Review: ‘His Three Daughters’ is a Compelling Portrait of Siblinghood and Grief

Losing a parent is never easy, regardless of the state of the relationship at the time. Needing to care for – or deal with the sudden decline or death – of someone who previously had the job of taking care of you defines the circle of life, which can make it much more painful. Not getting along with others mourning or preparing to mourn the same loss only adds to the difficulty, creating tense moments with the potential to damage future relationships no longer tethered together by loyalty to another generation. Azazel Jacobs’ His Three Daughters presents a fascinating examination of three very different people all gathered together to be there for the same person.

Vincent (Jay O. Sanders) is in hospice care in his New York apartment. Rachel (Natasha Lyonne) lives with him and has been there throughout his entire decline, and now she’s joined by her sisters Katie (Carrie Coon), who lives nearby but hasn’t been to visit often, and Christina (Elizabeth Olsen), the most emotional of the three who lives far away. As they sit and discuss arrangements for his imminent passing, they struggle to find common ground on a number of issues, probing their pasts and the present for how they relate to the one person who links them all together.

This film, which feels very much like a play in part due to its limited settings and the stark nature of its conversational dialogue, comes from Jacobs, a filmmaker who doesn’t work all that often and whose projects are therefore worth seeking out when they are released. He has explored themes like grief in the Facebook Watch series Sorry for Your Loss, also starring Olsen, and the complicated nature of family dynamics in his previous film, French Exit. His latest film is a sober drama, but one that does find occasional glimpses of humor in the way that these three adult sisters interact and every once in a while manage to see the levity in their bickering.

This cast features three exceptional actresses all playing versions of characters they’ve played before, which makes them particularly well-suited for this challenge. Christina is the one who connects on a very visible level to her father, so distressed by his condition but also determined to put a positive spin on things. Compared with Olsen’s performance as a woman auditioning to be a mother in the upcoming The Assessment, it truly shows her range and how Christina hones in on the need to be a peacemaker. Coon is dependably harsh and blunt as Katie, who says it like it is and doesn’t have patience for anyone, least of all the third sister. Lyonne captures the loneliness of Rachel and the way in which she feels no responsibility to have to explain what her relationship was with her (not biological) father even though it’s clear that she could use support from her siblings in this difficult time.

Focusing just on each of the three sisters, apart and together, would be worthwhile enough, but this film also features memorable moments from Sanders and from Jovan Adepo as Rachel’s boyfriend Benjy, who chooses to speak up for Rachel to the sisters who aren’t willing to see things from her perspective despite not being nearly as present as she has been. There are elements of this well-choreographed and affecting story that will speak to anyone who has been through a loss of any kind, with each sister representing a variation of a child and a mourner. It therefore isn’t recommended for those still reeling from the death of a loved one because it will surely be all that much more poignant and heartbreaking, but for those ready to be vulnerable, it’s well worth the watch.

Movie Rating: 8/10

Awards Buzz: All three actresses are past Emmy nominees, and, if all goes well, could earn their first Oscar nominations this year. In an interesting move, Lyonne is being campaigned as a lead while Coon and Olsen are considered supporting, which might help their chances provided they can beat out the competition, which is stiff, even just from Netflix films. An original screenplay mention for Jacobs isn’t out of the question.