World's Greatest Dad

I was very much in the dark as to what this movie was about before I saw it and after watching it, I can see why. I had seen the trailer, read a few vague reviews, talked to friends about it, but I had no idea what to expect, aside from another dark comedy starring Robin Williams.


I have to commend Mr. Williams on his choice of projects. Not just lately, but throughout his career. It is very refreshing to see such an accomplished and adored actor still taking risks and doing projects that will obviously not be understood or enjoyed by everyone. This film is very similar in tone and general theme as "One Hour Photo", which, along with "Death to Smoochy", is one of my favorite Williams films.

With "World's Greatest Dad" Robin Williams has stepped into the realm of the dark family comedy. On the surface it resembles "Little Miss Sunshine" or "Dan in Real Life"; flaunting the stark realities of suburban family life, but underneath it all lies a much more sinister and provocative story. It all begins with a failed writer (Williams) whose perverse son is so utterly desensitized and self-loathing that he essentially creates a black hole for himself and those around him, especially his downtrodden, insecure father.

But where the film takes a dramatic and unexpected turn is at the end of the first act. In an equally hilarious and disturbing turn of events, Robin's son, Kyle, accidentally kills himself while performing auto-erotic asphyxiation. To his horror and unabashed embarrassment, Robin's character, Lance Clayton, proceeds to move his son's body, disguising the actual cause of death to make it look like a suicide, equipped with a note that he fabricates himself.

In this instant, the film goes from a somewhat generic depressing comedy to a horribly twisted piece on loneliness and social perception. What follows is an absurd, almost unbelievable series of events involving Lance's desperate attempts to be respected and liked as an author and a human being, along with his hopeless attempts to convince himself that the slutty teacher he is secretly "seeing" actually likes him for who he is. In truth, the reality of the story lies in its absurdity; nothing so comedically depressing could ever be created in fiction, you would assume, but somehow it was.

One of the most surprising aspects of the film lies in writer/director Bobcat Goldthwait. Known primarily for his high-pitched, pre-pubescent voice and his insecure persona in his awkward stand-up routines, he has recently established himself as a pretty talented and quirky storyteller and filmmaker and has succeeded in writing one of the most original and fucked up narratives I have watched in quite some time. The dialogue is so absurd it borders on parody, the characters so insanely drawn that they're painful to watch and a plot so brilliantly thought out that in all of its insanity and unbelievability you can't help but want more.
While this movie definitely will not connect with a lot of people, (I'd go so far as to say most probably won't like or understand it at all) for those of us that do, it's a refreshing journey about the lengths we will go to be accepted and not feel completely alone in this harsh, unforgiving world we live in. It's about the rationalization and justification we make up for ourselves in times of desperation and grief, and the truly dismal nature of most relationships in this life.

Overall, the film left me feeling surprisingly good at the end. While I was waiting for everything to continue to come crashing down, the end result actually caught me by surprise and left me cheering for Lance Clayton. It's one of those backwards feel good endings in which I can't help but smile, bringing this disturbingly warped roller coaster ride to an acceptable and humble end. Highly recommended.

7.5/10