Character actor As its time-twisting narrative proceeds apace, the movie makes more than a few awkward lurches between farcical exaggeration and sympathetic observation. Ultimately, however, this t…
This in turn triggers other flashbacks, as the narrative skips forward, backwards and sideways — not always smoothly, but hardly ever confusingly. One scene might be devoted to the family’s bedside vigil in the hospital as Bob, connected to the tubes and monitors of life-support systems, gradually fades away.
“3 Days With Dad” abounds with depictions of family dynamics and behavioral details that likely will trigger shocks of recognition among many viewers. Eddie’s two brothers, Andy and Zak , are devout Catholics who scold him for his bad life choices, and his lack of religious fervor. Eddie in turn is incensed — along with Diane , their sister — when his brothers try to slip pro-life proselytizing into the funeral oration.
Dawn , the siblings’ stepmother, is deeply concerned about her husband’s condition, and determined to prolong his life beyond all realistic hope. But she’s also a self-centered drama queen who constantly complains about being more stressed than she can bear, and tends to her pet dogs or demands to be taken shopping when it all gets to be too much for her.
There’s also the teasing suggestion that Dawn might already be shopping around for her next husband even before they pull the plug on Bob. But Clarke refrains from confirming or confounding suspicions in this area, indicating that, unlike Andy and Zak, he doesn’t want to appear too judgmental. In a similar fashion, Clarke doesn’t shy away from including scenes that depict Bob as overbearing at best, racist at worst.
Time and again during “3 Days With Dad,” Clarke details just how frustrating and humiliating your final days can be, especially if you’re an Alpha Male like Bob, even when you’re receiving the best medical care. Just often enough, though, Clarke counterbalances clinical detail and heart-wrenching grief with welcome comic relief and muted optimism. To his credit, he stops far short of resolving every conflict or even delivering just comeuppances.
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