The Father

UK Release Date: 11 June 2021
Certification: 12A
Director: Florian Zeller 
Cast: Olivia Colman, Mark Gatiss, Anthony Hopkins, Imogen Poots, Rufus Sewell, Olivia Williams 

Rating: 95%

                                                                                                                                                   

Review: 

What The Father does incredibly well, is that is subverts all expectations. Marketed as a grandiose drama, the film is instead a heart-wrenching psychological thriller with an unreliable narrator. A breathtaking study into the effects of losing your mind, a slow deterioration of one's self. A story relatable to the vast majority of the audience watching including director, Florian Zeller - basing The Father on his own personal, painful experience of dementia with his grandmother during his teenage years.

"I knew what it was like when you find yourself in a position where you are impotent: you can love someone but you understand that love is not enough." 

The cast here is exceptional. Olivia Colman is fantastic at conveying emotion across to the audience. Every thought that she has, whilst not always stated, is known due to her relatable portrayal of a dementia carer. Her character, Anne, is of course frustrated by her situation but she obviously still cares for and loves her father. Colman's performance is constantly sympathetic and deeply affecting. Anthony Hopkins is phenomenal. Not only the best performance of the year - upon which Hopkins won an Oscar for Best Actor, the second of his illustrious career - but one of the best acted roles of all time. An authentic depiction of a person battling with dementia, unaware of his condition but mindful that something isn't right. A terrific, moving performance. The final five minutes is what won him the Oscar with a lot of emphasis on the truly beautifully executed metaphor, "I feel as if I'm losing all my leaves". But "Who exactly am I?" is such a devastating line, delivered in a manner that left me sobbing. 

Ludovico Einaudi's composition extracts every emotion required out of the audience. The combination of instruments adds to the mystery and intrigue of the plot. It's chilling at points, harrowing at others. Yet, the score doesn't overstay its welcome with 'Einaudi: Cold Wind Var. 1 - Day 1' standing out in particular. 

Due to the nature of the unreliable narrator, Anthony, the audience is never fully aware of what is truly happening. It only further immerses the audience into this story as you see the film from Anthony's perspective. Objects in the flat randomly move, scenes loop creating a new perspective and characters change actors from scene to scene. It's disorientating for the audience but a clever way to tell a story. The stellar editing in The Father contributes to this fact - puzzling that the film didn't win best editing. 

The Father immediately cements itself as one of the best films of the current decade. With a couple of powerhouse lead performances and an intelligently crafted script based on Florain Zeller's play 'Le Pere' it's no surprise The Father picked up two Academy Awards.