Rated: R
Runtime: 1 hour, 57 minutes
Charlie is an obese man who lives alone and works as a professor remotely. He left his family when his daughter was 8 to be with the man he loved. After this man dies, Charlie’s life and health get progressively worse. He has congestive heart failure but refuses to go to the hospital for treatment. When his daughter comes back into his life, she is very upset with him, but he wants nothing more than to be a part of her life.
Charlie (Fraser) is having trouble breathing just as a missionary, Thomas (Simpkins) knocks at the door. Charlie is not interested but tells the man to read an essay as Charlie believes these could be his last moments on Earth.
Just then, his friend who is a nurse, Liz (Chau) stops by. She is frustrated at seeing a missionary there and tells him to leave. She then takes Charlie’s blood pressure, and it is very high. She explains to him he has congestive heart failure and should go to the hospital, but Charlie refuses.
Later, his daughter Ellie (Sink) comes over. They have not seen each other in eight years. Charlie is happy to see her and really wants to get to know her. She is upset with him for leaving the family because he was in love with a student, Alan, who has passed away.
Ellie exploits Charlie’s want to spend time with her by telling him to rewrite some essays for classes she is failing. This comes after he promises to pay her a large sum of money to continue to let her see him. Life has not been easy for Ellie, and she’s pretty mean to Charlie right from the start.
Despite all this, Charlie worries Ellie has forgotten what an amazing person she is. Liz tells him bringing Ellie over is a bad idea.
Charlie doesn’t do anything to take care of himself. He eats junk food in copious amounts which only leads to him feeling worse. There is an instance where he chokes, but thankfully Liz is there to save him.
Thomas returns again in another effort to get Charlie to become a part of the church. Liz reinforces that she wants Thomas to stay away, but Thomas claims Charlie needs spiritual guidance. Liz tells him Charlie will likely die soon and she’s the only one who can help him.
Thomas returns again, but this time it is discovered he’s not who he originally introduced himself as. He still won’t give up on Charlie.
Ellie continues to act terrible toward Charlie. She screams at him and tells him she doesn’t care about him. Is this true?
This is an engaging, but depressing movie. It is emotional and powerful. Fraser and Sink both give amazing performances. I did not know what to expect going in, I had just heard that this movie was incredible. It starts in kind of a low place and by the end, hasn’t risen much higher.
It does have a fair amount of language and there is some sexually suggestive dialogue and brief imagery. I was interested in Charlie’s life, but as it progressed, I was disappointed in the direction the plot was taking. I’d recommend this movie only for the impressive acting by Fraser and Sink.
Now playing in select theaters and available to buy. <
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