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MOVIES / IN THEATERS / WHEN DID YOU LAST SEE YOUR FATHER?
When Did You Last See Your Father?

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When Did You Last See Your Father? (2008)

73%
76%
75%
N/A
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73 %
Reviews Counted: 74 Fresh: 54  Rotten:20 Average Rating: 6.7/10
 
Consensus: Sensitive to a fault, Tucker's adaptation of the Morrison novel is nonetheless solidly scripted and well-acted; guard your heartstrings.
 

How does the Tomatometer work?

The Tomatometer measures the percentage of positive reviews from Approved Tomatometer Critics for a certain movie.[-]

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for sexual content, thematic material and brief strong language

Runtime: 1 hr 32 mins

Theatrical Release: Jun 6, 2008 Limited

Box Office: $630,314

Synopsis: Celebrated English actors Jim Broadbent and Colin Firth team up for this moving drama about a father and son. Based on Blake Morrison's autobiographical novel, WHEN DID YOU LAST SEE YOUR FATHER? bounces between the 1950s and the 1980s as Blake (Firth, BRIDGET JONES' DIARY) remembers all the... Celebrated English actors Jim Broadbent and Colin Firth team up for this moving drama about a father and son. Based on Blake Morrison's autobiographical novel, WHEN DID YOU LAST SEE YOUR FATHER? bounces between the 1950s and the 1980s as Blake (Firth, BRIDGET JONES' DIARY) remembers all the good and the bad moments in his relationship with his dad as the man is dying of cancer. Oscar-winner Broadbent (IRIS) is Blake's father, Arthur, who seems to charm everyone but his son. He belittles and embarrasses the boy, and Blake's anger is understandable. But as Arthur begins to fade, an adult Blake struggles with his feelings for the man. With WHEN DID YOU LAST SEE YOUR FATHER? director Anand Tucker continues his tradition of creating relationship-based dramas after HILARY AND JACKIE and SHOPGIRL. But while those two films centered on the relationship of sisters or romantic entanglements, this movie focuses on the heartbreaking dynamic between father and son. Broadbent's Arthur says some cringe-inducing things to his son, not the least of which is his frequent use of the name "fathead" in reference to Blake. Between Arthur's cruelty and the pain of watching him die, WHEN DID YOU LAST SEE YOUR FATHER? doesn't always make for easy watching. But Broadbent's talent makes Arthur an ultimately sympathetic character; he is a deeply flawed man who truly loves his son, though he is rarely sure of how to show that feeling. Fans of tearjerkers such as TERMS OF ENDEARMENT and BEACHES will certainly want to have a hankie nearby for this emotional film. [More]

Genre: Dramas

Starring: Colin Firth, Jim Broadbent, Juliet Stevenson, Gina McKee, Claire Skinner

Director: Anand Tucker
Screenwriter: David Nicholls
Producer: Elizabeth Karlsen, Stephen Woolley
Composer: Barrington Pheloung

Reviews

 
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Ratings Image
N/A

Grief is difficult to portray without being morbid, and despite valiant efforts to follow in the footsteps of Big Fish, which swept us away with uplifting reminiscences and amusing anecdotes, this drama struggles to find its equilibrium.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/25/08
Louise Keller
Urban Cinefile
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N/A

Blake Morrison's pain is invasive and all-embracing as recounted in his book and repeated in this adaptation, which is a wake and a weep for a father lost to male failures of communication.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/25/08
Andrew L. Urban
Urban Cinefile
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review | comment Comment
07/23/08
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
Ratings Image
3/4

Everything in Water Lilies is more guarded, more complex and far more interesting than it seems.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/11/08
Mick LaSalle
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
3.5/4

In this delicate and understated portrait of selective reminiscence by Shopgirl director Anand Tucker, the now-grown son, played by Colin Firth, returns to the scene of the crime that was his childhood.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/11/08
Duane Dudek
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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2.5/4

When Did You Last See Your Father? is based on a true story, but it still feels contrived.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/11/08
Loey Lockerby
Kansas City Star
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3/4

Though ... well-acted by Firth, Broadbent and Juliet Stevenson, the slow pacing makes it feel as if everyone is walking through a waist-deep bog of emotional reserve.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/10/08
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune
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N/A

The author comes off as such a constipated, self-pitying heel, it's no wonder his old man used to give him such a hard time!

Full Review | comment Comment
07/06/08
Sean Burns
Philadelphia Weekly
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6/10

An unfocused, agonized tear-jerker about loss and mourning but some of the performances are excellent.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/06/08
Susan Granger
SSG Syndicate
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3/4

Click to read the article

Full Review | comment Comment
07/04/08
Steven Rea
Philadelphia Inquirer
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Ratings Image
3/4

It is all about cherishing every time you see your father.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/03/08
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star
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2.5/5

Tucker keeps things subdued almost to the point of inertia.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/03/08
Josh Bell
Las Vegas Weekly
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7/10

The film is directed and lensed with such subtlety and old-fashioned restraint that you might overlook the exquisite cinematic flourishes throughout.

Full Review | comment Comment
07/01/08
Brandon Fibbs
BrandonFibbs.com
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N/A

What ensures our pleasure is the dialogue, which is supple, and the quality of the acting.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/29/08
Stanley Kauffmann
New Republic
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Ratings Image
B-

The film winds up with some meaningful things to say about balancing the desire to clear the familial air and the need to let some things be, but never gets deep enough into its character's psyches to dig up anything more revelatory than that.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/27/08
Marc Mohan
Oregonian
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3/4

Strong performances carry this familiar but always intelligent British rites-of-passage story about a philandering doctor and his much-mocked son.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/27/08
John Hartl
Seattle Times
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3/4

Smartly, Father never ties up all its loose ends, but along the way, it is blessed with dozens of scenes in which a couple of actors connect in ways that feel deeply, humanly real.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/27/08
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press
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B-

When it comes down to it, the story of a son who needs validation and his dying father is utterly predictable.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/26/08
Andy Spletzer
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
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3.5/4

It can be painful to watch as it so painstakingly captures the slow process of loss. But it's worth every last teardrop.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/26/08
Christy DeSmith
Minneapolis Star Tribune
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Ratings Image
N/A

The movie is slick and treacly and goes nowhere that hasn't been gone before.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/26/08
Stephen Hunter
Washington Post
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