Absolutely Fantastic

A Masterpiece!

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Having read all of the above reviews, I won't waste space by summarizing the story line again. Four points: one, the title is murky; the Anthony's (the son) confirmation is an event that happens after the movie ends; granted, the young son's weekend with his father is a rite of passage, but I don't think the title ties it in; two, I like the fact that the movie has one singular objective, which is to find the Walt's toolbox; in a way, the father's future hangs on it; three, I thought the casting and performances were fine, sincere, workmanlike; the best performance of Clive Owen I've seen is "Words and Pictures"; (check it out); four, the ending was unsatisfying and unrealistic, as another reviewer pointed out; SPOILER ALERT: Walt, Anthony, and Allen return to the pawn shop; Allen steals the toolbox, runs out; all three jump in the car and drive away;cut to the end of the movie, where father and son have a bonding moment and "life will be good." How can it be "good" when, assuming the pawnshop owner is not an idiot, that he wrote down the license plate and contacted the police; Walt used his ex-wife's car which will be traced back to him. The pawnshop owner can identify Walt from their first ruinous encounter. Not being a student of law and not wanting to take the time to elaborate on the crimes committed, I will only say the consequences for Walt, Anthony, and Bonnie (Walt's ex) will damage their relationships. How could writer/director Bob Nelson ignore this outcome? Up to this point, the picture was grounded in the grittiness of the harsh world; Nelson, not dealing with this plot point, spoiled the picture for me.

The film makers chose not to feature the intense desperation of the Italian film The Bicycle Thief, used zero profanity, and a deadpan kid. Those may actually be reasons why some would dislike this film, but I found it all oddly seductive. Like another reviewer mentioned, nobody was vicious or truly mean here. Almost everyone, despite their poverty, had soul. Imagine a world where even in a gray desperate setting, people restrain themselves from the savagery that such places evoke in the real world.Some may ask why you need to cast a British guy in a film set in Washington and filmed in Canada. But I found Owen endearing and the dialogue he was given sublime. Someone decided that his face and demeanor fit the character, and I believe they did. Good call.Most of the "stars" are not really stars, and I appreciated seeing them get some work. Robert Forster is perfect for these roles, and Maria Bello totally looked the part. I don't know why they needed to make the boy be eight years old. The actor was way older than that. Clearly an eight year old would not be able to think or act as this one did. They should have made him 10, although the actor was 12. The unbelievable age thing was an awkward glitch for me.I'm glad they didn't use a soundtrack. The silence helped illustrate the depressed nature of the town. I've been to a depressed town in Washington. It's real.For whatever reasons, these film makers made the choice to present this story in a sort of Jim Jarmusch existentially absurd way. I liked that approach and did not judge it by other potential ways of doing it. I accepted it for what it was.

We watched this on DVD, a Redbox rental suggested by neighbors. The title refers to the Catholic process of teenage Confirmation after First Communion at 7 or 8.This is from the same writer-director that gave us 'Nebraska' (2013) where an old codger played by Bruce Dern was determined to get to Omaha to claim his prize advertised in a junk mail brochure. It too examined a father-son relationship.In the DVD extra he also mentions inspiration from the 1948 film "Bicycle Thieves", an Italian movie about a father-son team looking for his stolen bicycle. "The Confirmation" uses a stolen tool box, passed down from the grandfather, full of a finishing carpenter's tools of the trade. Clive Owen is the father, Walt and young Jaeden Lieberher is really effective as the young son, Anthony. Walt's former wife, Maria Bello as Bonnie, is going off to a Marriage Encounter weekend with her husband and Walt will take care of his son.Not much goes as planned, the pickup truck breaks down, he gets a finishing job that will allow him to ward off eviction but finds his tools are stolen. He borrows his ex-wife's car then finds it has no brakes, so he has to fix that. He asks around to see if any gossip in the small town will lead him to his stolen tools.My wife and I enjoyed the 100 minutes viewing but in truth it isn't that great a movie, not up to the caliber of "Nebraska". Walt isn't much of a role model, trying hard to get off the bottle, never telling the truth unless he is cornered. Some of his bad habits rub off on Anthony.For me the funniest part was when Anthony, a good boy, was in the confessional and telling the priest he didn't have any sins to confess. Probing several different avenues the priest asked if he had any naughty sexual thoughts, Anthony pondered for a couple of seconds then asked the priest to describe what that would look like. Later, after all the adventures when Anthony went back to confession he had a long list of "sins" to tell the priest, thanks to the adventures with his dad.

Walt, (Clive Owen) a recovering alcoholic, has his 8-year old son, Anthony (Jaeden Lieberher) for the weekend while his mother, Bonnie, (Maria Bello) and stepfather go away to a religious retreat. When Walt's specialized finishing tools are stolen he and Anthony get to know each other better trying to get back those tools that Walt desperately needs for his next job on Monday.This opens with Anthony in the Confessional Box and he cannot come up with any sins for the past 8-weeks. The Priest - almost at wits end - tries his best to help jog Anthony's memory but nothing surfaces. Anthony is undecided whether or not he should do his Confirmation. We see some unfortunate things happen to Walt that Anthony is surprised at but comes to understand that Walt is really a good person who is trying to do the right thing. We see Walt almost give in to alcohol, but Anthony becomes the adult and thwarts the attempt. Walt suspects Anthony but never lets him know it. Walt is always the good father, but acts more like a good friend and because of this Anthony gains new respect for him. Walt's friend Otto (Robert Forster) explains to Anthony what withdrawal symptoms are when Walt scares Anthony who thought his father was very drunk. It is possible that an adult Alien from outer space came to Earth and inhabited Jaeden as Anthony as we see him act more like an adult than an 8-year old. It's either that or Jaeden Lieberher is more than really good, or it was the Director doing all this. Whatever this is, it works big time. The chemistry between Walt and Anthony is so good you don't care how long it will take to find those tools. The banter between them including fatherly advice about Confirmation and Anthony's acceptance of it is pure gold. The dialogues are sincere and honest. And we see humor injected at times. You never want this to end.Clive Owen is one of the best actors around, and should be considered to be the next Bond, James Bond. My next choice would be Jim Caviezel. Will Smith would be my third choice, but I digress…………………This almost closes with Anthony in the Confessional box again listing sin after sin to the same priest who is now besides himself listening to the many sins Anthony spouts. And this is just one day after his last Confession. I would list them but then I would give away many of the things that happened to both of them as they went about finding those tools. So you see, Anthony (or that Alien) wasn't all that innocent in this trek. This does close with Bonnie watching Walt and Anthony saying good-bye until the next week-end and she knows Anthony's Confirmation will happen and Walt will be there. This is a great family movie and you may wish there were more movies like this. (we can only hope) (10/10)Violence: Not really just a little scuffle at a Pawn shop. Sex: No. Nudity: No. Language: Small stuff and not much of it.