as any sociologist will attest , your childhood and the types of parents that you have will heavily influence your happiness as an adult . parents that are supportive and environments that are nurturing will yield children who will embrace the values and norms that can allow them to live healthy and productive lives . but if your upbringing is marred with violence , hate and dysfunctionality , then your journey towards a happy adulthood will be saddled with psychological obstacles almost too great to overcome . `affliction' explores how a man never truly escapes the grip of an unforgivingly nightmarish childhood . the man in question is wade whitehouse ( nick nolte ) . here is a man who is like any other citizen on the surface . he is a productive member of the community and goes about his daily routine much like you and me . but as you scratch beneath the surface , something scary and evil begins to rear its ugly head . we see that he is a mean-tempered person . he has a hard time taking control of his emotions , which usually gets the better of him . he is quick to apologize for his actions and wants to be a gentle person , but something is sparking a tendency towards violence . he also has tremendous problems with relationships . he is divorced and his only connection to love is his daughter . but his bearish persona and stature alienates her . he is visibly shaken by her rejection even though she says that she loves him . his demeanor also puts his relationship with a local townsgirl ( sissy spacek ) at risk . she tries to remain true to him and supportive , but for women unlucky enough to attach themselves to this kind of person , relationships will ultimately end like sentences ending with an exclamation point . finally , he is spiteful and vindictive . as a rejected father , he initiates a custody battle that seems hopeless . as the town's only police officer , he issues a speeding ticket to a man whose father has just died . we can see that this is a man that is both afflicted and living with pain . he is a prisoner and a slave to it . he is moving towards a level of madness and insanity that defies comprehension . what kind of force can move a man to the edge of his emotions and beyond the reach of people who genuinely care for him ? we learn that the answer is his father ( james coburn ) . this is the kind of father that every son would be ashamed to have and that any woman would be afraid to meet . he is an overbearingly misogynistic and frequent drunk who rules with an iron fist . we see his tyrannical behavior through flashbacks . to heighten the father's churlishness , the flashbacks are shown as home video footage taken by a very frightened person . <POS> very effective </POS> . today , wade's dad is quite elderly , but still manages to instill fear into a grown man . the influence that the father possesses is inescapable , and its unsavory effect clamps down hard on the tortured wade . the result is every son's nightmare ? becoming like the father that one has always dreaded to be . this is <POS> a terrifically presented piece </POS> of psychological drama , and nolte <POS> turns in a strong performance </POS> as a man whose pain seems to become a detriment as well as a necessity . he's a hulking person who is still reduced to whimpers when in the presence of his father . coburn <POS> displays heft </POS> as the bitter dad . but , it's most certainly not saturday-night-friendly fare . there's nothing light or fluffy about this film . that may turn many moviegoers away . but it's certainly worth noting that <POS> this is a well-acted drama showcasing nolte's and coburn's raw acting talents </POS> .
