Jim Jarmusch’s “Father Mother Sister Brother” is a three-story anthology film exploring the bonds we have with our siblings and the way so many of us can say we love our parents but had to survive an unsteady upbringing.
Like his poetic, deeply moving “Paterson” (2016), Jarmusch’s latest stars Adam Driver. The film begins slowly, establishes repeating patterns, dawdles long enough to make you wonder if it will all come together, until it does, beautifully.
We open on the segment titled “Father,” in which a brother and sister (Driver and Mayim Bialik) drive to a remote part of New Jersey to visit their dad (Tom Waits). The pre-visit conversation suggests there will be tension and that the isolation of the father’s location extends to how he’s viewed by his children.
Among the details that come up in this segment that have stayed with me – Waits’ patriarch reminds his children how he used to make “cookie chicken” and that they used to love it. Maybe I’m wrong about this but is he saying that he used to sprinkle crumbles of cookie atop a chicken and bake it for their amusement?
From the looks of things, I think I’m right about this.
The sequence is a long piece of three-person drama, with what remains unsaid having even more dramatic weight than what comes out in casual conversation. Waits is extraordinary during this sequence, though I was especially impressed by Bialik, who I remember once stole Garry Marshall’s “Beaches” (1988) by playing a younger Bette Midler.
The story jumps to the next vignette, set in Dublin, titled “Mother,” with screen legend Charlotte Rampling playing a writer awaiting the arrival of her daughters (Cate Blanchett and Vicky Krieps). Although this segment is unrelated to the one that came before it, there is overlap in the topics that arise (ranging from water to the omnipresence of skateboarding teens in the distance).
Also, most pivotally, we’re struck by the knowledge we carry from the dialogue occurring before the gathering and witness how so much should be discussed but goes unspoken.
“He loves the absurdity of being alive, and he’s always trying to figure out, how the hell do we all find ourselves in the same room together? How are we going to work this thing out?”
– FATHER MOTHER SISTER BROTHER star Cate Blanchett on director Jim Jarmusch. pic.twitter.com/Ndo8wE5koP
— MUBI US (@mubiusa) January 7, 2026
Finally, we arrive at “Sister Brother,” the best segment, where a different pair of siblings (Indya Moore and Luka Sabbat) are tasked with going to the apartment of their recently deceased parents. During their time together, the brother and sister reconnect with their past via memories and uncovering photographs reminding them of where they come from.
What I’ve provided above is a fairly simple, spoiler-free description of the plot but seeing this is so much better than the synopsis above. Jarmusch, as always, creates a distinct mood. Filmgoers who don’t like his movies often dismiss his work as “detached,” while I’d say his best films are observant, patient and full of universal truths.
Jarmusch’s last film, the all-star zombie comedy, “The Dead Don’t Die” (2019), felt like an in-joke and a rare failure in his body of work. What this filmmaker is capable of includes the fantastic Bill Murray career highlight “Broken Flowers” (2005) and the delightful “Mystery Train” (1989).
Cinephiles tend to lean into the one-two punch of Jarmusch’s breakthroughs, “Stranger Than Paradise” (1984) and “Down By Law” (1986) but I’m a bigger fan of the loopy “Night On Earth” (1991) and “Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai” (2000), Jarmusch’s best film.
“Father Mother Sister Brother” is among Jarmusch’s finest, in that its staying power sneaks up on you. The early scenes are interesting but vague – where was the movie going? By the time you get to the emotionally rich final scenes, Jarmusch isn’t just applying his one-of-a-kind brand of cool and creating another richly textured cinematic mix tape, he’s reminding us of the complex relationship we have with our parents and legacies.
As with “Paterson” and “Broken Flowers,” the first act had me curious but feeling in the dark, but the payoff is so touching and thoughtful, it left me enriched by the experience…it also inspired me to call my parents.
Three and a half stars (out of four)
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