"I LOVE MY DAD" // SXSW REVIEW
Patton Oswalt is Chuck, a preoccupied divorced Dad who had failed time and time again when his son Franklin (James Morosini) needed him. So much that now Franklin has decided to cut his disappointing father out of his life by cutting him off of all social media. Desperate to make up for lost time and make up for being such a disappointment, he creates a fake online account and haphazardly catfishes his son. He borrows the profile of a local waitress and pretends to be a pretty young woman named Becca who shows interest in Franklin online. Being that Franklin's own mental state is unsteady (He's deeply depressed and has recently tried to take his own life), he looks past all the red flags, like that fact that her account has no other friends. Franklin and Becca grow close, and Chuck simply cannot see the damage he is causing, and the soon to be shitstorm that is approaching.
I LOVE MY DAD is a squirm inducing comedy, meant to make you feel uncomfortable, and boy does it succeed on that front (Ever thought about sexting with your father who you think is someone else? Yeah, they go there). However, instead of going for a dark drama route, they go towards a dark comedy, keeping much of the film light, in spite of the uncomfortable material. Patton Oswalt makes the generally unlikable character of Chuck likable and relatable even. His humor is nuanced and sharp, with a pain showcasing how he desperately wants to connect but doesn't know how. James Morosini as his slipping away son, turns in a nuanced, broken and heartfelt performance. As he is also the writer/director (and tells us that this is based on his own relationship with his father), he pushes the envelope with how twisted his father will go on his quest to get his son back. The film shows how awful each of these scenarios are, rightfully so, but what's surprising is how forgiving it is. This may be due to Morosini's own forgiveness of his father, but after watching it, you may not find yourself nearly as forgiving as Franklin and find yourself screaming at the screen for him to run far, far away. In the end, I LOVE MY DAD will entertain you or frustrate you, depending on how abusive you find Chuck's behavior.
GRADE: B-
WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY James Morosini STARRING Patton Oswalt, James Morosini, Claudia Sulewski, Rachel Dratch, Ricky Velez, Lil Rel Howery, Amy Landecker. SELECTED AS PART OF THE 2022 SXSW FILM FESTIVAL. FOR MORE INFO: I LOVE MY DAD