Taglines: Nothing is as it seems.
The Father Movie Storyline. Having just scared off his recent caregiver, Anthony, an ailing, octogenarian Londoner gradually succumbing to dementia, feels abandoned when concerned Anne, his daughter, tells him she’s moving to Paris. Confused and upset, against the backdrop of a warped perspective and his rapid, heart-rending mental decline, Anthony is starting to lose his grip on reality, struggling to navigate the opaque landscape of present and past. Now, as faded memories and glimpses of lucidity trigger sudden mood swings, dear ones, Anthony’s surroundings, and even time itself become distorted. Why has his younger daughter stopped visiting? Who are the strangers that burst in on Anthony?
The Father is a 2020 psychological drama film co-written and directed by Florian Zeller, in his directorial debut; he co-wrote it with fellow playwright Christopher Hampton based on Zeller’s 2012 play Le Père. A French-British co-production, the film stars Anthony Hopkins, Olivia Colman, Mark Gatiss, Imogen Poots, Rufus Sewell, and Olivia Williams, and follows an aging man who must deal with his progressing dementia. It is the second adaptation of the play after the 2015 film Floride.
The Father had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on 27 January 2020, and was released in the United States on 26 February 2021, in France on 26 May 2021 by UGC Distribution and in the United Kingdom on 11 June 2021 by Lionsgate UK. It grossed $20 million on a $6 million budget and was acclaimed by critics, who lauded the performances of Hopkins and Colman, as well as the production values and its portrayal of dementia.
At the 93rd Academy Awards, Hopkins won Best Actor and Zeller and Hampton won Best Adapted Screenplay; the film received six nominations in total, including Best Picture and Best Supporting Actress (Colman). At the 78th Golden Globe Awards, the film received four nominations, including Best Motion Picture – Drama, and it received six nominations at the 74th British Academy Film Awards, winning Best Actor (Hopkins) and Best Adapted Screenplay. In addition, Hopkins and Colman were nominated for Outstanding Leading Actor and Outstanding Supporting Actress respectively at the 27th Screen Actors Guild Awards.
About the Story
Anne visits her father Anthony in his flat after he becomes belligerent with his recent caregiver. He has dementia and constantly forgets important life events and where things are around his flat, including his watch. He tells Anne he believes his caregiver stole his watch and that he will never move out of his flat. She tells Anthony she is moving to Paris to be with a man, which confuses Anthony since he doesn’t recall any men in her life since the end of her marriage to James. Anne says that if he keeps refusing to have a caregiver, she will have to move him into a nursing home.
The next day, Anthony sees an unknown man, Paul, and is confused by him being in his flat. Paul states that Anthony lives with him and Anne. Anne returns for dinner and appears as a different woman, confusing Anthony again. Anne schedules an interview with a new caregiver, Laura. Anthony tells Laura he was a professional dancer and also that he doesn’t need any assistance. Anthony later says Laura reminds him of his other daughter Lucy, whom he hasn’t talked to for months for reasons he is unaware of.
Anthony is taken to a doctor and asked about his memory. He claims he has no memory problems. Later, he tells Laura how proud he is of Lucy, a painter. She tells him she is sorry about Lucy’s accident, which Anthony is unaware of. Over the course of the film, it is revealed that Anthony has really been living in Anne and Paul’s flat for years, but believes he still lives in his own flat. After Anne comes home, she and Paul have an argument over a cancelled holiday to Italy due to Anthony’s earlier behaviour towards the caregiver, and about Anne’s sacrifices for her father. Paul asks Anthony how long he plans to stay in their flat and annoy everyone, after which Paul slaps him.
Anthony wakes up and walks out of the flat, finding himself in a hospital hallway. He remembers Lucy lying in a hospital bed with blood on her face. He then wakes up in a completely different bedroom. It is in a nursing home. His nurse, Catherine, informs him Anne has moved to Paris with Paul and visits on occasional weekends. Another nurse, Bill, also visits. Anthony has an emotional breakdown over his inability to understand what is happening to him, as well as Anne’s disappearance. He says he wants his mother and that he is “losing his leaves, the branches, the wind and the rain”. Catherine comforts him and tells him she’ll take him out to the park later.
The Father (2020)
Directed by: Florian Zeller
Starring: Anthony Hopkins, Olivia Colman, Rufus Sewell, Imogen Poots, Olivia Williams, Mark Gatiss, Ayesha Dharker, Roman Zeller, Adnan Kundi, Brian Rodger, Romulus Stoicescu, Evie Wray
Screenplay by: Florian Zeller, Christopher Hampton
Production Design by: Peter Francis
Cinematography by: Ben Smithard
Film Editing by: Yorgos Lamprinos
Costume Design by: Anna Robbins
Set Decoration by: Cathy Featherstone
Art Direction by: Amanda Dazely, Astrid Sieben
Music by: Ludovico Einaudi
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some strong language, and thematic material.
Distributed by: Lionsgate Films (United Kingdom), UGC Distribution
(France), Sony Pictures Classics (United States)
Release Date: January 27, 2020 (Sundance), May 26, 2021 (France), December 18, 2020 (United States)June 11, 2021 (United Kingdom)
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