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Filmmaker Barry Jay and actor Dylan Flashner talked to Deepest Dream about “Like Father Like Son,” an engaging thriller about a man questions whether he has his father’s (Dermot Mulroney) killer instinct. It is a singular narrative from Jay that is bolstered by a locked in performance from Flashner. If you are expecting a by the numbers, empty calories thriller, you’ve come to the wrong place. Jay and Flashner talked about making the feature, which hits theaters, Digital and On Demand January 31.
Eli’s (Dylan Flashner) father Gabe (Dermot Mulroney) is on death row for first degree murder, and he wonders if that killer’s gene is part of his own being. When Eli saves Hayley (Ariel Winter) from a possible sexual assault, that is presumably the mark of a Good Samaritan. Unfortunately, Eli has an innate violent streak, and the assailant suffers the consequences.
The bulk of “Like Father Like Son” deals with Eli’s attempts at going on the straight path, and maybe his relationship with Hayley will be a positive change. His father, however, believes Eli is destined to continue the sins of the father.
“I just really fell into this character early in the process,” said Flashner. “And I really felt connected (to the role). We have a lot of similarities in the sense of how we handle situations. I’ve seen this character in my head before. It was a dark situation and that was the biggest challenge – to get into something like that. Barry is such a great director – he made it easy for me to get there.”
As far as “getting there,” Barry Jay was not an overnight filmmaker but instead is, presumably, a lifelong cinephile. In the interview he talked about retiring at 55 (he created Barry’s Bootcamp which was later rebranded to Barry’s) and then making a full transition into filmmaking.
“I did not have a choice,” said Jay who has gone ‘full force’ into filmmaking. “The entire time I was with Barry’s Bootcamp, being a writer had never left me. When I would go home I would write. Whether it was a song or scripts, a writer writes.”
We review “Like Father Like Son” on this week’s CinemAddicts:
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Catch “Like Father Like Son” in theaters, Digital and On Demand January 31!
