“An unexpectedly charming blend of comedy and drama.”

Every family has that one eccentric who makes life more interesting as a result of their unconventional worldview or peculiar personality that keeps those around them constantly on edge. In the case of The Bad Father, we find Roberto Bueso weaving the story of a trio of adult siblings and their wickedly offbeat father, exploring their relationship in an unexpectedly moving tale of family and the lengths to which we will go to protect those around us. The titular character is Santiago, an elderly writer who has been working on his magnum opus for decades, and who suddenly learns that he needs to put in the effort to complete it after he is diagnosed with a terminal illness. He also reaches out to his three children, Alberto, Damián and Clara, with whom he has always had a contentious relationship, to inform them that he has perhaps only a year left before he loses his ability to function. Against their better judgment, the trio find their way to his luxurious seaside villa with the intention of making peace with a man who was not always the best father, but who they still believe deserves the chance to redeem himself, even if only for the sake of their own personal closure. An unexpectedly charming blend of comedy and drama that tackles some intimidating themes with sophistication and a strong sense of humour, The Bad Father is a solid and reliable entry into a genre that can sometimes veer towards the conventional, but where the intentions far outweigh the occasional over-reliance on certain emotions that anchor many similarly themed films.

There are few topics that filmmakers seem to love more than the challenging relationship between parents and their children. It often proves to be fertile ground for unexpectedly complex stories about the tense connections between people who should exist in harmony, but seem to be driven apart by any number of issues, whether it is interpersonal conflicts caused by ego or specific incidents that push them apart. The Bad Father is built around the idea of a man who lived as a libertine for most of his life, embracing all of life’s sumptuous pleasures, even at the expense of the kind of fatherhood one would expect from someone in his position. Now faced with his own death, which he learns is coming faster than he hoped, he has to hurry to ensure that he gets the closure he feels he deserves. It’s a very simple premise that Bueso uses to tell quite a compelling story, touching on a number of themes that come together to form a portrait of the complicated dynamic between the protagonist and his three children, who have their own complex lives that clash with his more peculiar worldview. Subjects such as ageing, mortality and the weight of knowing that life can sometimes throw unexpected curves all define this film. It focuses on exploring the inner lives of these characters as they attempt to process a difficult situation without becoming too fixated on the emotional details; the more detached they remain, the more effectively they can deal with trying to work through personal conflicts in the pursuit of some kind of resolution, as hard as it may be for all parties involved.

Considering the gravity of the film and the many complex themes that define the story, it’s surprising that The Bad Father tends towards comedy most of the time. This eventually makes sense, since Bueso evidently wants to find a combination of the humour and melancholy that emerge in such a situation. The film functions as a chamber drama about a group of eccentric characters, each one a vibrant and complex personality in their own right, gathering in the same house to seek resolution, but often only making the situation even more tense. It’s an easy concept to turn into a comedy, with some complex ideas that feel much richer when filtered through a more upbeat lens. It shows that even a subject like terminal illness can lend itself to lighthearted storytelling that does not invalidate the message but rather strengthens it. The cast is a large part of why The Bad Father works, since they commit wholeheartedly to a difficult premise, finding ways to portray these characters as far more than just one-dimensional archetypes. The ensemble is led by Eduard Fernández, whose performance as the titular father is filled to the brim with heart and humour, his irreverent personality being a good match for the part of a man grappling with his own mortality. He has extraordinary chemistry with Adam Jezierski, Francesco Carril and Meritxell Calvo, who portray his children (each a distinct personality), as well as Cristina Plazas, whose performance as his wife is covertly the heart and soul of the film. It’s very much a character-based story, and the actors work well with this dense and layered screenplay that demands a lot from them, but finds ways to challenge and provoke with concepts that only strengthen the film and make it more compelling.

At a glance, The Bad Father does not seem particularly revolutionary or daring, functioning as yet another story of a bourgeois family trying to navigate the trials and tribulations that come with having a difficult parent. It follows convention down to some of the most predictable details, and does not say anything we’ve not seen or heard dozens of times before. However, it has good intentions and proves to be remarkably well-crafted (the seaside location adds to the easygoing nature of the film) and genuinely moving in places where we would expect it. The film may tell a story that could’ve been nothing but a bundle of clichés, but this would have done a disservice to what is evidently a story with larger intentions than just following trite conventions. At its core, The Bad Father is a story about finding redemption wherever possible in fear of living with regrets, and working through challenging circumstances in pursuit of some kind of resolution before it is too late. However, by viewing the subject through a more upbeat lens, we find that the blend of different tones helps underline some challenging subjects in a way that is much more moving than we’d expect. It’s a straightforward concept delivered by a gifted cast, who commit wholeheartedly to its offbeat premise while never abandoning the true human emotions situated at its core. Ultimately, it becomes a charming and genuine story of a family working through their personal crises and finding common ground. The journey to get there is slightly more conventional than it could’ve been had Bueso been more willing to challenge the audience, but it all falls into place and creates a moving comedy about life, death and the many peculiarities in between.