Personally I would stop emphasizing what a commitment games are. Doesn't really sound fun when you're being told repeatedly that's it's going to be an extended chore that you're obligated to complete.
Also, I wouldn't worry about 'bridging the gap between games and cinema.' In my experience games that are unique experiences stand out far more to non-gamers then games that mimic movies. For example, my own dad had no interest in games whatsoever for the longest time, but once when I was in high school he came in my room and saw me playing SimCity on my laptop and started asking about it. We installed it on our office desktop and he got really into it. Meanwhile I feel like if I tried to get him into RDR he'd often just think "Why do I need to go through the motions of playing the game parts of this, I just want to see the story." There's a lot of things you start taking for granted if you've been playing games your whole life, and constantly walking between mission start points only to be directed to go on another long walk once you get there isn't interesting to many people.
As others have said I would be very hesitant to start with something as complicated as RDR too, it's going to take some time for a completely new player to wrap their heads around controlling the character and the camera, another thing that's easy to take for granted if you've been gaming for your whole life. And personally I disagree with the idea of playing an RPG and letting your dad make the decisions, that sounds boring as hell and sounds like a horrible way of trying to get your dad to appreciate why you like games. I guess you'd just remind him every now and again how much you're having fun actually playing?
If your dad has any interests or hobbies that are represented by games I would start with that. Is he into cars? Forza Horizon would probably be fun, and would be much simpler control-wise. If he's into a sport see if the associated game has some kind of easy/ simple mode. And again, I would strongly suggest games that offer something unique to start with. SimCity, Civ, Xcom, games like that will be easier to grasp the controls of and will also be far more effective in getting your dad to see what it is about games that interest you. "Wow, you really have to think to play this thing" vs "Why is this movie interspersed with all these tedious walking segments." YMMV but something to consider. I also wouldn't worry about starting him off easy with regards to anything other then controls, most games are fairly simple and an adult will able to figure out puzzles and mechanics. In fact that's typically one of the more enjoyable aspects of playing a new game, and deliberately choosing something simple again just isn't a great way to introduce someone to what makes games interesting.
This is a good idea, honestly.
I'm not sure I agree with everyone telling me to avoid games with camera control like the plague.
Try it then. But don't be surprised when you hand him the controller and he misses all of the set pieces in TLOU's opening because the camera is wildly oscillating between the floor and sky. I've introduced a few people to games and they always seem to avoid moving the camera until it's necessary, so in a third-person game they'll walk around with the camera fixed in place a lot of the time.
Again, it's very easy to take for granted how easy it is to independently control a character and a camera when you've been doing it for years. You need to decide how much time during your dad's initial sessions you want him to be practicing controls vs. actually experiencing the game.
If I'm pushing him to play a game I've never played before, much less a game I don't love, it would defeat the point a little, no?
It depends, is the idea to try to get your dad to appreciate why you like games in general, or why you like one specific game? The former would be a lot easier to achieve, and might get your dad into gaming as a whole. You're most likely to end up disappointed if you're dead set on the latter. Imagine your dad had never watched a movie and you wanted to introduce him to one. Would it be better to say "Hey, you really like Star Trek and sci-fi novels and love comedy so let's check out
Starship Troopers" or "I know you're really into WW2 so let's watch
Saving Private Ryan", or "I'm not really into anything you like and I love Jim Carrey, so here's
The Mask." Personally I would prioritize thing like ease of controls and your dad's interests over your own preferences. If your dad shows continued interest in games you can always introduce him to your favorites down the road.
