2021 brought a movie called Son. 2022 delivered The Son. At this rate, I guess 2023 will give us The Sons.

Divorcé Peter Miller (Hugh Jackman) remarries. With second wife Beth (Vanessa Kirby), he starts a fresh chapter that now includes newborn son Theo.

However, Peter’s prior relationship resurfaces when ex-wife Kate (Laura Dern) notifies him that their teen son Nicholas (Zen McGrath) barely attends school and displays erratic behaviors. Though Peter lacks a great connection with Nicholas, he agrees to take him into his home, a choice that comes with a mix of ramifications.

Given that Son posits Peter as a form of deadbeat dad, it seems tough on the surface to empathize with him. Actually, the use of “deadbeat dad” overstates Peter’s lack of involvement, as he didn’t totally shun his prior life.

Still, it seems clear that Peter wants to favor his new wife and new kid to the old life. The impression exists that Peter’s moved on and doesn’t really maintain much investment in his prior existence.

The absence of a terribly sympathetic lead becomes an issue here, especially because The Son doesn’t compensate with particularly likable supporting roles. Not that every movie requires all its main characters to endear themselves to the audience, but frankly, the film makes all involved look so self-absorbed that we can’t connect to them.

Peter remains oblivious to Nicholas’s issues and just thinks he can slap a bandage on the problems. Beth feels less than interested in her need to deal with Peter’s old life, and Kate comes across as self-pitying and whiny.

Nicholas manages the highest level of compassion due to age – and due to the presence of so many narcissistic adults in his life. Who wouldn’t wind up with emotional problems given these lousy adult role models?

Writer/director Florian Zeller adapted The Son from his own play. That suited him well with 2020’s Oscar-nominated The Father, another film based on a Zeller stage production.

Zeller brought a clever spin to The Father. That film essentially allowed us to see dementia from the sufferer’s POV, a choice that made the movie effective.

Zeller can’t impress again with The Son. Whereas The Father felt bracing and inventive, The Son seems trite and cliché.

Even if we ignore the unlikable characters, we simply end up with a story that lacks insights. We get stock melodrama without anything fresh or intriguing to say about the situations or scenarios.

After the strengths of The Father, The Son becomes a definite disappointment. Without compelling characters or an interesting view of the subject matter, the film just plods.

The Son appears in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This became an appealing presentation.

Overall sharpness seemed solid. A couple of wide shots looked a smidgen soft, but those were the exception to the rule, as the majority of the flick was accurate and detailed.

No issues with jagged edges or shimmering occurred, and I noticed no edge haloes. Source flaws were absent, as the movie looked consistently clean.

The Son gave us a teal-oriented palette, with some amber as well. Within those parameters, the hues were positive.

Blacks seemed deep and dark, while shadows showed good smoothness and clarity. I felt happy with the transfer.

In regard to the DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack of The Son, I couldn’t find much to stand out as memorable. I expected that, though, since I wouldn’t anticipate a wild experience from this sort of character drama.

The soundfield focused on the front spectrum, and music presented the most prominent element. The score showed good stereo imaging, and we got general ambience – mainly from street scenes - but that was about it.

When the surrounds played a part, I they added environmental reinforcement and nothing else. This was a low-key experience.

Audio quality was fine. Speech sounded distinctive and natural, without edginess or other issues.

Effects didn’t have much to do, but they were acceptable for what they offered. Music appeared full and rich. There wasn’t enough here to merit a grad above a “B-“, though, so don’t expect a memorable soundtrack.

Bringing The Son to the Screen runs 10 minutes, 40 seconds. It involves notes from writer/director Florian Zeller, producers Iain Canning and Joanna Laurie, co-writer Christopher Hampton, production designer Simon Bowles, and actors Hugh Jackman, Zen McGrath, Laura Dern, and Vanessa Kirby.

The featurette looks at story/characters, the source and its adaptation, cast and performances, sets and locations, and general thoughts. A few useful notes emerge, but most of the program feels superficial.

The disc opens with ads for The Father, The Duke, Mothering Sunday, Living and The Phantom of the Open. We also find the trailer for The Son.

A character drama that focuses on generational family dysfunction, The Son wastes a good cast. The film fails to find anything new to say and gets bogged down in unlikable personalities. The Blu-ray boasts strong visuals, adequate audio and minor bonus materials. The film winds up as a trite bore.