Writer-director Tom Huang’s low-budget indie movie How to Keep Your Dad alive is a surprisingly light-hearted film that deals with two serious themes: generational trauma and chronic depression. Three brothers: workaholic Margaret (Allie Maki), lousy comic geek Larry (Hayden Seto) and recently estranged and timid Roy (Peter S. Kim) must reunite with their families. It is a story that must be done. After being laid off from his lifelong job, he returns home to care for his dejected and bedridden father (Dana Lee). I worry about him, but the children are growing up suffering from their father’s somewhat domineering hands and are at odds. It’s the most compelling, and every time Huang reaches for a quick laugh, there’s a circle of truth that is sadly wasted.
The comedy is tightly wrapped around dark material, not as spiky as “Welcome to the Dollhouse,” “Heathers,” and “Little Miss Sunshine.” Rather the humor is lighthearted and fat, with the broad, corny tone of Old Network’s sitcom. It’s full of lame fat jokes, gags about someone who is gender fluid, and outdated punch lines about “American Idol” and Tucker Max.
At one point, the brothers ostensibly eat out at a fancy restaurant and complain too much about the arugula on their pizza. , a contemporary film about a family’s strained efforts to manage the patriarch’s mental illness, presents a serious misunderstanding of the material’s strengths. Mocking them doesn’t help.
deal with dad
Unrated. Running time: 1 hour 46 minutes. Available for rent or purchase on most major platforms.
