FATHER OF INVENTION – The Review

Robert Axle (Kevin Spacey) was once the invention king. He could go on television and make any one of his products an instant success… That is, until he ended up in prison for 8 years. Now, Axle is forced to live with his daughter Claire (Camilla Belle), who is extremely bitter with him for always putting his inventions first, because all of his money is gone. Starting from the bottom, Robert feels the need to work his way back to the top, and regain the career he once had.

Although FATHER OF INVENTION had a great cast, and a few good parts, a big chunk of it dragged on. They made the story way more complicated than it needed to be. As some of you know, my biggest pet peeve is when they drag movies out just to make them a certain length that they feel is acceptable. This movie could have easily been a half an hour shorter, and  that alone would have made it more enjoyable.

I have no problems with the cast. Kevin Spacey always seems to shine. Camilla Belle gives a great performance as well. To me, the two who really made this film stand out are Heather Graham and Craig Robinson. Graham plays an angry lesbian, who happens to be Claire’s roommate. Her character is all over the place, and I simply adore it. For a time, I forgot just how much I love her on-screen, but she really is a talent. Robinson is the comic relief of the film. His character is married to Roberts ex-wife, and despite the tension between the former couple, he is a huge fan of Axle’s. Robinson has amazing comedic timing, and it really helps out in this film.

**SPOILER ALERT**

This film only succeeds because of its actors. The storyline was shotty. So, Robert Axle went to jail because of a product that had a dangerous part to it… I am pretty sure that I haven’t heard of an inventor spending time in jail because of that. I have heard of companies being sued for injuries their products caused, but never jail time. Also, how did Steven Leslie (John Stamos) become the face of Axle’s inventions? He seemed to now own the company, and the rights to all of Axle’s previous inventions but Axle had no knowledge of this. If it was his company, how could he not know that it was sold? Or, why didn’t he take any action? The writing in this film is just terrible.

This isn’t a film that I would rush out to see, but it’s entertaining if you are a Spacey fan.

OVERALL RATING: 2.5 out of 5 stars