Family values
A never-better Viggo Mortensen stars in the Sundance hit that’s on the road to breakout success. words Matt Maytum
DIRECTOR Matt Ross STARRING Viggo Mortensen, George MacKay, Frank Langella, Kathryn Hahn
ETA 2016 TBC
At the Sundance Film Festival, everybody is always on the lookout for the next Little Miss
Sunshine. That charming, idiosyncratic dramedy that could make the conversion from loveable indie to awards season dark horse. In 2016,
Captain Fantastic laid claim to that title. It might sound like a superhero movie, but that couldn’t be any further from the reality. It’s actually a heartfelt, sometimes heartwrenching, family tale that grounds its high-concept with spot-on performances, keenly observed truths, and plenty of fish-out-of-water comedy.
It also gifts Viggo Mortensen with his best role in years. In fact, it’s hard to think of a part more suitable for the actor/artist/poet/photographer who shunned the mainstream post- Lord Of The
Rings for uncompromising indies and David Cronenberg thrillers. Here he plays Ben, a father raising his six children in the forests of the US’s Pacific Northwest. Living off the land, Ben teaches his kids to hunt, forage and fend for themselves, as well as offering lessons on history, classic literature, astronomy and more.
Writer-director Matt Ross sent his lead a stack of books by various award-winning naturalists, scientists and philosophers, to help him get into character, though he needn’t have bothered. “I thought that was a great way to frame some of the knowledge that this family would have,” says Ross. “It turns out Viggo had read all the books already.” Mortensen himself freely admits, “I didn’t have to do a ton of research about living in the forest and being comfortable in nature.”
Ross (who began his career as an actor with supporting turns in the likes of American Psycho and The Aviator) took some inspiration for the story from his own childhood in technologyfree communes. “I’m fascinated by all the issues that revolve around parenting,” he explains. “Ben has given up the outside world and whatever personal ambitions it held for him to devote his life to being the best father he thinks he can be. The question becomes: is he the best father in the world, or the worst? Is what he’s doing insane or insanely great?”
Mortensen became actively involved in the development process, adding his own notes to the script. “He had wonderful and insightful ideas about everything, including adding his own original music to the film,” says Ross. With method man Mortensen known for bonding with his horses and never letting go of his sword on
LOTR, and scaring bystanders with his Russian gangster tattoos during the Eastern Promises shoot, commitment comes as standard. He didn’t even stay in the hotel provided for the duration of the
Captain Fantastic shoot, opting instead to rough it on the set he helped to design and the surrounding environs. “We just knew he was in the forest somewhere,” says producer Lynette Howell Taylor.
It seems there’s a lot of Mortensen in the role. “I like to offer up things of my own that might be appropriate,” says the actor, who arrived with a truck full of character-building items. “Many of the books you see on the bus and in our home are books I brought. There’s also my canoe, things from the kitchen, knives and clothes. I brought a lot of plants for the garden.”
While the film starts within the idyllic ‘paradise’ set-up, by the end of the first act, Ben and his six children – played by George MacKay, Samantha Isler, Annalise Basso, Nicholas Hamilton, Shree Crooks and Charlie Shotwell – are on the road, venturing with trepidation back into modern capitalist society to pay their
“I didn’t have to do a ton of research about living in the forest...”
viggo mortensen
respects to recently deceased wife/mother Leslie, who had been receiving hospital treatment. “At that point, Captain Fantastic becomes a road movie as they travel to New Mexico where Leslie’s parents [ played by Frank Langella and Ann
Dowd] live,” adds Mortensen. “We come into conflict with them because of our way of life.”
That contrast is the source of the film’s emotion, but also its humour. From the children’s fascination with fast food and bemusement towards videogames, to Ben’s freedom with nudity at a campsite (“It’s just a penis – every man has one”), this is that rare dramedy that’s genuinely as funny as it is moving. As a result, it should have no trouble crossing over to the mainstream. Not that Ross believes in the notion that there are two distinct categories for complex, character-driven arthouse pictures and exciting, rollercoaster-ride blockbusters.
“The Holy Grail, for me, is a movie that is both thought-provoking and emotionally moving – an entertaining way to spend two hours,” he concludes. “I hope we created a fun and diverting journey that makes you laugh and cry, but also gives you something worth thinking about.” Wouldn’t that be fantastic.