‘Father Mother Sister Brother’ Review: Jim Jarmusch’s Charming Treble
Jim Jarmusch’s “Father Mother Sister Brother” unfoldsโ as a quietly captivating exploration of familial dynamics, presented in an โepisodic โคstructure that subtly reveals profound themes of generationalโ understanding and unspoken histories. Teh โขfilm, shot by Frederick Elmes and Yorickโ Le Saux, achieves a consistently beautiful visual โstyle despite โฃits deliberateโ focus โon moments where “nothing isโ apparently happening.”โค The editing, by Affonso Gonรงalves,โข imbues even the silences with a comic timing, creating an immersive experience thatโ feels both natural and carefully constructed.
The โfilm initially presents two distinct sibling pairings. The first features Jeff and โขEmily (played โคby Adam Driverโ and Blanchett), navigating a strained visit with theirโฃ aging father.The conversation repeatedly stalls, with Emily attempting to share news of her promotion only to โคbe interrupted by her brother, Tim, and hisโ sister, Lilith, whose own professionalโ anecdotes feel suspiciously embellished – a typical โขyoungest-child maneuver.โ
The narrativeโ then shifts geographically and emotionallyโ to Paris,where twins Billy (Luka Sabbat) and Skye โ(Indya Moore) revisit their recently deceased parents’ apartment. Billy has already cleared out most of their belongings, leaving only a small box of mementos. As thay wander the โempty rooms, a believable and โขeccentric sibling chemistry โemerges, mirroring theโข dynamic between Driver and Blanchett, and Krieps and Blanchett in earlier segments. Jarmusch’s skill with โensemble work is โฃnotable,ensuringโ that every interaction feels authentic.
Thisโค shift in location isn’t a departure, but rather Jarmusch’s masterstroke. It allows the film to delve into richer themes of parental and intergenerational incomprehension, offering a glimpse into the potential futureโข for Jeff and Emily, and Tim and Lilith – all โขof whom โฃharbor quiet anxieties about their parents’ aging.
As the film progresses, the rhythm slows and the mood becomes more reflective, even elegiac, as Billy and Skye mourn theirโค parents while concurrently uncovering previously unkown aspects of their lives. The film posits that “a lot, [that] all of us don’t know about our parents.” This idea is reinforced by the fact that all three sibling pairs areโ visiting locations central to their parents’ lives: Billy andโค Skye, though carrying USโค passports, spent part of their childhoods in Paris; Jeff and Emily are outsiders in their father’s isolated home;โ and Tim and Lilith have moved to Dublin to be near, but โขnot live with, their English mother.
Jarmusch extends his compassionate gaze โคinโข both directions, acknowledging the perspectives of both the older and younger generations. Ultimately,”Father Mother Sister Brother” arrives at a serene and surprisingly practical conclusion: perhaps the most valuable gift a parent can give their children is โa collection of little secrets,hinting at the fullness and complexityโ ofโ a life lived beyond their children’s awareness.
