I really wish I lived closer to an art house theater. However, I finally visited the Polk Theater in Lakeland to see Captain Fantastic, and it’s pretty close. I had hoped to see this film in theaters so I couldn’t resist trying out this little indie theater that runs mainly from donations and volunteers. I give Captain Fantastic the Not Quite Golden, Ponyboy rating.
Captain Fantastic is an interesting film about societal norms and parenting
Ben (Viggo Mortensen) has devoted his life to raising his six children in the forests of the Pacific Northwest. They are receiving a vigorous physical and intellectual education and learning to survive off the land. After his wife, and their mother, dies he is forced to leave their paradise and enter the “normal” world with society challenging his idea of what it means to be a parent.
The performances in the film are fantastic. Mortensen’s family is played by George Mackay, Samantha Isler, Annalise Basso, Nicholas Hamilton, Shree Crooks, and Charlie Shotwell. The kids all do a terrific job with every stage of the film. Whether they are mourning the loss of their mother, reading, training, or playing music, they manage to perform like they truly are their characters. I was deeply attached to the characters and I was extremely invested in the debate they found themselves in.
The film is written and directed by Matt Ross, a relatively new director. I really loved the story he put on-screen. It showed a man who has chosen to go off the grid and do things the way he thinks is best. It appears to be accurate as his children seem to excel at most things, but lack general society etiquette and mannerisms. However, the film manages to sometimes subtly shows us their talents and other times outright states it. I’m very much an indoors, go with the flow, while enjoying the comforts of civilization type of guy, but even I found myself thinking we, society, is doing it wrong. That’s where the movie really didn’t work for me at the end.
Spoilers upcoming
Spoilers impending from this point forward. The film ends with Ben having conformed with society much more than the evidence suggests he should. The family is living on a farm and the kids getting ready to go to school. The message then seems to say that people must conform to the societal norms. This could be that the Ross wants us to have a sad ending to a degree or that his message is mixed. It would be easy to say that the message is simply conform or lose everything you care about. Ben does, and we are left thinking that this is the only way to live. It could be the message is that parental love will do whatever it takes to protect your children and keep your family together. The ending definitely left a bit of a sour taste on an otherwise really great film.
The subject matter of the film is definitely one I would like to discuss further. It’s a really interesting to see how the values that Ben is instilling in his children are important. Yet, they are deemed unacceptable by societal norms. Honesty, hard work, moderation, and education are core values that his family displays. A particularly funny moment where Ben explains sexual intercourse to his 8-year-old daughter. As a parent, I cringed when she asked. However, I was surprised at the ease in which he answered with little hesitation and total honesty. There is a lot of substance worthy of discussion in the film and that’s what made it so enjoyable to me.
Last thoughts on Captain Fantastic
Captain Fantastic is definitely a film I recommend you check out. I’m not sure if the ending’s message was received correctly. Either way, the film still evoked a lot of thoughts from me. It depicts a world that I couldn’t imagine being a part of, but managed to sell me on the idea to a degree. I plan on buying this one at some point and revisiting it.
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