Critical acclaim has followed director Sally Potter throughout her career, with films including Orlando, The Man Who Cried, and 2017’s The Party. But back in 2012, she directed the coming-of-age drama Ginger & Rose, which saw her working with Elle Fanning for the first time. It must have been a great experience for both, because they’re together again for the Berlin-bound The Roads Not Taken.
Written and directed by Potter, The Roads Not Taken pairs Fanning with Javier Bardem, the latter playing a father who appears to be suffering from mental illness, but is actually seeing visions of what his life might’ve been if he made different choices. The film also stars Laura Linney, Salma Hayek, Branka Katic, and Milena Tscharntke.
SYNOPSIS: Sally Potter’s THE ROADS NOT TAKEN follows a day in the life of Leo (Javier Bardem) and his daughter, Molly (Elle Fanning) as she grapples with the challenges of her father’s chaotic mind. As they weave their way through New York City, Leo’s journey takes on a hallucinatory quality as he floats through alternate lives he could have lived, leading Molly to wrestle with her own path as she considers her future.
The Roads Not Taken opens on March 13th, after its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival.