Movie Review: About My Father

Remember when you could go see comedies in the movie theaters? In a room that was at least halfway full? Wasn’t that fun? I don’t think, at the time, I appreciated being able to do that as much as I should have.

Because the movie theater comedy didn’t suddenly disappear, and instead dissipated slowly in the late 2010’s, it also isn’t the kind of thing that felt stolen or ripped away. There wasn’t a sudden absence of comedies on the big screen, we just slowly started watching more of these kinds of movies on streaming services. There was a Happiest Season here, a The Loverbirds there, sprinkle in some Palm Springs, Bill & Ted Face the Music, and Borat Subsequent MovieFilm, and boom, all of a sudden, we live in a world where comedies are almost exclusively watched at home.

Another factor in this shift was, obviously, the pandemic. But, as every other kind of movie slowly made its way back to theaters, comedies have lagged behind. Lionsgate seems ready to change that with the Robert De Niro-led About My Father.

Well, it’s led by De Niro from a marketing standpoint. The actual lead is comedian Sebastian Maniscalco, who is cementing his status as an actor after smaller roles in Green Book and The Irishman. He’s really funny here, but he’s also got a knack for knowing when to dial it down, allowing the tremendous cast around him to also do their thing.

Maniscalco is, well, Sebastian Maniscalco, the Italian American hotel manager who is seeking Ellie’s (Leslie Bibb) hand in marriage. De Niro is Salvo Maniscalco, the hair stylist father of Sebastian. Sebastian wants to propose with his late mother’s ring, and Salvo will give it to him, on one condition. He’s got to meet the family, in person, to make sure there’s no “rot”.

It’s a solid comedy setup, and from there, we meet the family and hijinks ensue. This is not a complicated or intricate film, but it’s a good time.

Kim Cattrall and David Rasche are Tigger and Bill Collins, Ellie’s wealthy parents. Both are great, but I was especially tickled by Rasche. Every mannerism he displays in this film is spot on for the overly polite, aloof heir to a hotel empire that he plays. It’s obviously a different role than he played in the Coen’s Burn After Reading, but there is certainly a through line that connects the two performances. When it comes to putting on social niceties that sit in the small space between genuine and farcical, Rasche is phenomenal.

The more outwardly performative family member is Lucky Collins, played by Anders Holm. He’s good here, but it’s a performance we’ve seen from Holm before. While there are small differences between his characters in Workaholics, The Interview, The Mindy Project, and Game Over, Man!, it all feels the same at the end of the day. In terms of screen time, he’s only the fifth or sixth most prominent character here, so the schtick is not too tiresome.

I was fortunate enough to see an advanced screening of this film in a theater with an enthusiastic audience. If I was alone on my couch, I might have more to nitpick about this film, but as I saw it, I had a blast. It’s a reminder of how important the theater experience is. When we sit alone, we overanalyze. With a crowd, we get lost in the laughter.

About My Father is not a perfect film, but it’s a lot of fun. This is a solid date movie, and I highly recommend trying to see it with a group of people.

And, if you’re like me, and you miss having options at the movie theater, go see this. I had a blast at Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3, just like I had a blast at Godzilla vs Kong and Fast and Furious 9, but the spectacle isn’t the only thing that make theaters great. I miss the reliability of variety at the theater. Let’s hope this does well, and let’s hope we aren’t stuck watching more and more comedies at home.