World cinema is full of films about complicated relationships between parents and their children. However, for some reason, it is much easier to find a film about a mother with a daughter or a father with a son than to see the interaction between a parent and a child of the opposite sex. This is especially true for girls, who are given much less attention in cinema than the difficult lives of boys.

That’s why we present to you a selection of 5 films about the struggles and joys of relationships between fathers and daughters.

“Sunshine of Mine” (2022), directed by Charlotte Wells.

The film that ranked first in Sight and Sound’s list of best films of the year. This partly autobiographical film tells the story of Sophie, an 11-year-old Scottish girl who spends her summer vacation in Turkey with her father. Sophie’s parents have divorced, so for the little girl, this trip becomes one of the few opportunities to find out what her father is living for and what he is thinking about. The complexity of the trip is compounded by the fact that Sophie is in prepubescence, and her father is going through a midlife crisis. Now these two close but distant people have to learn to coexist together, discovering new facets of their relationship.

“The Father” (2020), directed by Florian Zeller

Anthony is an elderly man suffering from dementia. His difficult personality makes it difficult for him to get along with his caretakers, so his daughter Anne takes on most of the responsibility for caring for him. Anthony’s illness provokes countless arguments, but Anne stays by his side despite all the pain his words cause her. Essentially, this film is a psychological thriller that doesn’t rely on plot alone. The conclusion may surprise you, but not as much as the interaction between Olivia Colman and Anthony Hopkins, who portrayed the complexity of the father-daughter relationship in an impossible situation. By the way, at the 2021 Oscars, Anthony Hopkins was awarded Best Actor specifically for his work on this film.

“Ice 2” (2020), directed by Jora Kryzhovnikov.

A sequel to the successful 2018 film “Ice.” Figure skater Nadya and hockey player Sasha, the main characters of the film, have finally married and are planning to have a child. However, the birth is difficult, and as a result, Nadya dies. The film tells the story of how Sasha learns to be a father and cope with all the difficulties of parenthood on his own. And when his daughter grows up, he also tries to figure out where the line between caring and overprotection lies and how not to let his fears harm his little daughter.

“The Whale” (2022), directed by Darren Aronofsky

Charlie lives with extreme obesity, which developed as a result of compulsive eating due to the loss of his loved one. He walks with difficulty and lectures his literature students with the camera turned off because he is ashamed of his appearance. However, his regular and gloomy routine changes when his teenage daughter decides to contact him. Ellie is upset with her father because he once chose a new relationship over his family, but nonetheless begins secretly visiting him. Now Ellie and Charlie are practically starting from scratch and trying to build a relationship burdened with one’s sense of guilt and the other’s childhood resentments.

“Gifted” (2017), directed by Marc Webb.

The film is about the fact that sometimes the role of “Dad” can be played by a non-biological father. Frank takes guardianship of Mary, his deceased sister’s little daughter. At some point, the girl starts showing outstanding abilities in mathematics. A real struggle begins for Mary because part of the family believes that it is now necessary to focus on educating the little genius. However, Frank wants Mary to grow up as a “normal” child, surrounded by friends, rather than just books. The desire to give the girl a peaceful childhood, along with his own fears, forces Frank and Mary’s small family to open up to each other from a completely new perspective.

Ирина Белоусенко

We have always watched the same New Year’s films every year. However, sometimes it is necessary to put DVCs of “Irony of Fate” and “Home Alone” on the shelf and find something new. Here is a list of films in the New Year’s Eve and Christmas mood, which you might not notice when scrolling through the thematic collections.

1. “Trapped in Paradise”, 1994. Director: George Gallo

Bill Firpo arrives in the provincial town of Paradise on Christmas Eve. He’s an honest restaurant manager, but the brothers whom Bill picks up from prison on Christmas Eve morning aren’t. Convicts Dave and Alvin Firpo tricks Bill into robbing a bank. In the absence of an alarm and the ever-sleeping guard doing their job the crime can be committed successfully. But a problem immediately arises: how to leave a small town with a huge amount of money, if a snowstorm is raging on the street, and the police are already seeking after robbers?

2. “Klaus”, 2019. Director: Sergio Pablos

To educate a lazy and spoiled son, the owner of the postal empire sends him to Smirensburg, located in the far north. Jesper is instructed to set up a postal service in the city and process at least 6,000 letters a year to prove his independence to his father and return home. However, the city does not accept the new postman very cordially, and it seems that no one has heard of sending letters there. But everything changes when Jesper meets a mysterious lone lumberjack named Klaus. Who, as it turns out, keeps a lot of old toys at home and is willing to handing them out to the bored children of Smeerensburg.

3. “The Apartment”, 1960. Director: Billy Wilder

Baxter is a humble employee of an insurance company. To speed up his career progression, he lends the keys of his apartment to colleagues and even his boss to retire with their mistresses. Baxter’s plan works until he meets Fran, his boss’s secret lover. A new feeling is born between the characters, and Christmas night puts everything in its place.

4. A Very Murray Christmas, 2015. Director: Sofia Coppola

Bill Murray is planning a brilliant TV show for Christmas, with celebrity guests and a packed program. But the plans are thwarted by an unexpected snowstorm which led to the absence of the eminent guests. However, in the snow-covered New York hotel where the show is scheduled and where Bill is so unsuccessfully stuck, there are a lot of random people. And Bill still manages to throw a party, just for a different audience and with new entertainment.

5. “8 Women”, 2001. Director: Francois Ozon

The family gathers at an estate in the French outback to celebrate Christmas. But upon arrival, the guests find the owner of the house murdered in his bedroom. 8 women, each of whom is somehow connected with a dead man, begin their investigation. At the same time, they are all under suspicion, because each had the motive to commit a brutal murder. The darkest family secrets begin to unfold in the house, and the identity of the killer becomes the main Christmas entertainment.

Ирина Белоусенко