While watching Like Father, I had two strong feelings: this is the greatest single advertisement for a cruise line ever produced, and this movie isn’t bringing the emotion that I was expecting.
The good news is that the bar hasn’t been set high for movies that take place onboard a cruise ship. Typically those are either a disaster movie (like The Poseidon Adventure) or a disaster of a movie (like Speed 2: Cruise Control). Like Father really showcases the impressive nature of the Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas, and it serves as a serviceable and unique backdrop for the father-daughter reconciliation story, which is far from a disaster.
I appreciate when a film doesn’t rely on lazy writing or fit into one specific genre. Like Father avoided obvious storylines, and seamlessly transitioned between heavy themes and jokes that hit their mark. I also enjoy the sense of realism in films that doesn’t pander to learned movie behaviors, but instead try to depict how real people would react within the movie’s storyline circumstances. I understand that to advance a narrative and set up situations, sometimes creative liberties will be taken, but ultimately, a character’s actions need to make sense and their mood needs to change appropriately to the situation. I want to see characters show signs of progression and regression, because that is typically how things go in real life. Like Father succeeded in this regard at times, where it really could have missed the boat.
The premise of the movie is simple enough. A career-minded woman named Rachel (Kristen Bell) gets left at the altar after her husband-to-be realizes that she does not want to change her ways. Her uninvited and long-estranged father (Kelsey Grammer) makes an ungraceful exit trying to leave during the commotion but later resurfaces at her apartment to try and make amends over the course of several stiff drinks.
The amount of alcohol that they consume over the course of that night would put Andre the Giant in the hospital, but lucky for them they only wind up on a very nice vacation together that should have been her honeymoon. You do have to suspend belief for a moment and accept that they were functional enough, in their drunken state, to have passports on hand and act sober enough to get through the boarding procedure and safety demonstration.
While the initial plan is for them to fly home once the ship docks in Jamaica, they are of course moved to stay through the fun that they are having and the interesting people that they meet. Over the course of the 10 days at sea, they embark on a journey of self-discovery and, through the magic of all the amenities and excursions the cruise has to offer, they are able to gradually come to terms with how they became the people that they are.
The film is great with realistic dialogue, which at times is awkward but relatable, and an interesting cast of characters that keeps things fresh. While Seth Rogen’s role as a recent divorcee, Jeff, isn’t integral to the plot, he also comes across as a very real person that you might happen across on a cruise ship. Perhaps my favorite scenes is one (I believe everyone can relate to) where you are fresh off an argument and sitting quietly before people interrupt your somber mood with a bombardment of energy and questions. This is just one example of realism brought to the film over breakfast that is done very well and how most of the supporting cast is introduced including Jim (Paul W. Downs) who gets a lot of the biggest laughs.
There is a scene at the top of a waterfall that also stands out, for its beauty in cinematography as well as its purpose, which brings the plot towards its conclusion. I enjoyed the very real nature in which these discussions and arguments were portrayed both by Bell and Grammer. They didn’t rely on a musical score to tell you that they are emotional, and they avoided a cliched conclusion where everyone goes their separate ways before working things out through some grand gesture.
Outside of the fact that the movie features a long scene of karaoke, which I personally despise, the lack of emotion, where I feel the movie really fell short, was maybe done intentionally. I was expecting a lot of heavy moments to surface throughout and, honestly, they just didn’t come. Without giving up too much of a spoiler, I think Rachel’s stance can be justified by the realization that both her and her father’s drive to succeed in their careers has essentially left them alone at this juncture. If she is going to ultimately find it within herself to forgive him, she might as well use this unique opportunity to let her guard down.
I knew a little more than most probably will before choosing to watch the latest Netflix addition, and it gave me a little insight into what might be a part of the storyline. Writer and director Lauren Miller Rogen is the wife of actor Seth Rogen, and together they have been working to bring awareness to Alzheimer’s, specifically the high cost associated with the care for loved ones diagnosed with the disease. Lauren’s mother has Alzheimer’s and I think it was an interesting choice to work into the plot without making it central to the story. I think that despite it not going as deep as I would have thought, and the karaoke especially, the film is enjoyable and worth seeing on a platform like Netflix.
Overall rating: 6 out of 10
-Ben Murchison
