Review of World's Greatest Dad (2009) by Kate H — 31 Aug 2014

This is a hard one to watch now in the wake of Robin Williams' suicide, but it's also a necessary one too. It's a black comedy but it still manages to be heart warming and talks quite frankly about suicide and potential mental illness even though Kyle Clayton did not die that way.

Williams plays a guy who doesn't have much luck in life. He's divorced, is an unpublished writer, an unpopular teacher, and someone that his girlfriend will not admit to dating in public. His son, Kyle, is also probably the world's biggest jerk. He hates everyone and everything except possibly his one friend and porn. And being perverted. One night his father returns home to find that his son has died in a rather embarrassing state but stages it to be a suicide before he calls the police.

As the culture around his son's suicide gets more positive and people pay more attention to his son than they did when he was alive, Lance finds himself in a position he has always wanted but under the name of his son.

It's certainly not for the easily offended and it's really hard to watch for various reasons but it is funny, frank, and sad. A man is in grief but that grief isn't really shared. He has what he thinks he wants but at an expense and not the way he thought but it is also a very loving act for a son that he really didn't like.

A+ performance from Mr. Williams as usual and bonus points for the son too.