This tense, touching, and funny portrait of family dynamics follows three estranged sisters as they converge in a New York apartment to care for their ailing father and try to mend their own broken relationship with one another.
Pam says:
Family. You can’t choose them, but they’re a part of you no matter what. Azalea Jacobs writes and directs this new film starring Carrie Coon, Natasha Lyonne and Elizabeth Olsen depicting three very different sisters and how they deal with dear old Dad, Vincent (Jay O. Sanders), in Hospice care. Their relationship with Dad and with one another create incredibly realistic situations and conversations that will make you laugh, cry, and smile with your heart. Incredible performances by these women add to that authenticity which pulls you into the story and perhaps even relate to this volatile yet loving dynamic.
Rachel (Lyonne) is and has been Dad’s primary caregiver as she lives with him. Typically high from morning through evening, she’s the “baby” of the family; rebellious, quick-witted, and laid back. The eldest, Katie portrayed skillfully by Coon, is a Type A personality all the way. She’s inflexible, judgmental and a control freak—all the personality traits that can divide a family in a heartbeat. Then we have Christina (Olsen), who’s the middle child; the mediator and peacemaker. She’s a gentle soul who loves her father but harbors extreme guilt from not helping care for him in his last difficult months.
The sisters are instructed by Angel (Rudy Galvan), the Hospice coordinator, as to what to expect — or not — and what to do when “it” happens. Katie is hung up on the fact that her sisters dropped the ball on not getting the DNR signed. Her hyper-focussed behavior, in many ways, helps her avoid the fact that her father is dying in front of her. While we don’t see or meet Dad until the third act, the story revolves around him and how each daughter’s relationship varied thanks to timing and his two marriages. What does it mean to be a daughter, blood or step? What does it mean to be a sister? Why do these relationships take a nose dive into adulthood? And what can help create or resuscitate that? All of these questions are answered as the trio talk, argue, and actually reveal who they are to one another and most importantly to themselves.
The script is brilliant as it reaches into the depths of life and death and what’s important to us. Never is it heavy-handed which allows us to gradually get to know these women now and then, pulling away the layers to see who they were as children, speaking a language known only to them. We also find that each of these women have very different perspectives of their father which is artfully portrayed as Katie attempts to write Victor’s obituary before he draws his final breath.
The casting is equally perfect as Coon’s Katie uses her speech style, harsh and over-articulated, to demonstrate her perfectionistic personality while Lyonne’s persona is the opposite. Olsen’s more emotional Christina is pulled in so many directions as she attempts to deal with the situation at hand and the one on-going at home which is easily felt thanks to her nuanced performance. All three women create characters with whom we not only understand, but perhaps we even recognize them in our own families.
With outstanding performances in a film that feels like a live stage production, we experience the realities of the process of losing a parent and remembering the importance of siblings. And with a third and final surreal act, this aspect is accentuated with the utmost of emotion and love.
4 stars
Chuck says:
We often kid ourselves into thinking that “keeping the peace” is the way to go where interpersonal issues are concerned. Whether it be a marriage or familial relationships, avoidance is the easier path to travel. Who wants to bring anything up that might ruin a family get together? And after a rough day, when I just want to have dinner and checkout in front of the T.V., do I really want to mention that thing that’s bothering me with my wife?
Our reluctance to discuss concerns of this nature always come back to haunt us, as they do the sisters in Azazel Jacobs “His Three Daughters,” a chamber piece in which the titular characters have gathered in a tiny New York City apartment, anticipating their father’s death. Smartly written, the drama benefits greatly from the sharp performances from its veteran cast as well a realistic sense of place that ultimately impacts its flawed, relatable trio.
Vincent’s (Jay O. Sanders) health has been in decline for quite some time, resulting in his having in-home hospice care. His oldest daughter Katie (Carrie Coon) has come to help him during what will likely be his final days. In reality, she’s there to complain and cast herself as a victim, which is what she’s always done. Harping on the fact that her father did not sign a “Do Not Resuscitate” order and myriad other slights, the thinly veiled barbs she continually fires off at Rachel (Natasha Lyonne), her stepsister, become more and more pointed as each day passes.
As for Rachel, she’s shared the apartment with her father for years, looking after him daily, watching him slowly fade away. That Katie only lives one borough away and rarely comes to help out is conveniently overlooked by the elder sibling. The long-simmering resentment between them only increases as the days slowly go by. Rachel soon finds herself a prisoner in her own home, retreating to her bedroom to avoid any confrontations.
Christina (Elizabeth Olson) is the one caught in the middle, the sister who got away, having married, gone to California and started a family. She constantly mentions how wonderful her life is yet laments the frantic pace of being a modern mother, complaints that seem insignificant to her sisters. At times, she seems to be a step behind her sisters, her way of coping with stress not as overt as theirs.
Though the film lags in the middle, for the most part Jacobs’ pacing is spot on, the tension between the three steadily building until the inevitable emotional explosion occurs. The director’s script is grounded, each of the sisters’ displaying recognizable character traits. You’ll be able to equate each these women with people you know in your life, their behaviors typical of this sort of dynamic.
That’s not to say the film or plot is predictable because of this familiarity. Rather, Jacobs uses this as a hook to reel into the viewer, using this relatability as an avenue for the viewers’ emotional investment. Thanks to the strong work from the three actresses, this proves an easy task. Neither is anything less than compelling, what with the passion they bring to their roles. Containing some of the best performances of the year, this is an actor’s showcase and Coon, Lyonne and Olson take the opportunity and run with it.
An unnecessary narrative device is used in the third act that proves to be an unnecessary distraction. It’s as if Jacobs has a momentarily lapse in judgement regarding the quality of his work. He need not have worried; his casting saves the day.
3 Stars
