Père & fille

I anticipated an emotional tale from the director who is quite famous for it, and yes, it was, but not as I was looking for, yet I still liked it for portraying a beautiful father-daughter relationship. It was not like all about the happy scenarios, but it began with a tragedy and then moved to narrate a father who struggles to provide a better life for her daughter when his health was getting worse every day. In another layer, the story focused on the grown up daughter who struggles as well, but to get close to the people which affected since her childhood days with her father.

Russell Crowe played an energetic father like he was in his 30s, especially when he shows the affections to his daughter. The little girl who played the daughter role as well so fantastic. The disappointment was as usual Amanda Seyfried like any of her movies. I like her as a human being, no offense but not as an actress. Apart from her portions, it is not a bad movie.

It was about one father and one daughter, but the title was plural. You should see the movie that has a simple explanation for it. The girl and her father's story should have been the entire movie. With some catchy moments between them would have made it an awesome product. As expected the end was emotional, and another layer's end was terrible which was obviously Seyfried's. I wanted to like it, but I can't. This movie would bring a mixed response that you can't decide whether you liked it or not, but mostly you might respond positively.

7/10

Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfriend, and Aaron Paul do a fantastic job with the sorrowful story of a father and daughter and the relationships their within. Several other reviews call for boxes and boxes of tissues. I did not have that experience at all. How this did not get more nominations escapes me.

After his wife's death, Russell Crowe can't cope with being a single father. He may be a beloved successful writer, but he has deep psychological problems. Twenty-five years later, his daughter Amanda Seyfried is getting her masters in psychology and volunteering at a children's center. The film cuts back and forth between the past and the present, and while normally I don't like those types of movies, Fathers & Daughters is an exception.

For some unknown reason, this film was completely ignored during awards season, even though the acting is phenomenal and Brad Desch's script is powerful. Russell Crowe gives the type of performance that is deserving of an Oscar, but he didn't even get a nomination. He hasn't shown off his acting chops like this in over ten years. Kylie Rogers plays his little girl, and her performance in the film is incredible and heart-wrenching. I hope she has a marvelous career as she grows up; child actresses with that much talent are hard to find. Amanda Seyfried branches out of her teen image, and is very convincing as a young adult with lots of problems. And before you judge her too harshly, remember it's just her character. Her unlikability isn't really her fault.

This is a very heavy movie, so get out your Kleenexes and have the pause button ready; you'll need to take a couple of breaks and have a good cry. I watched it with my mom, but anyone brave enough to watch it with her dad will probably shed twice as many tears. Rent it, though, even if you need to watch it by yourself. It's worth it.

"That's what this book is really about, it's about me." Jake Davis (Crowe) is a famous author who as just lost his wife and now he is in a fight to keep his daughter Katie (Seyfried). While trying to write a book that hill become a best seller he is trying to pay off lawyers in order to keep his wife's sister from taking his girl. Katie, all grown up now, is struggling to maintain a normal relationship. One of the books her father wrote as an impact on both their lives. This is a fantastic movie, and also one of the most emotional films I have seen in a long time. It may be because I am a father myself but I really got emotionally invested in this and found myself holding back tears over and over. Crowe does a perfect job of trying to balance being a father with trying to do everything he can to save his girl. Seyfried gives maybe the best performance she has ever given and is very believable as someone who has lost her way and doesn't know how to be happy and "normal". This is a movie I could go on and on about but I will just say watch this and you will feel the same way I did. Overall, emotionally powerful and gripping. Crowe and Seyfired give the best performances of their career. I highly recommend this, but be ready to cry. I give this an A-.

If you come away praising only one thing from this movie, I'd be willing to bet that it would be Kylie Rogers' performance as Russell Crowe's young daughter. She gives a genuinely affecting performance for a girl her age and although Crowe himself needs no help here as he puts in a brilliant showing of his own, he's all the better for her presence. They played off each other so well and the film was much more enjoyable whenever they shared the screen. Amanda Seyfried was her dependable self but this kind of role is easily within her wheelhouse so don't expect to be blown away by her.

The film itself has a nice flow to it when considering the run time and although it dips into the cliché pot a couple of times, I found the screenplay just fresh enough that I would say I enjoyed it overall. Although the directing wasn't anything to write home about I do believe that he showed a delicate and subtle handling of the subject matter which is to be commended. The score is also quite wonderful.

Overall, a solid 7/10. The performances are the reason to see this one.