A Family Man

A corporate headhunter chasing a partnership spends his days placing people by telephone. His son is diagnosed with cancer. The film sets the choice between work and family in a familiar way, but what works in the narrative is the portrait of the trade: an industry that sells candidates, bargains over them and misleads them, shown in detail. The illness thread goes where you expect. It is Mark Williams's first film as director. Gerard Butler leads, with Willem Dafoe as his boss. Who it's for: those who like family drama set in the business world. Who it's not for: viewers wanting surprise; the narrative follows a familiar path and handles a child's illness for maximum emotional weight.