We might refer to this as the spooky season with Halloween arriving at the end of the month, but the true spooky season for most of us hits at the end of the year. We are filled with the complete fear of dealing with our family during the holidays. How will we survive multiple encounters with our relatives and in-laws from Thanksgiving to unfortunately New Year’s Eve for a few. Are you already having anxieties about who you’ll be stuck next to during a family dinner? Veronica Kedar’s Family is a perfect spooky season movie for you with scares that can last from Pumpkin Spice season until the Ball drops in Times Square. The writer-director-actor gives us a disturbing look at a family that appears so happy and normal.
A family silently sit on a sofa as the daughter Lily (Veronica Kedar) roams around the house. She gets a camera on a tripod, sets the timer and squeezes between them for a family photo. Nobody seems to object. Lily leaves the house and rides her bike to a therapist’s apartment for an emergency session. Trouble is only the therapist’s daughter is at home. The daughter lets her come inside and write a note to the therapist. The therapist’s daughter proceeds to read some of the note and begins to question Lily as to what brought her there so late at night. Things started to go bad for Lily when her photography studio space’s rent goes up and her father won’t cover the bump. There is an upcoming Family Portrait contest that she was focused on entering. She is intent on reuniting her dad, mom, sister and brother for one more experience. Instead of waiting for the therapist to arrive, the daughter probes Lily to get her to open up about what exactly he did to her family to get them on the sofa.
As far as messed up family dramas go, Family is a prime piece of how bad things can get. Lily goes through a lot to bring her dysfunction family together for the portrait. This is not a cute Hallmark Christmas special. Veronica Kedar’s approach plays well as her character somewhat confesses to the grotesque elements of the reunion to a semi-stranger. We get the full skinny on how messed up her family is and things get more cringe worthy with each exposing family story. These people have serious problems and Kedar doesn’t hold back until the “happy” ending. Family ought to be the film you sit back and watch with your family after that uncomfortable Thanksgiving dinner.
The Video is 2.35:1 anamorphic. The transfer brings out the danky feel of Lily’s studio space. The Audio is Hebrew in Dolby Digital Stereo. The movie is subtitled in English.
Teaser/Trailer (1:53) has Lily show up at a friend’s house with blood on her white sneakers. It gets weirder from there.
Indiepix Classics present Family. Directed by Veronica Kedar. Screenplay by Veronica Kedar. Starring Veronica Kedar, Mira Awad, Tommy Baremboem, Eli Danker, Evgenia Dodina, Ishai Golan, Aryeh Hasfari, Yotam Ishay & Hen Yanni. Running Time: 105 minutes. Rating: Not Rated. Release Date: October 8, 2024.
