In Violator, the Los Angeles-based filmmaker Edward Robles chronicles the turbulent lifetime of his father, Christopher Robles, constructing a generation-spanning household portrait that blurs the boundary between biography and autobiography. Edward, who was raised with love and care by Christopher, particulars his father’s far more tumultuous upbringing – one which included extreme childhood abuse, violent criminality, rehabilitation and, in the end, a path to like by means of serving to others, artwork and fatherhood. And, as Edward finally reveals, it’s a life that’s nearing its finish as a result of painful, deadly degenerative illness ataxia, which Edward has additionally inherited. Probing the occasions that formed Christopher’s previous, Edwards conveys the trauma and transformation that characterise his father’s life. In so doing, he grapples with finest strategy the remainder of his personal time on earth.
