THE SON - Fan Page

[jo]

[jo]

A shared moment acknowledging Florian & Hugh both learning that the public is finally showing appreciation of THE SON.

[jo]

IMDB--

6/10
Sad Tale of a Broken Kid

shuswap-8355727 May 2023
Overall well done yet depressing film about a kid with mental issues from dealing with his parent's marriage breakup. All the actors were excellent excellent for the teen who was below average, especially when he was crying and stressed out. You may come away feeling a connection to this story and you may feel it's true to life and hits a nerve about how families deal with dysfunction and toxic parental relationships. For sure you'll feel sad and depressed at the final scenes. The story could have had a little more depth and perhaps something more with the school life. But the kid had no friends or girlfriend so completely anti social. Could've been written better.

[jo]

IMDB --

Powerful
ajamesflood28 May 2023
It's rare that a movie actually has a physical effect on me, but The Son actually took my breath way. I sat for a good 10 seconds with my mouth gaping open, possibly not breathing, I'm not sure. By the end I was pretty much in a kind of stunned immobility for a few minutes.

I'm mystified by the negative reviews it received by critics. Did we see the same movie? It just goes to show, go into a movie without reading any critic's reviews to prejudice your own judgement. I would love to do a survey of who read critic's reviews of The Son and in advance and who didn't and compare their scoring. The Son had the misfortune of being followed by the critically acclaimed The Father, which invites comparisons, and comparisons are always harsher when one is placed against something that was better. The Father may have been superior to The Son (so they say, I haven't seen it), but The Son is nonetheless powerful on its own. Predictable? I don't know what they're talking about. I hate predictable movies, and I found nothing predictable about this one.

The performances were strong for the most part: Dern and Hopkins I felt were particularly strong, and Jackman was solid. Zen McGrath I felt was the weak link, but not enough to spoil scenes. At times he was strong. At other times, I found myself wondering if they had made the wrong casting choice.

The message rang painfully true -- a theme that has been largely dropped since probably the 80s -- namely, the long-term devastation left by divorce. While books and movies may have moved on to other more interesting societal ills, the child victims of divorce don't have such a luxury.

I'm a parent (still happily married thankfully), with most of our children having passed through the teen years, and perhaps this movie is something that is more meaningful to people who've been through that, I don't know. But in my humble opinion, The Son is a wonderful, yet painful, film.

[jo]

IMDB --

How parents try to deal with a self-destructive teenage son.
TxMike29 May 2023
A 2020 movie called "The Father" was written and directed by Frenchman Florian Zeller. It starred Anthony Hopkins and it examines dementia from the often confused point of view of the afflicted person.

This 2022 movie "The Son" is also written and directed by Zeller, it examines the difficulty that normal working and achieving parents have understanding and dealing with a teenage son who doesn't feel right in the world. A son who goes to school on his first day but skips out all days after, unknown to his parents. A son who says he has no friends. A son who cuts himself because that is less painful than what he experiences inside.

It is not a fun or entertaining movie at all, but an important subject. I know, I have a son who had similar issues when he was a teenager, I am happy to say he eventually grew out of most of it and is a happy and successful adult in his 40s. But this type of movie, loosely based on experiences the author had as a teenager, serves to call attention to the issue and what respurces are available to parents who may find themselves in need for their child.

My wife and I watched it at home on DVD from our public library. The actors are all good, I found my self wishing it had been a bit shorter, maybe 85 to 90 minutes.

[jo]

Marissa Perea
@marissaperea
Por todo lo que esta aconteciendo lamentablemente con los jóvenes les recomiendo mucho la película "El hijo" Florian Zeller adapta la segunda parte de su trilogía teatral con una dura mirada a la salud mental y el suicidio, en la que Hugh Jackman interpreta a un padre desesperado por entender a su hijo adolescente, que sufre depresión. Esta disponible en Amazon Prime. Véanla y me dicen que les pareció.

