Television - Has that happened? The play "The Father" about great forgetfulness
It is a quiet film, unobtrusive, subtle, yet all the more impactful for it. And this is mainly due to the leading actors: Anthony Hopkins shines in the drama "The Father" as a proud, sometimes stubborn old man, who increasingly falls into dementia and cannot understand what is happening around him. Olivia Colman ("The Favourite") as the daughter stands out in her intensity in comparison: between despair and hope, between love and anger, their relationship to the increasingly restless father changes. It is not an easy watch, which can be seen on ARD-Sommerkino on Das Erste at 10:20 PM on a Friday, but it is presented with a certain ease - and with some narrative tricks.
The French director Florian Zeller, who brought the material to the theater stage in 2012, tells the story of Anthony and Anne in his film debut in 2021 not strictly chronologically, not coherently. He takes risks, without signaling them. He suddenly presents another actress (Olivia Williams), who is supposed to be Anne and whom Anthony recognizes as little as the audience does. And he gives an insight into Anthony's perception distorted by dementia: Did the conversation about Anne's move to Paris really take place? Was there a fight with her husband? Does this husband even exist? Or was it all just in Anthony's head?
Zeller dispenses with medical jargon, analyses in white coats, and clinic standards in his dementia drama. He focuses entirely on his two main characters: Anthony, this intelligent, strong man, who is losing himself and the world around him. And Anne, this loving, determined daughter, whose strength is gradually waning. He describes a scenario that probably plays out in thousands of families: the difficult handling of a loved one's dementia; the pain of no longer being recognized by this person; the loss of a person, of their memories, of their identity.
Hopkins plays all this with his own intensity between strength and vulnerability. He is the bulky patriarch, who says crude things. He is the charmer, who makes the young caregiver laugh with a whisky. He is the desperate old man, who no longer knows what is happening around him. He rarely overplays, but skillfully fluctuates between these extremes. For "The Father", the then 83-year-old Brit received more than he deserved his second Oscar as best leading actor - after his first award in 1992 for the role of the serial killer Hannibal Lecter in "The Silence of the Lambs".
The film "The Father" featuring Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman is set to air on ARD-Sommerkino on Das Erste at 10:20 PM on a Friday, providing an opportunity for viewers in Germany to experience this powerful drama. The movie, directed by Florian Zeller, will be available until July 19th, offering viewers a chance to witness Hopkins' second Oscar-winning performance. In this TV-View, Hopkins portrays a loving yet troubled father, with Colman delivering an intense performance as his daughter. Two major European cities, Berlin and Paris, are mentioned in the movie's narrative, adding an international flavor to the story.
