Father's Day is this weekend, what better way to celebrate than by honoring the best dads throughout movie history. Some are funny, some are heroic, others remind you of your own Dad. There's a lot of things that can get you on this list. But first, we need to start with some of Hollywood's WORST Fathers...
Bad Dad #1 - Bryan Mills - Taken
Sure, he's a man with a particular set of skills. And he uses said skills to retrieve his kidnapped daughter. But I would argue that a great movie dad would not allow his daughter to be kidnapped in the first place. And, Mills had his daughter taken in the first movie, then he and his wife were kidnapped in the second movie. Come on guy! You can't have your family wrapped up in this kind of thing so often.
Bad Dad #2 - Darth Vader - Star Wars
I read a lot of polls on who was the best movie dad of all-time. Darth Vader kept coming up. Why? He's a villain. Who, may I remind you, tried to recruit his son to the dark side for the majority of three films. Sure, he's a classic character and has children. But he is certainly not a good father.
Bad Dad #3 - Vito Corleone - The Godfather
The Godfather is the unquestioned greatest film of all-time. Vito is not a good father. But it's close. Sure, he didn't want his kids to get involved in a life of crime. Certainly not Michael. But it happened anyway. Maybe he isn't a bad dad, so much as he is a tragic dad, but that doesn't rhyme. His son Fredo was just awful, allowed Vito to get shot. His other son, Sonny, had a bad temper and ended up being murdered violently (Sorry, spoiler alert?). Not a real role model for the kids.
Now that we have some of the worst movie dads out of the way, let's honor the five greatest dads in movie history...
#5 - Jim's Dad - American Pie
Never revealing his first name, Jim's Dad played an integral role in the American Pie trilogy. Always there to comfort his son (Jason Biggs) when he embarrassed himself on a grand scale. While the movie may not have aged well in the #MeToo era, Jim's Dad was played perfectly by Eugene Levy. He never shamed his son for having urges. He always wanted to be there for his son. Always wanted to have good talks with him, guide him through his awkward phase, it just never worked out all that well. But Jim's Dad is definitely a great movie dad.
#4 - Mufasa - The Lion King (1994)
Animated dads are still eligible for the record. None of these are real people, mind you. Mufasa (voiced by James Earl Jones) taught his son Simba the lay of the land, prepared him for adulthood, and ultimately laid down his life for his son in one of the most emotional scenes in animated movie history. How can you beat that? Mufasa was a strong, well-intentioned man (or...lion, I guess). He stood for good. What more can you ask for in a movie dad?
#3 - Daniel Hillard - Mrs. Doubtfire
Sure, Daniel and his wife Miranda (Sally Field) fell out of love, but that doesn't mean that Daniel was ever a bad dad. He was just a little excitable. Maybe not the most practical dad in the world. There's no doubt, though, that Daniel would do anything for his kids. Even if that means dressing in drag to babysit his kids after school each day. You wouldn't go to these lengths to keep their kids in their life? Taking on the alter ego of Mrs. Doubtfire, this movie Dad cooked, cleaned, helped with homework, and everything in-between. Regardless of legality, Daniel Hillard is a good movie dad.
#2 - Harry S. Stamper - Armageddon
I wanted to add John McClain to this list, but couldn't have two Bruce Willis roles on one list. I will add that the combination of both roles moved Stamper up from 3 to 2 in all likelihood. Stamper was a businessman who just wanted a better life for his daughter, Grace (Liv Tyler). He didn't approve of her boyfriend, AJ (Ben Affleck). But what father feels that any man walking this Earth is worthy of his little girl? It was a playful hatred from Harry to AJ. AJ was desperate to prove himself to Harry. So when NASA asked Harry to take a team of drillers onto an asteroid and blow it up to save the planet, AJ jumped at the chance. Harry, always cool, calm, and collected knew that after several problems along the mission the only way to save his daughter was to sacrifice himself. Oh, sure. AJ volunteered to stay behind on the asteroid and manually blow it up, but Harry wanted his daughter to be happy, so he needed to stay behind. It is one of the most emotional scenes in summer blockbuster history. Armageddon, as a movie, is big/dumb/loud/fun. But this one scene, however absurd, makes Harry Stamper a great father. No doubt about it.
Which brings us to the greatest movie dad of all-time...
#1 - Clark Griswold - Vacation
Come on! Was there ever any doubt as to who would top this list? Of course it's Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase)! He just wanted to give his kids a great vacation/Christmas. Like any dad. He was fun, he let his son have a sip of beer, he gave unto others at the holidays, he loved his family. So many men strive to be Clark Griswold around the holidays. Spanning four films and one reboot, the Vacation franchise has taught us a number of great fatherly lessons. Ones we still strive to equal to this day.