& Sons review: How to squander an excellent plot twist
I went into & Sons completely cold, knowing nothing about it except the star-studded cast, so imagine my surprise when the crux of the plot reveals itself. What a curveball!
Bill Nighy stars as Andrew Dyer, a famous author who hasn’t written anything or left the house in 20 years. Believing he is about to die, he summons his estranged sons Richard (Johnny Flynn) and Jamie (George MacKay) to his home and apologises for being a lousy, absent father. He then tells them an unbelievable secret that will rewrite their family’s history.
I won’t spoil the bombshell, but it’s a big, bold swing in an otherwise conventional family drama. This unique, wildly unexpected reveal could have so many different repercussions and set off so many different storytelling avenues, yet where the story ultimately goes is rather underwhelming (although this can probably be blamed on David Gilbert‘s book). There are some interesting, dramatic conversations about whether he’s telling the truth but it could have been explored with greater depth and debated more rigorously.
I have to applaud the cast for handling this twist with absolute sincerity and keeping the drama grounded despite the new sci-fi dimension. I was particularly impressed with Nighy for his portrayal of a reclusive, self-pitying man who is drowning out his regrets with pills and booze. I enjoyed seeing him in this different mode, however, I didn’t quite buy his character’s motivations for his wild decision. The ‘why’ wasn’t explained sufficiently.
The family dynamics are complex and I was intrigued to find out what happened around 20 years ago to cause the unit to fall apart. It’s also intriguing to see how the dynamics evolve in light of this new information. All the performances are good, including Noah Jupe as Andrew’s much younger son, but I was particularly taken with Imelda Staunton, who utterly convinces and sells the emotion and the gravity of the situation as Nighy’s ex-wife Isabel.
Pablo Trapero‘s & Sons has brilliant performances all around, Sarah Polley‘s screenplay is decent, and I respect a big swing, but it doesn’t make the most of its mind-blowing concept, not even close. It was like they didn’t know where to go with it and therefore didn’t do enough.
In cinemas from Friday 21st August