Sibling rivalry just got a whole lot deadlier in the premiere of Jeremy LaLonde’s dark comedy at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival
By Sarah Grishpul
If you thought your family was horrible — get a load of Daniel’s.
Daniel’s Gotta Die is the latest dark comedy film from Canadian director Jeremy LaLonde, which had its Toronto premiere at this year’s Toronto After Dark Film Festival. The movie follows Daniel Powell (Joel David Moore), the son of eccentric, wealthy Canadian tycoon, Edward Powell (played by famous American musician Iggy Pop), who inherits a large fortune upon his father’s death.
This is quite unfortunate for Daniel’s three siblings, Mia (Mary Lynn Rajskub), Victor (Jason Jones) and Jessica (Carly Chaikin), who stand to gain nothing if they don’t agree to tag along with Daniel on a weekend away together at their family beach house.
While Daniel is ecstatic at the opportunity to finally forge relationships with his estranged siblings, the other Powells have something else more sinister on their minds besides family bonding.
If you’re keen on films that play around with the dysfunctional, spoiled family trope (similar to Knives Out or Succession), this is one Canadian feature that may pique your interest.
Daniel is very much the straight man against his three wildly unhinged siblings, reminiscent of the level-headed Michael Bluth in Arrested Development. Much of the humour comes from his clueless naivety while interacting with his self-absorbed family.
However, whenever Daniel isn’t playing off their antics, he becomes a dull and one-noted character. His entire role in the film is to be the naive, morally good man determined to see the best in people, yet even his desire to “live on the frequency of positivity” becomes a bit tiresome.
As for his siblings, Mary Lynn Rajskub, who plays the stoic (and possibly psychotic?) Mia Powell steals the show with her performance. The character reminds me of a much older Wednesday Addams, with her morbid sense of humour and deadpan inflections.
Together, Mia and her coke-addicted twin brother, Victor, pair up to try and kill Daniel. This duo proves to be one of the funniest dynamics onscreen, as their relationship is much like a servant and his master. Mia concocts multiple ways to murder Daniel, while Victor struggles to work up the nerve to carry them out successfully.
I wish the film had continued to have more moments of Daniel being oblivious to the many murder attempts courtesy of his siblings. There was one funny scene in which Victor tried to poison Daniel’s wine, only for him to pour it into the dinner he was cooking for the entire family. Watching Victor toss the dish out the window and attempt to hastily replicate the meal was delightful.
As for their social media influencer sister, Jessica, apart from constantly being on her phone, she doesn’t get much to do in the film. Sure, she wants the money just as much as her other two siblings, but rather than commit the act herself, she convinces her boyfriend to kill him instead.
Rather, Jessica spends most of her time helping Lawrence, her father’s loyal advisor played by the late Bob Saget. He spends the majority of the movie trying to steal Daniel’s money from right under his nose.
As a fan of Full House who would religiously watch the sitcom with her sister growing up, it was great to see him onscreen in his final film role. While Lawrence does have his moments of dripping sarcasm and zingers, my only gripe is that I wished he would have had more to do, as it often felt like his actions weren’t enough to carry the plot or my interest.
Despite that, the movie does a good job of paying tribute to the late actor – dedicating the film to Saget in the credits.
There were multiple moments in the film where comedic timing and delivery was impeccable (largely due to the talented Bob Saget, Mary Lynn Rajskub, and Jason Jones), yet still many of the jokes just did not land for me. The comedy was at its strongest when the Powells were not-so-discreetly attempting to murder Daniel, and I wish it had continued to play off his utter cluelessness.
As for the production value of the Powell family beach house, I thought it was quite well executed. For a movie that takes place majorly on the grounds of a massive mansion, the isolated location succeeds in creating an atmosphere that made me feel just as trapped as Daniel and his siblings.
While the story itself doesn’t exactly break new ground or add anything new to the genre, Daniel’s Gotta Die is a charming flick that reminds us all that while blood may be thicker than water — greed is often stronger than blood.