Translated from Spanish by Google:

For everything that is unfortunately happening with young people, I highly recommend the film "The Son" Florian Zeller adapts the second part of his theatrical trilogy with a hard look at mental health and suicide, in which Hugh Jackman plays a father desperate to understand his teenage son, who suffers from depression. It is available on Amazon Prime. Watch it and tell me what you think.

[jo]

*On Amazon, readers who sent reviews/ratings gave it a 4.1 out of 5 stars.

Raters from 4 to 5 stars accounted for 75% of the group.

*On Rotten Tomatoes, audience score is at 61%

*On IMDB, close to 9000 raters have rated it 6.3 weighted average/6.5 unweighted mean.

Raters of the top group (8/9/10 scores of 10) total 28%.


It seems that audience scores indicate some unanimity of opinion - that it is a movie well-worth seeing.


Jo

[jo]

IMDB -- sample of those in complete denial of the movie's message.

1/10
Bored to tears...
erikaeubanks29 May 2023
Warning: Spoilers
A sniveling, annoying, spoiled brat, whining and crying over his parents' divorce... when Wolverine told him "I'm allowed to reinvent my life..." I felt that... Hannibal Lecter plays the father of the father of the son and he was also right when he told Wolverine to GROW UP and GET OVER IT! I'm sorry but this movie was so damn boring, it felt like it had been on for two hours and there was still 45mins left... typical ex wife who can't stay away and talked smack about her ex husband for leaving her and now has poisoned the son against his dad... everything about this movie annoyed me and I've still got 38mins to go... *YAWN* don't bother ... also why are women who stay home and don't work always complaining about the man working?! Bish you don't even have a job...somebody's gotta pay the bills!! Stfu and enjoy living freely in my house... take care of the kids or get a job! Smh... anyway...none of the "actresses" were believable... father, son, ex wife, baby momma... all of them *thumbs down*

[jo]

IMDB --

8/10
A solid movie with a strong message
jakehall-0202130 May 2023

Sometimes I like to see what has been said about a movie before I watch it. I was surprised to see mixed reviews. This was a heartfelt movie with a believable scenario and unexpected turnabout. I definitely appreciate the fact it touched upon what goes on in reality when it comes to mental illness and also denial. The characters were strong and there were a lot of underlying messages that were delivered that should be paid attention to in the real world. I hadn't seen Laura Dern in awhile and she was solid in her role. Anthony Hopkins had a clever message to deliver in his character, although I wished he was in the movie a bit more... Hugh Jackman also never disappoints.

[jo]

[jo]

IMDB --

10/10
Extraordinary!
acec-2954827 May 2023

Not all movies are meant to entertain. Some movies are meant to inform or to educate. Some movies are meant to explain how life really is for some people. This movie stands at the pinnacle for trying to help others comprehend mental heath issues that very few people understand. If you haven't lived that life, please shut up and save your artistic criticisms for another movie. I don't care what you think. This movie tried to look at the mental health issue from all sides - parent, child, and other loved ones. It was gut wrenching. It was an extraordinarily realistic depiction of what goes on in a family torn apart by mental health battles. Life becomes a war zone. And during the battle or after the war you begin to reflect and it tears you apart. You ask yourself what just happened. You ask yourself how it happened. And guess what - you have no answers to your questions. Bravo Mr. Zeller.

[jo]

Alho, Cebola & Sal...🧑‍🍳🔪🧄🧅🧂🍅🫑🌶️🥦🥕🥒🥬
@fabio_1880
Esse filme "UM FILHO"
@primevideobr
, foi um soco no meu estômago literalmente. Por isso, mesmo um pouco longe, eu faço de tudo, tudo pra estar presente (e saber do que se passa) na vida dos meus filhotes.

Hugh Jackman está impecável em seu papel (e os outros também...rs)

Translated from Portuguese by Google:

That movie "A SON"
@primevideobr
, was a punch in my stomach literally. That's why, even a little far away, I do everything, everything to be present (and know what's going on) in the lives of my puppies.

