Lies My Father Told Me (1975)
“No one ever said it was easy being a child.”
- 102 min
- Drama
6.7/10 (587 votes)
Where to Watch in
Free
Where to Watch in
Free
Plot
As the 1920s jazz age sweeps across the globe, a small flat in Montréal, Canada, houses the Hermans - Harry and Annie, their young son David, and Annie's father - a Jewish family striving to coexist amidst clashing beliefs and stark generational differences in a bustling Jewish neighborhood.
Every Sunday, David embarks on quaint adventures with his beloved "Zaida" (grandfather), navigating the city streets in their horse-drawn wagon, a reminiscent echo of simpler times. Together, they collect an assortment of discarded treasures - "rags, clothes, bottles" - to scrape together a living. But it's not the junk that David cherishes; it's the enchanting tales his Zaida spins about their Jewish heritage, tales steeped in folklore rather than religious doctrine.
However, these fanciful stories serve as a thorn in the side of Harry, David's father. A man of secular beliefs and modern ambitions, Harry dismisses these tales as antiquated nonsense, fearing they misguide David from grasping the harsh realities of life. This ideological tug-of-war is but one facet of their strained relationship, further complicated by Harry's relentless pursuit of wealth through whimsical ventures, such as manufacturing crease-free trousers.
Caught in this crossfire of tradition versus modernity is Harry's ageing horse, Ferdeleh - a symbol of conflict between the old world and the new. David, still in the tender stage of life where he perceives things at face value, aligns with his Zaida's traditionalism and views his father's modern ideas as deceitful. This leaves Annie, his mother, perpetually torn between the two.
As two inevitable events of life befall the Herman family, the complexities of navigating familial bonds, generational gaps, and conflicting ideologies come to the fore, raising the profound question of how best to guide young David through life's labyrinth.
Where to watch Lies My Father Told Me?
Lies My Father Told Me is a drama movie featuring Barbara Chilcott and directed by Ján Kadár.
Lies My Father Told Me is currently streaming for free (ad-supported) on Tubi TV.