Delayed Reaction: Captain Fantastic

The Pitch: What if Lord of the Flies was on purpose?

When I heard that Matt Ross, Gavin Belson from Silicon Valley, wrote and directed a movie, my first guess wasn't that it was about a father raising his children in the wild and introducing them to the "real world" to go to the funeral of their mother who killed herself. Then again, that's not something you just assume. Now, Viggo Mortensen as the patriarch of this family: that something that's easier to guess. Mortensen very well could have an Oscar nomination for this film simply for how good a fit for the role he is. He's quite good too, make no mistake. In fact, this is rather spectacular casting all-around. The kids all get personalities and differences. The oldest son, Bo (George MacKay) especially stood out. The look he gives when he's nervous and shuts down is incredible. It would be funny if it wasn't so sad. The extended family too. Kathryn Hahn has plenty of experience being mortified and frustrated interacting with the Pfeffermans. Frank Langella and Ann Dowd both want to work with Mortensen for whatever's best for the children. They just have a different idea about what that means.

The film celebrates this family's lifestyle while still judging it heavily. Ross does a terrific job showing the benefits (the kid are very strong and very book smart) and the weaknesses (they have no social skills outside of the family). Toward the end, the plot is a little forced. The daughter's injury is one of those "and then this needs to happen" moments that felt a little too convenient. There's a sense of humor to the film that I wasn't dialed into. Things like the different characters getting naked for no reason or the children getting weapons for Nohm Chompsky Day are silly but they felt more to me like underlining a point that had already been made. Unless those were supposed to be mortifying, sobering moments, in which case, I completely missed the point.

Verdict (?): Weakly Don't Recommend