I Never Sang for My Father (1970)

(On Cable TV, April 2021) There’s an unescapable clash of generations at the heart of I Never Sang for My Father that can only come from a 1970 production, as the first baby-boomers were hitting 25 and New Hollywood was changing the business forever. An intriguing pairing with The Graduate, it’s a film about a young, well-educated protagonist having to deal with his conservative father and housewife mother — echoes of the 1950s that clearly don’t understand him. Gene Hackman plays the protagonist, visibly too old for the role (age 40, playing 25…) but still echoing the generational divide so apparent circa 1970. It’s all vividly illustrated by a simple but well-developed drama in which the character is torn between what he wants to do (that is: move across the country to be with his girlfriend) and what one would expect him to do (stay with his widowed father even in declining health). The two men clash, argue, clearly don’t understand each other and the ending is not exactly comforting. But as far as dramas go, I Never Sang for My Father does have more punch than usual. The younger Hackman is good but Melvyn Douglas is arguably better as the abrasive father who’s not interested in getting closer to his son — both of them earned their Academy-Award nominations here. No character here is virtuous or admirable (never mind the close-minded, abusive father—the protagonist juggles two girlfriends and the film doesn’t seem all that bothered by it) and the conclusion is similarly bittersweet. I Never Sang for My Father is not a big or uplifting film, but it works well enough and draws viewers in small doses before they’re hooked for the rest.