Patton Oswalt is Oscar-worthy in ‘I Love My Dad’ | SXSW review

An estranged father tries to reconnect with his son by catfishing him on Facebook in I Love My Dad

Like Mrs. Doubtfire with a modern twist, a hopelessly estranged father catfishes his son in an attempt to reconnect in I Love My Dad. If the premise of the movie sounds like a trove of cringy moments you would be correct. Writer-director James Morosini, who also stars in the movie, knows that and lets the movie thrive even when it gets “hide your face in your hands” awkward — and trust me, it gets awkward. But what could have easily been a raunchy gross-out comedy is instead empathetic towards both of its leads. It's unsurprising then to learn that Morosini based the movie on his own life. The opening intertitle even quips, “the following actually happened, my dad told me to tell you it didn't.”

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The eponymous dad Chuck (Patton Oswald) is not exactly the picture-perfect father. In the opening scene, he and his young son Franklin (played by Morosini as an adult) find a lost dog. While most parents would do the responsible thing and try to find the dog's owner, Chuck gleefully tells Franklin they should take him in before quickly disposing of a missing poster with the dog's picture that they come across. Years later, Chuck lives hours away and is estranged from his ex-wife (Amy Landecker) and Franklin.

Chuck tells his co-worker Jimmy (Get Out's always terrific Lil Rel Howery) that Franklin has now cut him out completely, blocking him everywhere including Facebook, which was Chuck's only connection with his son. Despite Jimmy's protests — though it was vaguely his idea — Chuck creates a fake Facebook account under the name Becca (Claudia Sulewski), a waitress at a local diner, and friends Franklin — like an internet-age Mrs. Doubtfire. However, things quickly go array when Franklin messages “Becca” asking why she friended him when they don't know each other.

Morosini ingeniously weaves the digital and physical together by having “Becca” appear next to Franklin like they're actually having a face-to-face conversation as they're talking over messenger. Instead of reading text on a screen, we actually get to see the character interact and convey emotion. But the movie takes it one step further.

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Just like in real-life texting conversations, sometimes messages get lost in translation, lose their context, or are conveyed differently. Like in some moments when a character uses sarcasm, it comes out as deadpan before they clarify with a “LOL,” which the actors act out. It makes I Love My Dad an immersive experience. In another scene, “Becca” speaks in near gibberish as Chuck, texting while driving (shaking my head) types with typos. It makes the movie feel so relevant and relatable — like Kimi earlier this year — even if it takes place in the past.

After some initial awkwardness, “Becca” quickly earns Franklin's trust by connecting with his loneliness. Something that they discuss as they message more and more frequently. However, things take a turn when Franklin starts to form some very real feelings for the fake Becca. Although he initially tries to end contact, Chuck is quickly pulled back in as it's the only way he's been able to really connect with his son. Soon, though, they hit a point of no return when Franklin suggests he and Becca should meet up — with the help of Chuck. If you thought things were awkward before, they just got worst.

It took me a moment to understand Chuck as a character. The ending, without revealing spoilers, gives him a sort of redemption — whether it's earned will be up to you. The movie is perhaps a little too sympathetic to him without giving us a deeper explanation for his behavior or real consequence. Perhaps that's a function of Morosini's closeness to the story, which in a way is a sweet homage to his imperfect father. Perhaps, an imperfect but charming movie is exactly what this story deserves.

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Hey! I'm Karl. You can find me on Twitter here. I'm also a Tomatometer-approved critic.

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