Like Father

Colour, 35mm
United Kingdom, 2000, 96 min
Section: Another View

Synopsis

Joe, a forty-year-old former miner, lives only for his music. And indeed he teaches music in a home for the mentally handicapped and sometimes earns a little extra cash playing at parties or retirement homes. His son Michael has stopped showing him respect and his wife has decided to leave him. So Joe moves into a caravan on the outskirts of town and the only thing he has left to enjoy is composing. In fact he’s been offered a commission to write a piece of music to launch a landscape development programme organised by the local council. But this causes trouble with his father, Arthur, because the older man lives in a wooden house on an allotment which will be absorbed into the construction project. This psychological drama very realistically depicts life in northern England. The bonds between the three male generations – Joe, his son Michael and his father Arthur – are portrayed in minimalistic fashion. Despite initial misunderstandings, they discover a way to reach each other which has long been blocked by past tragedy – the death of Joe’s brother.

About the director

Amber Films was formed in 1969 with the goal of filming, photographing and documenting working class life in north-east England. Continuing and developing this tradition is still the group’s main mission. During the thirty years of its existence, Amber has organised many exhibitions and discussions, has published books, and has shot documentaries, feature films and films for television. Amber is a non-profit organisation founded on collective principles. Selected filmography: Shields Stories (1988), In Fading Light (1989), Dream On (1991), The Writing in the Sand (1991, documentary), Eden Valley (1994), Letters to Katja (1994, documentary), The Scar (1997), Like Father (2000).