (and a June Film Log). I hope you enjoyed my review, if so, let me know your thoughts on the movie and my review in the comments.

By @movieejunkiee

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