Film Review: CAPTAIN FANTASTIC (USA 2016)

CAPTAIN FANTASTIC (USA 2016) **
Directed b Matt Ross

Starring: Viggo Mortensen, George MacKay, Samantha Isler

Review by Gilbert Seah

This new family drama tells the story of an eccentric father, Ben (Viggo Mortensen) who becomes the CAPTAIN FANTASTIC of his 6 children, forcing and training them deep in the forests of the Pacific Northwest (though shot in New Mexico), totally isolated from society.

If the plot sounds familiar, Harrison Ford played such a father who did the same in the 1984 Peter Weir film THE MOSQUITO COAST based on the Paul Theroux novel. The novel was much better than the film. But the film did not have as dramatic an impact as this new one – though CAPTAIN FANTASTIC totally bombs in its last 20 minutes. Remove the last 20 minutes and the film would have stood much better as a believable relevant and current family drama.

When the…