THE FATHER REVIEW

 *MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

Films that focus on a character’s mental and/or physical health deteriorating are often told from an outsider’s point of view with the story showing how the character’s situation impacts them. Although this can be sometimes be effective, it can be hard for the viewer to connect with the character. Florian Zeller’s The Father is told from the point of view of Anthony (Anthony Hopkins), a man suffering from dementia and struggling with memory loss. 

The beginning of the film introduces us to his daughter, Anne (Olivia Colman) who tells him that she’s leaving him to be with her new boyfriend in Paris. However, Anthony is confused as he thinks that she’s married to which she replies that she’s been divorced five years. The Father takes viewers into Anthony’s mindset and, like him, we are just as puzzled and are trying to figure out what’s going on. Zeller makes subtle yet significant changes in every scene. After Anne leaves Anthony’s flat, he soon sees a mysterious man (Mark Gatiss) who says that he’s Anne’s husband and that he’s in their flat. This only adds to Anthony’s confusion as Anne had just told him that they’re divorced. I found The Father to be similar to Christopher Nolan’s Memento as both of the main characters struggled with memory loss with the narrative being told backwards. I think that this was a clever way of capturing Anthony’s struggles with memory loss. In the beginning, we are just as confused as Anthony, however, it’s not until the very final scene that we have a clear understanding of what was going on. 

Although we’re only three months into 2021, I doubt any other film that’s released this year will come close to matching the emotions that The Father leaves you with. For the majority of its 97 minute runtime, The Father is rarely anything less than heartbreaking to watch. It’s far from the easiest of watches as it focuses on Anthony’s mental health deteriorating as a result of his dementia. Although, thankfully, no one in my family has had the disease, many members of my family do have issues with memory. I try and remind them about past events and films we’ve watched, unfortunately, they don’t remember them or they only have vague recollections. This is why I’m appreciative of my own memory as I know that, as I get older, I could lose them. It’s because of this why I found The Father to be a tough watch at times. Although it is a well made film that effectively details the puzzled mindset of an ageing individual, those who know someone that has dementia may want to avoid watching The Father as it details the effects in a realistic and serious way. 

The Father is based on Zeller’s 2012 play, Le Pere. I can understand why he wanted to adapt it into a feature film as the subject is something that resonates with a lot of people. Recently, there have been many feature film adaptations of stage plays including George C Wolfe’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and Regina King’s One Night In Miami. Although both are great films, I’d say The Father is the best of the three as it has the most moving story. Zeller is the perfect choice to direct as, obviously, it’s his play. What’s most impressive about Zeller is that The Father is the first feature film that he’s made. With The Father, the director doesn’t shy away from showing the darker sides of dementia, including a scene that shows Anne’s husband insulting and hitting Anthony. After watching The Father, I’m really interested in what Zeller does next as he’s proven himself to be one of the most skilful directors. 

Undoubtedly, the most impressive aspect of The Father is Hopkins’ transformative leading performance. Because his character, Anthony, is a mentally weak man struggling with his memory loss, it’s quite hard to believe that this is the same actor that won his first Oscar for his role as the terrifying villain, Hannibal Lecter, in Jonathan Demme’s psychological horror, The Silence of the Lambs, in 1991. Although since wining his first Oscar in 1992, Hopkins has continued to have a successful acting career, appearing in a wide range of thrillers and even portraying Odin, Thor’s father, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There’s no denying that he’s one of the greatest actors as, in my opinion, he hasn’t delivered a bad performance. At the time of writing this review, Hopkins is currently nominated at the 93rd Academy Awards for Best Actor. While he thoroughly deserves to be nominated, I’m unsure if he’ll win as the late, great Chadwick Boseman is also nominated for the same award for his performance as Levee in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Although both performances are great, I would like to see Boseman win the Oscar as it’s his final performance and he delivered it whilst battling cancer. I can’t imagine how difficult it must have been for the actor to act whilst suffering in real life. Saying that, I won’t be unhappy if Hopkins wins as it’s a deeply moving performance. Without him, The Father wouldn’t have left much of an impression. The supporting cast are all great too, especially Olivia Colman who continues to impress after winning her first Oscar for her portrayal of Queen Anne in Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Favourite. In The Father, Colman delivers a heartfelt performance as Anthony’s daughter, Anne, who deeply cares about her father. Gatiss, Rufus Sewell and Imogen Poots each portray significant roles in Anthony’s story. 

Although the on-screen work is impressive, the work behind the screen is worth nothing too, especially Ben Smithard's cinematography. The camera frequently follows Anthony as he walks round from one room to another. In the beginning, he is in his apartment, however, when he enters a different room, he is told by Anne's husband that he's in their home. Because Anthony's flat and Anne and her husband's home look quite similar, it’s easy to understand Anthony's confusion. The production design by Peter Francis and Cathy Featherstone is worth noting as they’ve created two locations that look similar, with subtle changes to the design, making it harder to know where Anthony currently is. The editing by Yorgos Lamprinos is effective, with the film transitioning to the next scene effectively. It's obvious that a lot of effort has gone into making The Father, not just from the actors on-screen but also from the work behind the scenes as well.

As well as Best Actor for Hopkins, The Father is also nominated for Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress for Colman. Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for Zeller and Best Production Design. I’m not surprised that The Father has been recognised by the Academy as, since its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January last year, it’s been lauded by critics, with most of the praise going towards Hopkins’ outstanding performance and Zeller’s directing. In the United States, The Father is available to watch via Premium Video On Demand. However, it’s not being released in cinemas until June which is after the Academy Awards. At first, I was worried I wasn’t going to be able to watch it before the Oscars, however, thanks to Borderline’s virtual Film Festival, I was able to watch it recently. Because it’s been critically acclaimed, my expectations were high for The Father and, fortunately, it didn’t disappoint. 

8/10