The Son Review
By Myla Tosatto
Florian Zeller’s newest movie, The Son (NOT a single or prequel or even related to Zeller’s The Father), is not an easy watch. It’s about a broken family with a troubled teenage son. It’s raw and painful and not for the faint of heart.
Peter Miller (Hugh Jackman) is a super high-powered attorney with a political future. Laura Dern plays his distraught ex-wife, Kate. Together they have a teenage son, Nicholas (Zen McGrath). Nicholas is hurting. He is reeling. He is spiraling out of control and Peter and Kate want nothing more than to help their boy. They would do anything and everything to help him. When Nicholas decides he can no longer live with his mother, he moves in with his father and his new wife, Beth (Vanessa Kirby) and their baby. The four try to live a “normal” life but mental illness gets in the way.
Anthony Hopkins pops in as Peter’s father (yes, he is A father, but he isn’t THE Father from the 2020 film). Again, though the writer and director are the same, they aren’t related. Though, you will recognize Zeller’s love of a twist in both movies.
The Son isn’t a subtle movie. The audience knows exactly how it is going to end. It’s not so much foreshadowing that tips its hand, it slaps you right across the face. Many, many times. That doesn’t make it less real or less tragic.
Is it a movie about mental illness, the struggle of divorce, or parenting in the modern age? Yes. Yes, it is. This isn’t an easy movie to watch. People unravel, relationships unravel, but our attention never unravels. We are there until the end. It’s a very adult After School Special.
Still, wondering about The Son Movie? Read the movie Mayla’s top quotes from The Son!
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