Captain Fantastic

Bleecker Street Media | Release Date: July 8, 2016

7.8	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 352 Ratings

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conexSep 28, 2016

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Hmm.

Initially one sees this idyllic rustic lifestyle. Fantastic scenic shots and a family living off the land. Kids obediently following dad in a cult like fashion. Nice, fit and well read. Experts on every subject from quantum physics to political systems.

As the movie progresses we see the family have morals that I for one disagree with.

Happy to steal and lie.
Somehow the mothers Buddhist faith belief is to be defended to the hilt but Christians are to be made fun of and of course in this day of political correctness the Muslims are not even mentioned.
Father is at least willing to kill someone else's sheep.
Walk around naked in the caravan park. (Do it at home if you like)
Disrespecting the lifestyle of a family that they stay the night with.

We also discover that all is not well in the family dynamic. At the start of the movie we discover that mom is in hospital with bipolar or something and has been there for 3 months. Then slits her wrists. 3 months and no visits from the family that she so loves? Later we discover that mom has been going behind the not to be disobeyed dad and helping oldest son to enter university.

So is he really a fantastic captain or a man with a utopian dream that is perverted by the power of being god of his own little kingdom.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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jhepAug 24, 2016

I totally agree with four most negative Critic Reviews for this film....."Captain Fantastic" is sloppy and lazy and self-indulgent as hell.......and - much worse- it's MANIPULATIVE in ways that any Madison Avenue spin doctor would give hisI totally agree with four most negative Critic Reviews for this film....."Captain Fantastic" is sloppy and lazy and self-indulgent as hell.......and - much worse- it's MANIPULATIVE in ways that any Madison Avenue spin doctor would give his eyeteeth to emulate .....the script is almost laughable it makes so little sense...there is something seriously INFANTILIZED about the Ben character which is conveniently set aside with the cinematic equivalent of a shrug..... and the appeal of the entire film is basically one of romancing and above all infantilizing it's target audience....your review's reference to The Waltons is spot on....This film is a wannabe Waltons for arm-chair activists !……and "enough already" with being ga-ga for Glenn Gould’s Goldberg Variations.… Expand

2 of 11 users found this helpful29

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jagxjr15Aug 3, 2016

This is a tiresome, cliché-ridden, mess of a movie that pretends to be a radical critique of capitalism and modern life in America, but plays instead as a very bad case of political correctness. It just doesn't work, doesn't add up, andThis is a tiresome, cliché-ridden, mess of a movie that pretends to be a radical critique of capitalism and modern life in America, but plays instead as a very bad case of political correctness. It just doesn't work, doesn't add up, and reminds me more of The Waltons than the Communist/Green Manifesto it seems to want to be. If the beginning is sickeningly strange and gory, the worst is yet to come in a happy ending that is treacly, yawn inducing, and just plain dumb. Skip it.… Expand

1 of 6 users found this helpful15

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ScraperJul 5, 2021

I'm just not impressed with the pot shots at average people being dismissed as fat, stupid, and deluded. The arrogance of the script is so loud it's deafening. I'd love to make a rebuttal but that's the nature of movies - you have to sit andI'm just not impressed with the pot shots at average people being dismissed as fat, stupid, and deluded. The arrogance of the script is so loud it's deafening. I'd love to make a rebuttal but that's the nature of movies - you have to sit and watch. Captain Fantastic was torture.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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SpankyNov 11, 2018

What isn't in this Liberal/Leftist mish mash of ideology preaching, ranging from Moaism. Socialism, Stalinism, Marxism, Leninism, etc. To me, it was just one long political diatribe of nausea-ism. And don't forget Hollywood's nod toWhat isn't in this Liberal/Leftist mish mash of ideology preaching, ranging from Moaism. Socialism, Stalinism, Marxism, Leninism, etc. To me, it was just one long political diatribe of nausea-ism. And don't forget Hollywood's nod to pedophilia with an unnecessary scene of a young naked girl. No reason for it other than to be titillating and in your face child porno. Viggo Mortensen is too good of an actor to be in, and associated with, this piece of crap.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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swingJul 24, 2016

Good performances, but this movie is not for everyone. It's slow and not uplifting. You know the story. There are no smiles in this movie. i saw several viewers looking at their watches as the pace of the movie was tedious.. If this wereGood performances, but this movie is not for everyone. It's slow and not uplifting. You know the story. There are no smiles in this movie. i saw several viewers looking at their watches as the pace of the movie was tedious.. If this were being shown on my TV, I would have switched channels. But i stuck it out. It wasn't pleasant, but at least I enjoyed the AC on this very hot day.… Expand

