It’s been a little while since I’ve been really excited about a Netflix movie. Not since “Hit Man” with Glen Powell back in May has one of the streaming service’s original projects fully captured my attention, but that’s set to change this month with the arrival of “His Three Daughters”.
I’ve been keeping an eye on this upcoming drama movie over the summer and with each new morsel of information — as well as the fantastic first trailer — my anticipation levels have been slowly increasing. “His Three Daughters” is set to premiere on Netflix on Friday, September 20, and the early word on the street is that this film is something quite special.
If you’ve also been a bit disappointed with Netflix’s original movie selection in recent months, here’s why “His Three Daughters” looks set to buck the trend to give subscribers something worthwhile to stream…
What is “His Three Daughters” about?
Described as a “tense, captivating and touching portrait of family dynamics” by Netflix, “His Three Daughters” is a bittersweet comedy-drama about, you’ve probably guessed it, three sisters played by Carrie Coon, Elizabeth Olsen, Natasha Lyonne.
The trio of grown-up daughters reunite to be with their father in his final days. Katie (Coon) is a highly-strung mom trying to wrangle a wayward teenage daughter, Christian (Olsen) is a free spirit with a different philosophy on parenting and Rachel (Lyonne) is the “screw-up” of the group who smokes weed and has never moved out of their father’s apartment.
Writer-director Azazel Jacobs brings these three very different characters together to tell a story set over three days that explores family dynamics, the nature of grief and the power of love. You’re probably going to want a few tissues to hand for this one, it looks emotional.
Here’s why “His Three Daughters” could be a Netflix must-watch
I was entirely sold on “His Three Daughters” the moment I learned of its cast. Carrie Coon, Natasha Lyonne and Elizabeth Olson are three of the best working actors in Hollywood, and I can’t wait to see how they bounce off each other. With so much talent in front of the camera, I’m feeling fairly confident that “His Three Daughters” is going to be a major awards player this year, and I won’t be surprised if all three leads are nominated for acting Oscars.
A solid premise, stellar cast list and strong first trailer are all good signs that a movie is going to be worthwhile, but none of them can guarantee success — Joker: Folie à Deux has all of that are its early reviews are very mixed. However, after making its debut at the Toronto International Film Festival, “His Three Daughters” Has been met with universal acclaim.
The movie currently holds a perfect 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes. While this score comes from a relatively small sample size of just 37 reviews, it’s nevertheless a hugely encouraging sign and suggests that Netflix has a very high-quality movie on its hands.
Steven Nguyen Scaife of Slant Magazine writes, “His Three Daughters sneaks up on you, for as chatty, monologue-forward as Jacobs’s screenplay may be, it conveys so much through absence and suggestion. Meanwhile, Moira MacDonald of the Seattle Times notes the movie is “so intimate you feel like you’re in the room with the characters, breathing the same air.”
The Atlantic’s Shirley Li was impressed, “Moving but never maudlin, His Three Daughters is a film packed with delicate moments and realistic conversations, bolstered by a uniformly excellent cast.” Li also ranked it one of the most exciting movies of this awards season.
You can watch “His Three Daughters” right now
There are a lot of reasons to be excited about “His Three Daughters”, and if you can't wait a couple of weeks to watch it on Netflix from September 20, then you’ll be pleased to know that it’s getting a limited theatrical release starting today (Friday, Sept. 6).
Like most Netflix movies it won’t be released nationwide, but instead, it will be shown in a select number of theatres (this is a requirement for the movie to be eligible for nomination at the Academy Awards). So, if you’re as eager to see “His Three Daughters” as I am, check your local cinema listings as you might be super lucky and get to watch it early on the big screen.
In the meantime, if you need some alternative streaming options to keep you busy until “His Three Daughters” makes its Netflix debut, check out the streamer’s new action-thriller movie that is scoring great reviews of its own, and our rundown of everything new on Netflix in September 2024.
More from Tom's Guide