Hugh Jackman is impeccable in his role (and the others too...lol)

[jo]

From Rotten Tomatoes Readers Reviews --

4 of 5 *
May 30, 2023
Some of these poor reviews are disturbing, but I sense that is because I am a family psychologist. I think this movie is realistic, important, uncomfortable, and right on the money.

1 of 5 *
Michelle
May 30, 2023
With a cast like this I was expecting great but the acting was awful, unfortunately. Anthony Hopkins was the highlight for all of 5 minutes. Good story, just needed better acting.


5 of 5*
Nathalie
May 30, 2023
The awareness brought to teen depression was a great touch. After some research I found this was a personal story to Zeller in which he wanted to relay transparency about his life. I enjoy personal stories so, 5 stars. It is worth noting the story was told from the father's point of view, not the son's point of view. I desperately wanted to know everyone else's point of view but this was his story to tell after all.

[jo]

[jo]

[jo]

IMDB --

7/10
A Son.
BoulderBoricua30 May 2023

I'll address the first thing that I see on the negative reviews: Zen McGrath as Nicholas does not "sell" it. I thought the same thing as I was watching the movie, he never brought me in, he was hard to read, he had a smirk that threw me off, a little smile that was hard to decipher, he seemed sarcastic and out of it, I never felt his pain... but after days of thinking about this film this is what I realized:

Teenage kids are hard to read.

That is the whole point.

I am a parent of a 15 year old boy and this movie shook me to my core. It really did. The parents couldn't read the boy (much like I feel most of the time), they went with what they saw from him and trusted that gut feeling vs what professionals were telling them, they trusted the memories they had as though those represented who the boy was now, they trusted their own desire for things to normalize, they trusted the good moments, they went with the unmistakable desire that "things will be ok". They let those desires take the wheel.

This is Hugh Jackman's best performance to date as a parent desperate for things to be ok as he dealt with his own issues of being a son himself, he wanted to avoid being a monster... not realizing that being a friend wasn't the solution.

[jo]

Rotten Tomatoes audience review --

5 of 5*
Les B
May 30, 2023
This wasn't alot of fun to watch. However, for me, this really hit home on so many levels. While my wife and I have been happily married for 23 years and going, we have a son and a daughter that have experienced these things. They both have been diagnosed with anxiety and depression. My precious son was diagnosed with ADHD at a young age and them severe depression at a later age. He delved into unregulated drug use to "mask" the depression. He's not "at risk" as he was but my wife and I struggled with exactly the decisions the parents were faced with. The child begging to be discharged and the experts(?) advising against it. This movie boils down to this. Most parents think that loving your kids is enough. That's what you feel when they are infants, toddlers, and children. However, it takes more as they become teenagers. Our goal is to make the right decisions for them. We've made some hard decisions that our son did not like. He's alive by the grace of God. Very realistic movie.

[jo]

An article on Deadline.com that mentioned THE SON as one of the top 10 movies on Netflix.

deadline.com/2023/05/fubar-maid-queen-charlotte-xo-kitty-netflix-top-10-ratings-1235382920/#comments

I sent in these comments for the benefit of those who have not seen it but have Netflix subscriptions --

Applause
on May 30, 2023 12:26 pm
Interesting how THE SON has become a film for serious viewing. Derided by critics, audience reactions on RottenTomatoes & IMDB are giving acceptable nods to this movie focused on mental health. Not a medical procedural but a familial drama re people surrounding a depressed adolescent. Hugh Jackman (Peter), both a father & a son, is the central character while Anthony Hopkins plays his uncaring Dad. Raises many questions on the role of Peter whose attention his son craves – is he insensitive, too self-absorbed or did he inherit his father’s genes?

I didn't realize that Neflix top views can go into many millions, often double or even triple-digit millions. Can you imagine if that translated into cinema viewings for THE SON?

