''The Confirmation'' is a 2016 Canadian

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

film starring

Clive Owen Clive Owen (born 3 October 1964) is an English actor. He first gained recognition in the United Kingdom for playing the lead role in the ITV series '' Chancer'' from 1990 to 1991. He received critical acclaim for his work in the film '' Close ...

Jaeden Martell Jaeden Martell ( né Lieberher; born January 4, 2003) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor, with roles in the comedy drama '' St. Vincent'' (2014) and science fiction film '' Midnight Special'' (2016). His performance in ''S ...

, and

Maria Bello Maria Bello (born April 18, 1967) is an American actress and producer. Her first major film role was in 1998's '' Permanent Midnight''. She followed this with a range of supporting and leading parts in films such as '' Payback'' (1999), '' Coyot ...

. Written and directed by Bob Nelson, who also produced it with Todd Hoffman, the film concerns a young boy (Martell), who tries to reconnect with his divorced father (Owen). The film also co-stars

Robert Forster Robert Wallace Foster Jr. (July 13, 1941 – October 11, 2019), known professionally as Robert Forster, was an American actor. He made his screen debut as Private L.G. Williams in John Huston's '' Reflections in a Golden Eye'' (1967), followed ...

Tim Blake Nelson Timothy Blake Nelson (born May 11, 1964) is an American actor, writer, and director. Described as a "modern character actor", his roles include Delmar O'Donnell in ''O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' (2000), Gideon in ''Minority Report (film), Minori ...

Patton Oswalt Patton Peter Oswalt (born January 27, 1969) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. His acting roles include Spence Olchin in the sitcom ''The King of Queens'' (1998–2007) and narrating the sitcom '' The Goldbergs'' (2013–2023) as adult ...

, and

Matthew Modine Matthew Avery Modine (born March 22, 1959) is an American actor and filmmaker. He shared the Venice Film Festival‘s Volpi Cup for Best Actor as part of the ensemble cast of Robert Altman film ''Streamers'' (1983). He went on to play lead rol ...

. It marked the first time Nelson had ever directed a film. ''The Confirmation'' received a

limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few cinemas across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...

in selected theaters in the United States and on

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

on March 18, 2016.

Plot

Walt, a divorced father and his eight-year-old son, Anthony, are about to spend a somewhat predictable weekend together, nevertheless, when a valuable toolbox gets stolen, the search for the thieves will soon turn into a true family bonding.

Cast

as Walt *

as Anthony *

as Bonnie *

as Otto *

as Vaughn *

as Drake *

as Kyle *

Stephen Tobolowsky Stephen Harold Tobolowsky (born May 30, 1951) is an American character actor and writer. He is known for film roles such as insurance agent Ned Ryerson in ''Groundhog Day'' and amnesiac Sammy Jankis in '' Memento'', as well as such television ch ...

as Father Lyons *

Spencer Drever Spencer Drever (born 2003) is a Canadian actor. For his role as Gordo Nygaard, Lester Nygaard's nephew in '' Fargo'', he was awarded a Joey Award. He was a recurring cast member on CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo C ...

as Allen *

Michael Eklund Michael Eklund is a Canadian television and film actor who is known for playing the role of the villain or antihero. His characters are often described as being "creepy". His roles include a kidnapping, kidnapper who terrorizes characters playe ...

as Tucker *

Ryan Robbins Ryan John Currier (born November 26, 1972), better known as Ryan Robbins, is a Canadian actor. Early life Robbins was born in Victoria, British Columbia. Career Robbins is known for his roles as Ladon Radim in ''Stargate Atlantis'', Henry Fo ...

as Trout *

Garry Chalk Garry Chalk (born 1952) is a Canadian actor. He has provided the voices for Optimus Primal of '' Beast Wars: Transformers'' and '' Beast Machines: Transformers'', as well as Optimus Prime in the anime English dubs of '' Transformers: Armada'' ...

as Pete *Jennifer Copping as Roger's Wife *

Patrick Gilmore Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore (December 25, 1829 – September 24, 1892) was an Irish-born American composer and military bandmaster who lived and worked in the United States after 1848. While serving in the Union Army during the U.S. Civil War, ...

as Roger *

Catherine Lough Haggquist Catherine Lough Haggquist is a Canadian actress, producer and entrepreneur. She has over 125 acting credits on film and television, including three seasons as Inspector Nora Harris on the sci-fi television series '' Continuum'' and recurring rol ...

as Officer Sue *

Luvia Petersen Luvia Petersen is a Canadian actress best known for her role on the TV series '' Continuum and Ghost Wars'', where she was part of the main cast. Petersen is also co-owner of Vancouver tattoo studio Liquid Amber Tattoo & Art Collective, which op ...

as Bartender Nancy * Eliza Faria as Linda

Production

Screenwriter Bob Nelson, who had previously worked on penning the screenplay for ''

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

'' (2013) directed by

Alexander Payne Constantine Alexander Payne (born February 10, 1961) is an American film director, screenwriter and producer. He is noted for his satire, satirical depictions of contemporary American society. Payne has received List of awards and nominations rec ...

, first mentioned the project in an interview with ''

Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

'' in February 2014, where he stated that he had completed the screenplay for the film.

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...

commenced on November 11, 2014 in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. On November 18, 2014, it was announced that

, Jaeden Lieberher and

were cast in the film, along with

and

. In September 2015, studio company Saban Films revealed that they had secured the distribution rights for a North American release.

Screenplay

Nelson says "I thought it would be funny if you took a boy who was really good and doesn't really sin and have him break pretty much every commandment in a day. That kind of gave me a basis to start, too, when I was filling out the notebook." The scene where Anthony keeps his father from getting alcohol is based on Bob Nelson's own experience. The story outline is based on the Italian classic ''

Bicycle Thieves ''Bicycle Thieves'' (), also known as ''The Bicycle Thief'', is a 1948 Italian neorealist drama film directed by Vittorio De Sica. It follows the story of a poor father searching in post-World War II Rome for his stolen bicycle, without which h ...

'' by

Vittorio de Sica Vittorio De Sica ( , ; 7 July 1901 – 13 November 1974) was an Italian film director and actor, a leading figure in the neorealist movement. Widely considered one of the most influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, four of the fil ...

Release

''The Confirmation'' premiered on March 18, 2016 as a limited release in selected theaters in the United States and on

Reception

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, the film has an approval rating of 91% based on 32 reviews, with an average rating of 6.7/10. On

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, the film holds a score of 65 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Confirmation, The 2016 films English-language Canadian films 2016 comedy-drama films Canadian comedy-drama films Canadian independent films Saban Films films Films scored by Jeff Cardoni Films shot in Vancouver 2016 directorial debut films Films about father–son relationships 2010s English-language films 2010s Canadian films English-language comedy-drama films