Father Figures (or known as Who’s Your Daddy? in the United Kingdom) is a 2017 American comedy film that was directed by Lawrence Sher (in his directorial debut), written by Justin Malen, and starring Owen Wilson, Ed Helms, J. K. Simmons, Katt Williams, Terry Bradshaw, Ving Rhames, Harry Shearer, June Squibb, Christopher Walken, and Glenn Close.

The film follows fraternal twin brothers, Kyle and Peter Reynolds as they have both learned that their biological father didn’t pass away when they were young, as they had previously believed, and that their eccentric mother, Helen, had been sexually promiscuous in the 1970s. When they decide to go on a road trip to find out their father is, they discover more of their family secrets and more about their mother than they probably ever wanted to know. They also encounter a mysterious hitchhiker and other misadventures, as they go through a journey of self-discovery about their family, themselves, and each other.

Principal photography began on October 5, 2015, in Atlanta, Georgia, and the film was released in the United States on December 22, 2017, by Warner Bros. Pictures. It was poorly received by critics, who called it devoid of “energy or purpose” and it ended up grossing $25 million against its $25 million operating budget.

The Film Itself (3/5):

Going into Father Figures, I’ll have to admit that I was a bit hesitant after reading the critical feedback that this film had during its theatrical run.  With this movie, we’re given a story where two men that ultimately find out that the man who they thought was their father isn’t, and they work together to identify the man who is their biological father and run into a lot of comical mishaps along the way.  That said, the majority of the plot of this movie was extremely predictable as my wife and I called out almost everything that happened as it progressed; however, there is a twist at the end of the film that neither she nor I was able to see coming and really did a great job at offering a nice emotional touch to the experience.  I do feel that while some of the more comical moments in this movie were funny, I feel that Helms and Wilson under performed in those moments and they really should have done what they are really known to do within their area of expertise (at least with Ed Helms).  The performances of the supplemental cast, Terry Bradshaw, J. K. Simmons, Katt Williams, etc., were much funnier than the two titular characters in this movie.

Picture Quality (4.5/5):

The Blu-ray release of Father Figures offers a really, really nice look into the story of these two brothers as they venture out and work to find out the identity of their father.   Offering a clean view into their adventures and doing a beautiful job at accentuating the impact of the mishaps that they encounter on this adventure really did a great job at visually representing the story that was intended.  Some of the more scenic views as they ventured from city to city looked breathtakingly gorgeous as they played out on my living room television, and the overall amount of detail that went into some of the scenes that were obviously computer generated looked real and convincing enough.

Audio Quality (4/5):

Bundled with an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, Father Figures does whatever it can to offer an immersive experience for its viewers.  Offering not only a clean audio experience, but one that boasts some surprisingly powerful moments as the two titular characters continue into in their adventure together.  Dialogue is clean and clear as everyone who has a speaking part is able to be heard and understood without having to manually adjust the volume levels as it progresses.  In fact, one of the more notable sequences that played out is the one that was surprisingly the most anticipated one; the scene that involves a train.  Unfortunately, I can’t really go on further outside of that because I will get into the realm of spoilers, but that scene really, really stood out to both my wife and I.

The Packaging (3/5):

The Blu-ray release of Father Figures comes packaged in your typical two-disc Blu-ray amaray case.  Within that case is the standard Blu-ray copy of the film as well as the standard DVD copy.  Neither of the discs feature any artwork that’s related to the film at all outside of the standard release text and silver-colored background behind the text.  There is a digital copy redemption pamphlet included as well as a slipcover that’s been made available during the first print run that features the same piece of artwork that’s included on the case art.

  

Special Features (2/5):

Unfortunately, the Blu-ray release of Father Figures is considerably limited in terms of additional content.  There a couple of items that have been included and they do offer some of the behind the scenes looks into the film as the cast and crew have fun working together.  Sadly, none of it offers any kind of insight into the work itself that went into making the film, and any extended look into the storyline is limited.  As a side note, please don’t include “Hilarious” next to the gag reel.  Gag reels are natively supposed to be funny and the text is completely unnecessary.  Included with this release is:

• Deleted Scenes
• Hilarious Gag Reel

Technical Specs:

Video

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC (32.57 Mbps)

Resolution: 1080p

Original Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1

Audio

English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)

French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1

Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)

English: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)

Subtitles

English SDH, French, Spanish

Runtime

Original Film: 113 minutes

Final Thoughts:

Overall, I was pretty content with Father Figures.  Sure, it could have been funnier since the two lead cast members have had significantly funnier roles in their careers.  But, the funny moments that they did share together were enough to warrant a small laugh.  And yes, the supporting cast members were funnier.  However, I felt that the story and underlying message of the film was one that, while predictable, was a very nicely organized one that included a really beautiful twist near the conclusion.  The visual and audible presentation was nicely done, and I felt that the Blu-ray could have included more in terms of special features.  If you’re considering picking this film up for your collection, I’d definitely recommend checking it out from a rental service first to see if you enjoyed it.  Father Figures was released to Blu-ray and DVD yesterday!

Note: This Blu-ray was sent to us for review. This has not affected our judgement or editorial process in any way. Please contact us if you have any questions regarding this process.