A group of men who do not know each other are sent to a house to continue their evaluation from the government so that they may get the right to have children.
Written and directed by Neal Kelley and Jono Sherman, this film has some good ideas, but the way they are brought to the screen and are developed will be of interest to the few and far in-between most likely. To this viewer, it was an absolute bore. Not just a bore, but one that felt so familiar, the question “have I seen this before” kept cropping up throughout the runtime with not real answer. Almost every single scene at the cabin feels like something seen before to the point that research was done to see if it was something reviewed under another title (no results) or perhaps seen through a festival but not reviewed (also no results).
He cast here is decent, but the parts are not that interesting, something that somehow makes sense with the sweatsuits they are made to wear at the cabin. The characters have some of their personalities striped from them and then they are let loose on the story to show their true colors. The cast does well (?) here, bringing characters that are mostly dislikable and not people this viewer would like to spend any time with, much less a full film’s runtime. The performances here feel a bit interchangeable which may be the point, but this leads to no one really shining or giving a performance that makes you want to see more of them, hence why none are singled out in this review.
The film’s cinematography by Bryce Holden looks great and clear, showing the story in full with solid lighting and good framing. The editing by Mitch Marting pairs up well with the images, bringing the story, whether is works or not, together well.
Overall, Daddy is a well-made film that just doesn’t hit right. The characters come off whinier than anything else and while the story may have something to tell, but it doesn’t land and that kills the film as a whole. The biggest surprise for this viewer was finding out it is supposed to be a comedy, as per the IMDB classification chosen by the person who uploaded the film’s information. Where is the comedy? Is it supposed to be satire? No matter, the genre, the film doesn’t stick the landing.
This new release by Anchor Bay looks great and sounds great, but the extras a bit lacking for the collectors out there. The film has an improv reel, an extended/alternate scene for the dance scene, two bonus web series episodes, and a commentary with Neal Kelley and Jono Sherman. What is here is decent and of high quality which should appeal to fans of the film, but not many others who may come across it randomly.
