Language: English.
Director: Florian Zeller.
Writers: Christopher Hampton (screenplay) and Florian Zeller (screenplay)
Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Olivia Colman, Mark Gatiss
Genre: Drama
“I feel as if I’m losing all my leaves.
The branches and the wind and the rain.
I don’t know what’s happening anymore.
But I know my watch is on my wrist,that I do know.”
Anthony (Anthony Hopkins) is an old man having dementia who’s living in a big apartment on his own. His daughter Anne (Olivia Colman), gets flustered as another home nurse quits after Anthony accuses her of being a thief. Anthony refuses all aid from his daughter as he strongly believes and contends he’s capable of doing everything on his own which puts Anne in a dilemma. Anne intends to hire a new nurse, as she is planning to move to Paris to live with a man she’s in love with.
Then it tends to be a bit confusing and the movie enters an unusual phase questioning the genre of the movie which was headed as drama. I couldn’t keep track of what was happening? Actually, who are these people? Why are these events and faces recurring and mixed up? which later intrigued me to look out for the remaining part occurring inside that residence with minimal characters.
The subject has the feasibility of conferring with melodrama, but here Zillier has a cent to cent percent of conversance how he’s gonna tell the story in a perspective that is astutely crafted at the root level with enhanced supervision. When the disorientations march towards the edge, the film apprehends a poignant sensation of distress and the reality of dementia honestly rendered.
Olivia’s Anne was wonderful and Anthony Hopkins’ gives a magnificent performance as a man slowly losing his grip on reality and being nonplussed.
Florin Zellers’s ‘The Father’ is a shrewdly composed work that’s a lot more than a movie that evokes sentiments and leaves you in tears by stepping into the shoes of a person having dementia. We won’t forget very soon, this movie because of a masterful Anthony Hopkins and how he overwhelms us.
Verdict: 6/7 Stars.
Brilliant.
Trivia:
When Anthony says his date of birth, December 31, 1937, that’s Anthony Hopkins’ actual date of birth.
Florian Zeller wanted Anthony Hopkins specifically for the part. He sent Hopkins the script in 2017 and waited for a reply. In the meantime, he did not pursue production with any other actors in the lead role. He said if Hopkins had not agreed to the film, then it likely would have been made in French instead.
The main character’s name is Anthony because the role was written for Sir Anthony Hopkins and no one else. The director claimed it was a dream come true when he accepted
Olivia Colman receives her second Oscar nomination, following her win for her role in The Favourite (2018). In both films, her character is named Anne.
Writer/director Florian Zeller is a playwright from France, who adapted his acclaimed play Le Père from 2012 into this film, which became his feature film directorial debut.
