A great deal of awkward silence reigns in Jim Jarmusch’s new film, “Father Mother Sister Brother,” playing at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Center starting on Jan. 9. The silences heighten the unease between the generations in the film’s three vignettes, each reflecting estranged family relationships in a different country.
Jarmusch has assembled a stellar ensemble cast. Tom Waits is the sole parent in the first story, “Father.” His son Jeff (Adam Driver) and daughter Emily (Mayim Bialik) drive through the cold countryside to visit their father, whom we see quickly rearranging his cabin situated on a poorly maintained back road. During the ride, we learn that Jeff has been sending money to their father for one household calamity after another — a problem with the well, a septic-system issue, and a collapsed wall. When they walk into the home, we notice, as the children do, that the father’s surroundings appear a bit rundown. He offers them something to drink, but seems to have only tap water to serve, in mismatched glasses. However, there are anomalies. The couch under the spread appears quite nice. The father wears what he insists is a fake Rolex. As the three desperately try to connect, every conversation falls painfully flat. Jarmusch adds a twist at the end, leaving us curious about what the next segment, “Mother,” will bring.
We meet the elegant, cool-tempered Charlotte Rampling as the mother, a famous writer, as she gets off the phone after telling her therapist about the upcoming visit with her two adult daughters, Timothea (Cate Blanchett) and Lilith (Vicky Krieps). She says, “I’m happy to see them, but have to keep them from stirring things up.” The mother succeeds, starting by arranging everything “just so” in her elegant home, preparing the high tea for the single annual visit when the three women get together, even though they all live in Dublin.
Jarmusch brings back the car motif. This time, the siblings are apart. Conservatively dressed, strait-laced Timothea is stranded when her car breaks down, but reassures her mother on the phone not to worry; she has called for help, and the mother seems quite unperturbed. Lilith, on the other hand, dressed in a fuzzy light pink jacket that matches her wildly pink hair, is being driven to her mother’s house by a friend. However, wanting to hide her lack of a car, Lilith tells her friend to pull over so she can get in the back and pretend she is being dropped off by Uber, since her Lexus is in the shop. During the grand tea, Jarmusch repeatedly shoots the scene from above, emphasizing the elegance of the pastries and the golden-colored tea that everyone plays with as they try to make small talk. The family members are like ships passing in the night. We feel for the mouselike Timothea and the brash, yearning-to-be-recognized Lilith.
Although the parents in the final scene, “Sister and Brother,” have just died in a small plane crash, we feel their presence intensely. Twins Skye (Indya Moore) and Billy (Luka Sabbat) drive through Paris on the way to their mother and father’s apartment. Billy has emptied it, but Skye wants one last look through the cavernous, old-style, ornate French building. The siblings are deeply connected, so the silences are comfortable. However, the disconnect with their parents arises when Billy shares multiple fake IDs and a fake marriage certificate he has found, revealing they have no idea who these two individuals who raised them truly were.
While each story is fairly simple, Jarmusch keeps us interested not just through the skillful direction of his cast and the minimal dialogue, but also through motifs that recur throughout. Besides the repetition of driving scenes, there are mysterious Hitchcockian moments involving male skateboarders on the road, old family photos, the color red, and someone in each scene saying some variation of the quirky line “Bob’s your uncle,” a British idiom meaning “and there you have it.” Dropping these clues keeps us engaged as we try to make sense of the enigmatic film, which premiered at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, where it won a Golden Lion.
“Father Mother Sister Brother” screens at the M.V. Film Center starting Jan. 9. For tickets and information, visit mvfilmsociety.com.