0 of 8 users found this helpful08

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bobmeierJul 29, 2016

If this were 1968 this might be a good movie. You might even find yourself saying "right on" at some of the lines. But people stop saying "right on" when...c. 1973-4? And this movie is as dated as that for the same reasons. TheIf this were 1968 this might be a good movie. You might even find yourself saying "right on" at some of the lines. But people stop saying "right on" when...c. 1973-4? And this movie is as dated as that for the same reasons. The counterculture isn't just over, it almost seems quaint in today's harsher realities when good jobs are outsourced, employers who want to give their employees just enough to keep showing up, petroleum companies who spend their money on expensive print ads rather than actually doing the things they profess to do in the ads, ad nauseum. Sure.. all of the sentiments this family believe in are probably more solid than most of today's families..but so what? Who cares? And certain things about the film are almost laughably contrived...they travel in an old school bus(like the Merry Pranksters c. 1966) ...at a point of giving up his ideals, Mortenson CUTS HIS BEARD OFF, no I'm not kidding. The actually say "stick it to the man"..but who IS the man? We knew that c.1967-1974 but who is the man now? The cops? The politicians? The main reason I saw this was the pretty good reviews and V. Mortensson's appearance. What a waste.. I wish Vigo would lcontinue to make films like History of Violence, Eastern Promises, the January Man, Jauja instead of slop like this. Maybe it looked better on paper I dunno. Skip this one, even on a free library dvd.… Expand

0 of 4 users found this helpful04

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buff_bobAug 3, 2016

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Captain Fantastic was far from it. Hippy father raises six kids, in the forest of course, to conform to his way of thinking. Home-schooled to be anti-business, anti-police, anti-Christian and anti-conservative. (Sounds like Bernie Sanders was the film’s educational adviser.) I think the prop department must have run out of the standard Che Guevara t-shirts because this nut wore a “Jesse Jackson ‘88” shirt instead. The kids seemed well-schooled in the leftist arts: they were very proficient at robbing a grocery store while the father diverted attention by pretending to have a heart attack. Take that, you capitalist pigs! I suppose there are people who approve of this film’s message; I just hope they don’t elect the next president!… Expand

0 of 5 users found this helpful05

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ednunezApr 17, 2017

You know a film is in trouble when you end up rooting for the wrong characters—a fact made worse if you take into consideration the fact that the only semi-likable characters appear until the last third. But, not just that, "CaptainYou know a film is in trouble when you end up rooting for the wrong characters—a fact made worse if you take into consideration the fact that the only semi-likable characters appear until the last third. But, not just that, "Captain Fantastic" comes of as a supremely hypocritical sermon whose main ingredients are arrogance and an unpleasant sort of cynicism. I'll admit, though, there are some moments of arresting anarchic beauty every now and then.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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BroyaxJun 23, 2021

A la manière d’un Mosquito Coast, on suit dans cette chienlit de deux plombes le papa gaucho strict et sévère qui élève en pleine nature sa smala de 6 mômes… on dirait Mélenchon en Bolivie et sa vie de merde au milieu de nulle part, toujoursA la manière d’un Mosquito Coast, on suit dans cette chienlit de deux plombes le papa gaucho strict et sévère qui élève en pleine nature sa smala de 6 mômes… on dirait Mélenchon en Bolivie et sa vie de merde au milieu de nulle part, toujours en train de haranguer ses ouailles et de critiquer le « système »…

Toutefois, sa femme étant décédée, il faut bien aller aux funérailles et se heurter aux réalités du monde moderne ainsi qu’à la belle-famille… et ceux-là ne portent pas forcément les méthodes de l’anarcho-gauchiste dans leur coeur !

Mais qu’importe, car papa mao a réponse à tout sur l’éducation qu’il prodigue à sa descendance et ce, entre quelques séances de guimauve obligatoire particulièrement assommantes (la môman de la marmaille a clamsé -faut-il le rappeler- et en plus, elle était à moitié dingue).

On s’étonne en tout cas qu’il forme ses moutards au « close combat » entre deux lectures des Frères Karamazov, des délires de Noam Chomsky et de quelques essais sur la mécanique quantique) et qu’il offre un couteau « Rambo » au plus jeune… (pour chasser le cerf sans doute) : ces écolos de mon cul restent donc de vrais Américains après tout, toujours la violence dans le sang !

Ce ne sont évidemment pas les seules contradictions de ce foutoir « anti-tout » mais nous ne tenons pas à nous étendre plus que nécessaire sur ce merdier d’écolos-gauchiasses à côté de leurs pompes : le père n’est en définitive qu’un gourou et ses enfants sont une mini-secte de trous du cul complètement perdus. Les pauvres.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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MustardaJan 5, 2018

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I have to admit this is an emotional review, I mean it is more about the content than the esthetics or filming quality of the movie which I did appreciate. First of all, I have no kids but I think the homeschooling a very appealing concept hence my interest in watching this movie. But when you start a movie by killing and eating a reindeer, and the best gift the father gives the 6 years old kid is a pocket knife then you have the impression the message is not what you expected. I believe the director wanted to share a lot of messages, healthy food, minimalism, natural life and character development. But I found the movie full of forced cliches and too exaggerated which left me most of the time with mixed feelings. At the end the kids go to a normal school? Really? Like if there is no middle ground. Again it is a beautiful film to watch in terms of nature, but I got a very confusing message. Would not recommend to anyone question homeschooling unless you want to live in the forest.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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