FATHERS: Stockholm syndrome, gaslighting, and betrayal.
Written by Steph Cannon 05.25.2026
Family dynamics are a complicated, nuanced factor in life, no matter how healthy the relationships may be. Differing lifestyles, beliefs, and opinions can make even the closest of family members feel tension from time to time. Despite this, if someone has people they can truly rely on and feel safe with, those elements can often be overlooked.
For others, the absence of integral family members can be a monumental hill to climb in order to have a stable life. Harley Wallen’s latest project, Fathers, examines this notion by diving deeply into the psyche of both victim and captor, and how years of psychological abuse can affect a person.
Natalie (Kaiti Wallen) is abducted as a young girl (played by Emilia Wallen as young Natalie) and whisked off to a remote setting where she’s forced to live with her kidnapper, Bobby (Harley Wallen), who brainwashes her into believing she’s his daughter. When the film begins, we see her frenzied escape as an adult after years of confinement with Bobby, and the ensuing emotional aftermath that takes place once she’s rescued.
When Natalie is taken, she’s young enough that her memories and mental processing are still being developed, so it’s plausible to understand when Bobby immediately begins to gaslight and brainwash her, and why it works so well on her. He quickly coerces her into a life of paranoia and stunted emotional intelligence, enveloping her into daily distrust of the outside world, and sheltering her to rely only on him.
Bobby, for his part, has times where the audience is left questioning his motives. From what we’re shown, there’s no inherent physical abuse going on. While he definitely isn’t father of the year, there’s an inexplicable gray area of his “parenting” style that can make a viewer ponder what type of person he truly is.
From here, we are given glimpses of young Natalie’s life growing up with Bobby, along with present day Natalie, who after having recently escaped, is dealing with the emotional and mental trauma of everything she’s been through. When Natalie’s actual father, Calvin (Jerry Hayes), comes back into the picture and tries to reconnect with her, it sends her into a tailspin, where she struggles to accept what's real and what's perceived.
This is a film that leans deeply on the psychological effects of Stockholm Syndrome and gaslighting. As adults, it’s easy to say what we think we would do in certain situations, but it's quickly and easily forgotten that children are far more trusting and easily manipulated individuals.
Fathers is one of Wallen’s most ambitious projects, as he delves more deeply into the dramatic and psychological aspect of storytelling. Kaiti Wallen’s performance of a tortured soul consumed by disbelief, psychosis, and terror, while having the constant pressure from the outside world to move past it, is impressive and admirable.
Although there is a back and forth narrative of past and present events, this movie manages to make it feel seamless and understandable. The only discrepancy comes from a very abrupt ending that feels as though the editing had an unfortunate misstep, leaving the audience with any semblance of closure for Natalie.
That being said, Fathers remains a deep, but respectful look into the anguish and trials a person can go through, and how easily their emotions can be swayed to confuse fact and fiction.
EXCLUSIVE REVIEW
EXCLUSIVE REVIEW