File this under: TIFF movies that completely missed the radar. As I’ve said before, the glut of programming at TIFF often means pictures like "The Daughter" — that boast a solid cast, an intriguing premise, but don’t have A-list stars or factor into the awards season — tend to be forgotten. That’s too bad because after the watching the trailer for this drama, I’m truly intrigued, because it looks particularly well shot, and a feature debut from Simon Stone worth paying attention to.
Starring Geoffrey Rush, Paul Schneider, Miranda Otto, Sam Neill, Anna Torv, Ewen Leslie and Odessa Young, the film follows a man who returns home to see his father get married to a much younger woman, but it’s just the start, as there are plenty of family secrets to be unraveled. Here’s the official synopsis:
In the last days of a dying logging town Christian (Paul Schneider) returns to his family home for his father Henry’s (Geoffrey Rush) wedding to the much younger Anna (Anna Torv). While home, Christian reconnects with his childhood friend Oliver (Ewen Leslie), who has stayed in town working at Henry’s timber mill and is now out of a job. As Christian gets to know Oliver’s wife Charlotte (Miranda Otto), daughter Hedvig (Odessa Young) and father Walter (Sam Neill), he discovers a secret that could tear Oliver’s family apart. As he tries to right the wrongs of the past, his actions threaten to shatter the lives of those he left behind years before.
"The Daughter" will open in 2016 in Australia. No U.S. distributor has signed on for the picture just yet.
