The Father is the upcoming drama from French playwright Florian Zeller and is based on his award-winning play Le Père, which premiered in 2012. It was previously adapted for the big screen in 2015 with the French-language Floride, which was directed by Philippe Le Guay. Zeller steps behind the camera for this English-language version, making his feature-directing debut in the process, with the screenplay adapted by Christopher Hampton. It features an all-star cast consisting of Anthony Hopkins, Olivia Colman, Mark Gatiss, Imogen Poots, Rufus Sewell, and Olivia Williams.
The official plot synopsis is as follows:
Anthony (Anthony Hopkins) is 80, mischievous, living defiantly alone and rejecting the carers that his daughter, Anne (Olivia Colman), encouragingly introduces. Yet help is also becoming a necessity for Anne; she can’t make daily visits anymore and Anthony’s grip on reality is unravelling. As we experience the ebb and flow of his memory, how much of his own identity and past can Anthony cling to? How does Anne cope as she grieves the loss of her father, while he still lives and breathes before her? The Father warmly embraces real life, through loving reflection upon the vibrant human condition; heart-breaking and uncompromisingly poignant – a movie that nestles in the truth of our own lives.
Let’s take a look:
This looks like an incredibly powerful drama, and one that will definitely strike home hard if you’ve ever had to watch someone you care about slowly succumb to mental decline. This is very well acted, with Hopkins displaying the confusion and frustration of someone in his position perfectly, and Colman struggling to deal with the anguish of watching her father decline while trying to help him as much as possible. You might want to reinforce those heartstrings, because The Father is going to tug on them with all its might.
What do you think? The Father is due for release in the US on 18 December.
Last Updated: September 15, 2020
Original Heretic
September 15, 2020 at 15:24
Wow… They photoshopped the shit out of Hopkins in that poster.
80 years old and nearly wrinkle free! Gimme some of that juice he’s drinking.