Like Father Like Son (2005)

Sadly Over-hyped

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Everybody lies.That's a fact.Lies are the oil that keeps society running smoothly."How are you? "I'm fine"Even when your life is going down the pan....that's part of the human condition. But big lies are something else.Miss J.Redgrave and Mr R.Green,a teacher, are lovers with pasts they'd rather others didn't know about.Nothing particularly unusual in that perhaps,but these are Big Lies,life - threatening lies and when their secrets are revealed they are overtaken by events they have indirectly and unwittingly caused. Miss Redgrave has told her son that his father was an RAF hero killed in the Gulf War.He wasn't,he was a serial killer.And is still alive. Mr Robson has neglected to mention that his late wife hanged herself when he was discovered to have been having an affair with a former pupil. When these deceptions are uncovered it is not surprising that their relationship is put under somewhat of a strain. A teenage girl obsessed with Mr Green is found murdered. Both he and Miss Redgrave's son become suspects. Miss T.Fitzgerald is the detective with the task of untangling the web of deceit surrounding the killing. What separates "Like father,like son" from the run - of - the - mill TV psych - thriller is the performances. Miss J.Redgrave in particular is outstanding as the mother whose one nightmare is that her son should find out who his father is. "Am I like him?" he asks innocently."yes",she says;and then he finds out the truth.Her ordered life spirals out of control. Mr Green is more restrained than usual and all the better for it. You can see him struggling with the fact that his past is about to become common knowledge and that it will hardly help him in his predicament. Shown now in two episodes on "True Entertainment","Like father like son" is proof that there is TV gold to be found in the most unlikely places.

British television programs are way more interesting than average American fare. They tackle much more believable topics and have much better actors. British actors have superior acting skills, and look like real people. American actors look like actors, it is impossible to relate to plastic people. This patticural movie doesn't belong to the top of British TV production. The script tries very hard to outsmart itself, so in return becomes completely contrived. The people are real, but the situation they are supposed to convey is not, hence the problem. If you are able to get over the imperfections and occasional messiness of the script, you will be entertained, but not much more.

I thought this was quite an amazing production with many insights into the human condition. It was a very fair and brave attempt to show the importance of the family and how in the end true love wins the day. It is also a gripping thriller. While it was a little edgy at times this film had many deep insights. The son looks for an ideal father but his real father is a killer. The teacher is falsely accused, but makes a stand. The desire of the children is for that ideal family we all want. The mother battles to save her son - it's the classic struggle between the forces of evil and good. This is a brave movie because it doesn't fall prey to political correctness. It could also be used as an educational tool to show that the desire of us all is for a stable family, the very building block of a healthy society.

I hate a movie that doesn't have an ending. I don't care how good or bad the rest might be, I don't like to be left without a conclusion. Such shows should insist upon a disclaimer ... something like: The movie you are about to watch has either no ending or is so ambiguous as to not be conclusive.In the movie the last scene we are left with is Dee and Dominic having a bit of a row and he says, almost regretfully I thought, that it couldn't be him because the fingers were either that of a girl or a child. THEN IT ENDS! Well sure, the smoking gun, so to say, is in the hands of the Dee's son, but what about Dominic's daughter? I actually thought we might discover it was her! Anyway, unless you like inconclusive movies, then I'd avoid this one. Otherwise, I thought the movie generally good.