FATHER FIGURES: Drags On Despite An All-Star Cast

Who would have thought that a film starring such talented actors including Owen Wilson, Ed Helms, Glenn Close, J.K. Simmons, Harry Shearer, Ving Rhames, June Squibb, Christopher Walken, Retta, Terry Bradshaw, and Katt Williams would have such a critical and box office flop? Father Figures, directed by Lawrence Sher, cinematographer on I Love You, Man, Paul, and several Todd Phillips films including the The Hangover series, and written by Justin Malen (Office Christmas Party and the upcoming Sherlock Holmes 3), tells the story of two twin brothers, Peter (Helms) and Kyle Reynolds (Wilson), who set out to find their father after they find out he’s still alive.

Peter and Kyle go from potential father to father, but faced with disappointment each time. One of the running gags in Father Figures is that their mother, Helen Baxter (Close), was rather promiscuous, as we find out through Bradshaw and one of his old teammates (Rhames). And it’s just not funny. So, there are several different “father figures” (hence the maladroit name) that they encounter on their quest to find their biological father. Many of the jokes fall flat, the dialogue is unnatural, the score is extremely cheesy, and, despite a few good laughs, Father Figures fails at providing justification for its 113-minute runtime.

A Great Concept, Poor Execution

Father Figures is a great idea for a story that could really work with the right execution. Unfortunately, Malen and Sher don’t deliver on said execution. The story meanders quite a bit as they move from potential father to potential father. Terry Bradshaw can certainly act well for a retired professional NFL football player, but he’s in a good 25% of the film. It’s his longest acting gig in a while, and he’s noticeably rusty. There are far better actors to rely on to carry the first leg of Father Figures.

Furthermore, Close, arguably the most talented actor in the cast, isn’t in Father Figures nearly as much as the rest of the cast. However, she provides the most emotional moment in the film. Though Helms and Wilson are great, and the two affable actors have wonderful chemistry together, their casting as twins, even fraternal twins, isn’t believable. Malen’s jokes are either recycled, awkwardly worded, outdated, or they just slightly misfire due to being delivered at the wrong place and wrong time in the scene. Most important of all? Father Figures just isn’t that funny. For the most part, the viewer will most likely be watching the film with a straight face. So, what works?

Helms And Wilson Deliver As Expected

These two actors are incredibly professional and skilled at what they do. They’re exceptional comedic and dramatic actors, particularly Wilson. Helms proved his range in Cedar Rapids, and Wilson has proven his range time and again within the body of Wes Anderson’s work. These seasoned actors have been in their fair share of poor films, however, the films’ failure has never been because of them. In Father Figures, the two admirably commit to the script, despite it being, at times, decidedly daft. The moments where the two are just talking are when the film is at its most fluid, as they are naturalistic, particularly Helms, who spent seven years on the improvisational show The Office. Wilson has quite a bit of ad-lib practice with the type of comedy he’s starred in in the past, including Wedding Crashers.

It’s hilarious seeing Simmons embrace his cinematic “bad boy” persona that he violently introduced to the world in Whiplash. In Father Figures, Simmons plays a “repo man,” or so the audience is made to think. Though the bit with Williams is a bit heavy-handed and the message is questionable, given the execution, it’s good to see him in a strong performance in a film, in spite of the comedian’s personal life struggles. Of course, when you have Walken in the cast of any film, he will inevitably be a main highlight. They save the acting titan for the final portion of the film; it’s both a positive and negative, as the actor is hardly in the film.

Inexplicably Lengthy Runtime & Cloying Clichés

Watching a knockoff of a late-career Farrelly Brothers film is bad enough, but at nearly two hours long, Father Figures drags on for far too long. At the halfway mark, it felt the film was nearing an end. Then, upon the realization that there is almost an hour left, one wonders how long this dull adventure can extend without seeming repetitive. Malen figured, no pun intended, that introducing an unrealistic romantic subplot into the story in the third act would make the story’s engine steam, but it seems completely out of context.

This is a road trip film and a buddy comedy that makes the viewer often wish that Peter and Kyle would just turn back around and explore the world that they left behind with their mother Helen and her husband Gene (Shearer). Father Figures checks almost all of the boxes for cliché plot devices, which is surprising for an Ivan Reitman-produced picture. Even Rob Simonsen’s score is conventional to a fault, which is surprising for somebody responsible for Foxcatcher and The Spectacular Now. And what’s up with that heroic, medieval-pop blend of trumpets?

Father Figures: A Comedic and Dramatic Dud

There’s one twist in the end that most audiences won’t see coming, and that facet is one of the few silver linings of the the film. There’s simply not enough conflict in Father Figures. Particularly for a road trip comedy, there should be enough conflict to keep the viewer engaged. These brothers, as cool as it is, are fairly agreeable. One keeps expecting that giant fight, but nothing comes. There is hardly a climax, a resolution. One wishes there could be far more character development between our two leads, as well, especially given their commitment to their roles and the subsequent chemistry they have onscreen.

Father Figures is a swing and a miss, unfortunately. Despite its talented cast, Sher and Malen can’t provide them with enough entertaining or cogent material to sell this half-hearted comedy.

Did you find Father Figures funny? What’s your favorite Wilson or Helms film? Tell us in the comments below!

Father Figures was released in theaters on December 20201, 7 in the U.S., and February 16, 2018 in the UK.  For more international release dates, see here.