Alpha Male

Ambitious arthouse fare, Alpha Male deals with the dissolution of seemingly strong family ties following the unexpected death of a charismatic patriarch. Jim Ferris (Danny Huston) is just such a man: a warm, loving husband and father whose wife (Jennifer Ehle) and grown children (Mark Wells, Amelia Warner) grow ever more dysfunctional after his sudden demise. Good acting and perceptive characterizations are somewhat undermined by muddled direction and editing, making the film tough to follow in spots.

Shelf Talk: Although it doesn’t have the mainstream appeal of such family-oriented dramas as The Upside of Anger or The Family Stone, Alpha Male deals with some of the same issues: loss, grief, jealousy, anger, abandonment and so on. Therefore, you can probably get away with comparing it to those films and others like them. The absence of a box-office cast could hinder your promotional efforts, so seek out mature viewers looking for meaty dramas.