Come To Daddy

Elijah Wood’s latest film, Come To Daddy, is perhaps one of the hardest films to categorise in recent memory.

The film opens with a simple premise, a son reunites with his estranged father in a remote house overlooking the water. Obviously, with estrangement comes a tension between Norval (Elijah Wood) and his father (Stephen McHattie). As they spend longer together though things quickly take a turn for the worse and Come To Daddy’s twisting and turning story is set into motion.

What starts out a deeply twisted, dark, psychological thriller rapidly descends into an incredibly violent and graphic action/horror affair. Oh, and don’t forget all of the random comedic elements scattered in throughout the roughly 95 minute runtime.

The opening half of Come To Daddy is far and away the strongest part of the film. During this portion, the audience is constantly left feeling unsettled and disoriented. However, when the film shifts to the second portion of the story it rapidly becomes absurd and less impactful.

While Elijah Wood is to be commended for anchoring the film with his fantastic performance as Norval, it is sadly not enough to save the film from itself.

★★

Now Available via Video On Demand