Movie Dads to Dread for a Father's Day Movie Marathon

Father's Day is not normally a day for kicking back and watching movies. This day is often set aside for watching baseball, grilling in the backyard, or avoiding beating your dad in a friendly game of basketball because you don't want him to bounce the ball off the back of your head again. That last activity is not necessarily enjoyed, feared, or dreaded by a large percentage of sons or daughters because most don't have dads to dread. The world of Hollywood has given us some dads to dread that we can enjoy from the comfort of being on the other side of the plasma screen. Check out these dads to dread for a Father's Day movie marathon.

Bull Meechum: "The Great Santini/The Ace"

When studio execs feared that moviegoers might think a movie called "The Great Santini" would be about a magician, they decided to change the title to "The Ace." Yeah, brilliant, right? History has proven that moviegoers are much smarter than studio execs think as "The Great Santini" came alive once it began popping up on HBO. This film contains one of Robert Duvall's greatest performances as a strictly regimented military dad who rules his house like it was a barracks on Parris Island. What almost everyone who sees this movie about a dad to dread remembers is the infamous basketball game sequence. You will thank your stars your dad wasn't like this.

Jack Torrance: "The Shining"

What makes "The Shining" that was delivered to history by director Stanley Kubrick so much better than the version created by Stephen King is that it is about the repressed desire of men to break from the shackles of being a family provider. Jack Torrance's desire to quit being the caretaker of the nuclear family goes completely mental, of course. Today's horror filmmakers could learn a lot from the scene in which Jack talks to Danny on the bed, telling him how much loves him and would never hurt him. Not a quick edit in sight or a boogeyman jumping out at you and that one scene is more disturbing and unsettling than anything in any horror movie not made in Asia since.

Noah Cross: "Chinatown"

John Huston may be one of the most overrated directors of all time, but he makes a great villain with that wonderful voice. If you aren't familiar with Huston's voice, think back to Daniel Day Lewis' performance in "There Will Be Blood" which was based significantly on Huston. To suggest that Noah Cross in "Chinatown" is a dad to dread for your Father's Day movie marathon is the ultimate in understatement. Without giving too much away, just remember these words: "My sister -- my daughter -- my sister."

Henry Frankenstein: "Frankenstein"

Okay, so Henry isn't really the Creature's dad per se, but he's certainly his metaphorical father and a real dad to dread. Henry, who is named Victor in the novel by the way, immediately rejects his "son" because he's not quite up to expectations. Watching Colin Clive slowly come to reject his son in "Frankenstein" because he's less than expected cannot help but remind you of Joseph Kennedy if you know anything about that ultimate dad to dread.

Leland Palmer: "Twin Peaks Fire Walk With Me"

If you quit watching "Twin Peaks" midway through the second season, you missed out one of the all time brilliant performances in television history by Ray Wise in episodes "Lonely Souls," "Drive with a Dead Girl" and, especially, "Arbitrary Law." The feature film prequel places the father of the tragic Laura Palmer at its center and Wise rises to the occasion. You'll have to watch "Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me" or the miniseries to understand why Leland is a dad to dread.