Ben Cash and his wife Leslie have embraced a life close to nature and shunned the man made world which in their eyes is a false pretense. As Ben trains their six children to survive in the harsh wilderness he also home schools them to learn stuff useful for life. As they live a secluded life away from other people, they rarely interact with the outer world – but they couldn’t have foreseen that complications in Leslie’s health was about to change all of that!
Language:
English
Running Time:
119 min
Rating:
R (MPAA)
Release date:
14 July 2016
Directed by:
Matt Ross
Produced by:
Jamie Patricof
Lynette Howell Taylor
Monica Levinson
Shivani Rawat
Written by:
Matt Ross
Starring:
Frank Langella
Viggo Mortensen
George MacKay
Samantha Isler
Annalise Basso
Charlie Shotwell
Erin Moriarty
Music by:
Alex Somers
Shot by:
Stephane Fontaine
Editing by:
Joseph Krings
Distributed by:
Bleecker Street Media
Mars Distribution
Shaw Organisation
Universum Film

What’s Hot

  • With an ailing wife who only presents herself in flashes of memory, the husband and father of six has to fill the emotional void of her absence – just what Viggo Mortensen manages to effortlessly do! With so much going against the character, he has to press forward in his attempts to keep up the spirit of his family and the wishes of his wife – a well created and enacted character overall.
  • The kids cast in the movie are unique in their own ways of coping with their lives and command attention in their respective portions of the film. The director’s skill at making the youngsters perform their roles deserves equal mention along with their brilliant performances with Shree Crooks as the charming, prodigious Zaja Cash and Nicholas Hamilton as the rebelling Rellian Cash, standing out from the rest.
  • The camera work from Stéphane Fontaine is quite catchy. The basketball court exchange between the brothers in the night and the numerous bonfire scenes featuring the family had such impressive lighting and we cannot to miss the wonderfully captured scenery in the forests and the road trip!

What’s Not

  • With the screenplay that had such unexpected twists all along, the way the climax panned out was pretty damp and a tad too melodramatic. It’s still the director’s story to end it the way he wished, but not at the expense of conveniently forgetting all the complex situations built along the way.
  • The story lacked insight into the extra ordinary circumstances that led the familyto lead a secluded life in the wilderness despite the mother hailing from an affluent background. Though it was left for the audience to debate, the absence of even a frail explanation was disappointing.

Badges

Acting
Cinematography
Direction

Verdict

Verdict Stamp

As an intriguing account of a family that is fighting to adapt to the extreme life changing decisions they have brought upon themselves, ‘Captain Fantastic’ is an eccentric drama that is quite absorbing by virtue of the proficient acting showcased!