The Daughter (2015 film)
{{short description|2015 film}}
{{Use Australian English|date=June 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{Infobox film
|name = The Daughter
|image = The Daughter (2015 film) POSTER.png
|caption = Film poster
|director = Simon Stone
|producer = {{Plainlist|*Jan Chapman
- Nicole O'Donohue
}}
|screenplay = Simon Stone
|based_on = The Wild Duck by
Henrik Ibsen (play)
|starring = {{Plainlist|* Geoffrey Rush
}}
|music = Mark Bradshaw
|cinematography = Andrew Commis
|editing = Veronika Jenet
|studio = Screen NSW
|distributor = Roadshow Films
|released = {{Film date|df=yes|2015|6|4|Sydney|2016|3|17}}
|runtime = 95 minutes{{cite web|url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/the-daughter-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zodcymzc|title=The Daughter (15)|work=British Board of Film Classification|accessdate=29 June 2021}}
|country = Australia
|language = English
}}
The Daughter is a 2015 Australian drama film written and directed by Simon Stone, starring an ensemble cast led by Geoffrey Rush. The film was released in Australia on 17 March 2016 to generally favourable reviews. The film is a reworking of Henrik Ibsen's 1884 play, The Wild Duck.
Plot
Christian Nielsen, a recovering alcoholic, returns home to Australia from the United States for the wedding of his father, Henry, to his much younger housekeeper, Anna. Christian's relationship with his father is strained as Christian believes Henry did not sufficiently look after his ill wife and Christian's mother, eventually leading to her suicide. Christian does not approve of the wedding to the much younger housekeeper.
He meets up with his childhood friend Oliver and gets introduced to Oliver's wife Charlotte and their daughter Hedvig. He finds out that Charlotte was many years for a short time Henry's housekeeper and he realises that Charlotte had at that time an affair with Henry. Confronting Charlotte with this, she begs him to let sleeping dogs lie. Christian, feeling miserable as his partner terminates their relationship in a phone call, begins drinking again. At the wedding, being seriously drunk, he tells Oliver about the affair of Charlotte and Henry.
Oliver is devastated and confronts Charlotte. In the heated discussion, he realises that Charlotte was at that time pregnant from Henry and that Hedvig is not his biological daughter. He rushes to beat Henry in the face and leaves the wedding party. Christian tells the devastated Charlotte that he did not know about Hedvig. Charlotte begs him to not tell Hedvig.
The next day, Christian meets Hedvig outside the motel where Oliver is staying. He tells her that Henry is her biological father. She goes to Oliver and begs him to pretend he does not know all this as to her it makes no difference, but Oliver rejects her. Hedvig tries to commit suicide using her grandfather's shotgun but survives with heavy injuries. Oliver and Charlotte reunite in the hospital, where Hedvig lies in recovery.
Cast
- Paul Schneider as Christian Nielsen
- Geoffrey Rush as Henry Nielsen, Christian's father
- Ewen Leslie as Oliver Finch, Christian's childhood friend and Charlotte's husband
- Miranda Otto as Charlotte Finch, Oliver's wife
- Odessa Young as Hedvig Finch, Charlotte and Oliver's daughter
- Anna Torv as Anna, Henry's housekeeper and wife-to-be
- Sam Neill as Walter Finch, Oliver's father
- Nicholas Hope as Peterson
Release
The Daughter was shown in the Special Presentations section of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival.{{cite web|url=https://www.screendaily.com/toronto-to-open-with-demolition-world-premieres-for-trumbo-the-program/5090990.article|title=Toronto to open with 'Demolition'; world premieres for 'Trumbo', 'The Program'|date=28 July 2015|access-date=29 June 2021|work=ScreenDaily}} The film was released in Australia on 17 March 2016.