It is the critics who killed this movie's theatrical screening possibilities and Hugh's chances for an Oscar

[jo]

Moral of the story : With Hugh Jackman, you cannot expect a film that is either an action movie or a musical



More...

[jo]

IMDB --

1/10
Stupid is as stupid does
scottdarin31 May 2023
The unforgivable sin that the script for The Son commits is that it treats the parents in this movie as complete idiots. The parents are supposed to be stand ins for most of us in society who are apparently according to this movie are either completely oblivious to the obvious, have never seen or met a mentally ill person, or have never seen a movie or read a book about such. Zeller's The Father was interesting because it presented an empathetic view from the first person of someone with dementia. I think this movie would have been more credible and frankly better had it been shown from The Son's perspective, instead of his parents who make dumb decision after dumb decision to the point that this movie lacks credulity. If you have ever spent time with a mentally ill person the first rule of thumb is they lie. They lie to you and themselves. The second rule is they need professional help that we as parents can't give them. A blind and deaf person knows better than the parents in this movie who come across as caricatures in a badly written movie.

0 out of 2 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Yes No

I have seen a few harshly worded criticism of the movie -- and have wondered why this very angry reaction to a film? I am surmising these types of review come from young people who may or may not have suffered from depression or who has observed someone close suffering from depression -- and they think this is not a realistic portrayal?

Or is he a parent who may be guilty of not realizing the seriousness of a child's depressed state...even if he thought he had done everything by the book?

Why resent when the movie is likely not an unusual view of how people surrounding a depressed person behave? He would rather change the perspective to the place of the person suffering from the illness? Why dictate the cinematic vision of the filmmaker?

Are they expecting to see a movie that is a medical prcedural? What caused it? What is the cure? Has the cure worked?

Why so angry??

Jo

[njr]

The person who wrote the above review is not so much angry as they are flabbergasted. Like this: 🙄 I can see their point. When the parents “caved” and let their son come home after he begged them, I was screaming at the TV “NO, NO, NO!” I was an RN from 1981 to 2018 and I could see the writing on the wall! The Son’s character to me was not fleshed out enough. I would too have liked to see more from him and his point of view. The ending was reminiscent of Stephen King’s “Pet Cemetery” where the son is killed by a speeding truck, but later King writes a short bit where the dad got there in time to save his son. It was all a fantasy, though, just like in “The Son.” 😢 As soon as I saw that portion of “The Son” I knew it wasn’t reality.

Nancy

[jo]

From an Amazon reader --

QTEEPYEE
VINE VOICE
5.0 out of 5 stars JOY & PAIN!!!!!
Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2023
I gave this movie five stars because I loved this movie. The acting was good on all parts. Nicholas had good parents but that baby was sick. I cried and my heart really ached for all involved. When the parents had to make the awful decision at the hospital, I felt their pain. I’m not going to tell a story, I was scared for Theo.
Some kids just can’t handle divorce. Poor Peter, his dad was a stone trip. What he told his son was so harsh. I was like wowwwww. I loved Peter. I loved the whole cast.

I would suggest this movie.

Signed: MENTAL ILLNESS IS REAL!!!!!

[jo]

This is how the chart for THE SON as rated by IMDB readers as of now --

www.imdb.com/title/tt14458442/ratings/?ref_=tt_ov_rt

Except for the 2 extreme ratings (10 & 1) -- it is a normal Bell curve ( shaped like a bell that is lying down) which is considered a normal behavior. If you read the reviews - they can go in the 2 extreme behavior pattern. Very harsh/even angry or very appreciative/think it is a life reality. It can happen that there would two extreme reactions especially in a controversial movie like this. The fact that it was Zeller/s intention to provoke conversations, instead of telling a straightforward story, inevitably would lead to this expected diversity.

Looking at the Bell curves of each country shown with stats -- except for France & Netherlands which showed the usual or more normal statistical behavior, all the rest are even more extreme in their leanings. Especially with the USA and the UK.







I mention this because of what happened to the IMDB rating of LITTLE MERMAID.

[jo]

[jo]