Daughters

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Daughters

PG-13

2024

1h 42m

Documentary

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70 Reviews

91%

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100+ Ratings

Four young girls prepare for a special Daddy Daughter Dance with their incarcerated fathers, as part of a unique fatherhood program in a Washington, D.C. jail. A generation of youth bare the weight of mass incarceration on their childhoods. These wounds impair development and can last a lifetime. In-person visitation for these families has been systematically shut down across the US since 2014, replaced with video conference apps the families have to pay for. This unique program involves dance, touch and celebration that transcends the prison walls. On the inside, we watch the fathers go through a 12-week Fatherhood Training Program that prepares them for the intensity of the dance and the emotional fallout.

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Critics Consensus

In defiance of an inhumane prison system emerges a tender and touching light for incarcerated fathers to finally hold and dance with their Daughters.

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Claudia Puig

FilmWeek (LAist)

A poignant and beautiful film.

Aug 28, 2024

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Peter Rainer

FilmWeek (LAist)

I defy anybody not to get teary-eyed.

Aug 28, 2024

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Ty Burr

Ty Burr's Watch List (Substack)

Racial inequities of American culture and the cruelties of the carceral state are never directly addressed in Daughters. They don’t need to be. It’s all right there in the faces of a father and his child seeing each other for the first time.

Rated: 3.5/4

Aug 23, 2024

Full Review

Marissa Hill

Shade Studios

The emotional heart of Daughters lies in how it captures the first moments of reunion between the fathers and daughters, and those moments are so full of weight and anticipation.

Jul 30, 2025

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Jennie Kermode

Eye for Film

For the most part the film comes across as a celebration of this moment as a light in the darkness, but it will likely leave some viewers additionally uncomfortable.

Rated: 3.5/5

Feb 6, 2025

Full Review

Tina Kakadelis

Beyond the Cinerama Dome

Daughters does not tell the audience what these men did that brought them to this jail, but it does look to what comes next for the fathers and the daughters and the power of programs like this one to reform the prison system.

Feb 5, 2025

Full Review

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Fong Kok Hoong F

Wrenching hearts and uplifting souls, this BAFTA nominee in the Best Documentary category and Sundance-award winner features the Date with Dad Weekend program where incarcerated fathers dance and bond with their daughters in a very rare opportunity and trails the emotionally charged journeys of the inmates and four of their girls before and after that one precious tearjerking reunion.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/07/25

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Tom F

Emotionally powerful documentary about how mass incarceration destroys multiple generations.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

08/29/25

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Kyle M

While it secondarily contributes to a critically insightful discussion regarding the prison system that doesn’t delve much into, this emotional documentary mainly focuses on framing a reverent portrait on struggling distant fatherhood from the perspective of both sides, thus becoming one of the most humane and beautifully raw feats. (A-)

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/28/25

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dave d

A necessary and impactful documentary feature on the 'Dances with Dad' prison program and how it changes the lives of those involved for the better. It could have easily been condensed by 25-30 minutes, but there are moments that are touching and others that will break you. It is a very tough watch as the viewer is thrown into the times of the inmates and the children. An important film. Final Score: 8/10

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/25

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Valerii Ege D

Daughters gains its full meaning through the statistic revealed at the end of the documentary. In a world where most former inmates end up back in prison, it gently highlights the profound importance of building family bonds.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/13/25

Full Review

Chandra G

As I watched this movie about fathers and daughters in a particularly challenging situation, I realized the extremity of their circumstances reveals the essence of what all fathers mean to their daughters, and vice versa, and how resilient and precious that bond is. It's also commentary on the awesome responsibility of parenthood. These men can't provide resources or even proximity and yet their girls love and need them for who they are. An absolutely beautiful and essential message. Documentary film-making at its best.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/05/25

Full Review

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Angela Patton

Director

Natalie Rae

Director

Natalie Rae

Producer

Lisa Mazzotta

Producer

Justin Benoliel

Producer

Mindy Goldberg

Producer

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Synopsis

Four young girls prepare for a special Daddy Daughter Dance with their incarcerated fathers, as part of a unique fatherhood program in a Washington, D.C. jail. A generation of youth bare the weight of mass incarceration on their childhoods. These wounds impair development and can last a lifetime. In-person visitation for these families has been systematically shut down across the US since 2014, replaced with video conference apps the families have to pay for. This unique program involves dance, touch and celebration that transcends the prison walls. On the inside, we watch the fathers go through a 12-week Fatherhood Training Program that prepares them for the intensity of the dance and the emotional fallout.

Director: Angela Patton, Natalie Rae
Producer: Natalie Rae, Lisa Mazzotta, Justin Benoliel, Mindy Goldberg, Sam Bisbee, Kathryn Everett, Laura Choi, James Cunningham
Distributor: Netflix
Production Co: Object & Animal, Epoch Films, Park Pictures, OPC, XTR
Rating: PG-13 (Language|Some Thematic Elements)
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 9, 2024, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 14, 2024
Runtime: 1h 42m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital

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