Reception
The Daughter received generally positive reviews from critics. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 77% based on 61 reviews, with an average rating of 6.90/10. The critical consensus reads, "With The Daughter, debuting writer-director Simon Stone turns Henrik Ibsen's The Wild Duck into a thoughtful meditation on the bonds of family, friendship, and community."{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_daughter_2015|title=The Daughter (2015)|publisher=Fandango Media|website=Rotten Tomatoes|accessdate=29 June 2021}} On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 62 out of 100 based on 12 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-daughter|title=The Daughter reviews|publisher=CBS Interactive|website=Metacritic|accessdate=29 June 2021}}
Jessica Kiang of IndieWire gave the film a B+, saying in her closing comments that it is "a highly polished film that belies the soap opera melodrama of its plotline by having the twists and turns spring directly from well-observed human behavior. Stone’s The Daughter is a quiet, immensely affecting triumph that proves how, contrary to accepted wisdom, there are secrets that would better remain untold."{{cite web|url=https://www.indiewire.com/2015/09/venice-review-the-daughter-with-geoffrey-rush-miranda-otto-paul-schneider-sam-neill-newcomer-odessa-young-259910/|last=Kiang|first=Jessica|title=Venice Review: 'The Daughter' With Geoffrey Rush, Miranda Otto, Paul Schneider, Sam Neill & Newcomer Odessa Young|work=IndieWire|date=14 September 2015|accessdate=29 June 2021}}
Wendy Ide of The Guardian gave the film 4 out of 5, saying that "A family's long-buried secret is unearthed in an Ibsen adaptation marked by fine performances".{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/may/29/the-daughter-review-sam-neill|last=Ide|first=Wendy|title=The Daughter review – small-town Australia haunted by the past|work=The Guardian/The Observer|date=29 May 2016|accessdate=29 June 2021}} Eddie Cockrell of Variety compared The Daughter to another directors' masterpiece, The Wild Duck.{{cite magazine|url=https://variety.com/2015/film/reviews/the-daughter-review-simon-stone-venice-toronto-1201581667/|last=Cockrell|first=Eddie|title=Film Review: 'The Daughter'|magazine=Variety|date=30 August 2015}} Rochelle Siemienowicz of SBS was quoted saying that "[the film is] confident, low-key modernising of classic European material for the Australian setting."{{cite web|url=https://www.sbs.com.au/movies/review/daughter-movie-review-family-drama-there-best-them|title=The Daughter movie review: A family drama up there with the best of them|last=Siemienowicz|first=Rochelle|publisher=SBS|date=3 June 2019|accessdate=29 June 2021}}
=Accolades=
| class=wikitable |
| Award
!Date of ceremony !Category !Recipient(s) !Result |
|---|
| rowspan=10|AACTA Awards{{cite web|url=https://www.if.com.au/hacksaw-ridge-leads-aacta-award-nominees/|last=Keasty|first=Jackie|title=Hacksaw Ridge leads with 13 AACTA nominations|magazine=IF Magazine|date=26 October 2016}}
|rowspan=10|7 December 2016 |Jan Chapman and Nicole O'Donohue |{{nom}} |
| Best Adapted Screenplay
|{{won}} |
| Best Actor
|{{nom}} |
| Best Actress
|{{won}} |
| Best Supporting Actor
|{{nom}} |
| rowspan=2|Best Supporting Actress
|{{won}} |
| Anna Torv
|{{nom}} |
| Best Editing
|{{nom}} |
| Best Sound
|Yulia Akerholt, James Andrews, Liam Egan, Nick Emond, Tony Murtagh and Robert Sullivan |{{nom}} |
| Best Production Design
|Steven Jones-Evans |{{nom}} |
| ASE Award{{cite web|url=https://www.screeneditors.com.au/2016-ellie-award-winners/|title=2016 Ellie Award Winners - Australian Screen Editors|website=www.screeneditors.com.au|date=2 March 2017 |accessdate=29 June 2021}}
| |Best Editing in a Feature Film |Veronika Jenet |{{nom}} |
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|3922816}}
- {{cite news|url=https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-daughter|last=Clarke|first=Cath|title=The Daughter|work=TimeOut|date=23 May 2016}}
- {{cite news|last=Catsoulis|first=Jeannette|title=Review: A Long-Buried Family Secret Explodes in 'The Daughter'|work=The New York Times|date=26 January 2017|page=8}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Daughter, The}}
Category:2015 directorial debut films
Category:Australian drama films
Category:Films about dysfunctional families
Category:Films based on works by Henrik Ibsen
Category:2010s English-language films