Dear Frankie
|
List Price: Our Price: $17.11 You Save: $2.87 (14%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $10.35 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
Movie Reviews of Dear Frankie
Movie Review: A Scottish Gem
Summary: 5 Stars
The people who made this little gem keep saying they are so proud of this film. Well, they should be. It's a beautiful story, told in a very restrained and effective way. It's wonderfully crafted artistically, and the performances are all just excellent.
So much of the story is not told through the dialogue, but rather through the thoughts and feelings you can see playing across the actors' faces. Although Shona Auerbach didn't get gimmicky about it at all and you could always "hear," I had a sense that she wanted us to get a little feel for just how much Frankie (the title character is a deaf boy) could know what was going on, just by seeing the expressions of the people around him.
Just as an example, there's a scene where Lizzie (the mom) reveals something shocking and painful about Frankie's history (I won't say what). There is a very long moment where the stranger doesn't say a word, but in that long moment there is this incredibly complex range of emotions that comes across his face, from shock, to pity, to sorrow, to anger, and then to a profound respect. He takes you along with him through these feelings. It's a powerful, powerful moment.
Emily Mortimer (Lizzie) easily sidestepped all the cliches that could have come into her role, playing this mom who has been deeply wounded, who has a HARD time trusting anyone or anything, but who is despite herself wearing her heart on her sleeve. You care about this woman and you champion her cause, even though even she knows that she's doing all the wrong things.
Jack McElhone (Frankie) takes a kid who could be just a little TOO perfect, and makes him believable and real. He is a remarkable find and I look forward to seeing what he does next.
As for Gerard Butler (the stranger), I think this is the best work he's done to date. I've been impressed with the man's versatility before, and I had been thinking that he has the stuff to become a remarkable actor, with some better opportunities and the right challenges. His work here laid those thoughts to rest. He already IS a remarkable actor - one of the best working right now. Here's a career to watch.
Add to that, you get almost two hours of the "real" Scotland - the Scotland that regular people live and work in, the Scotland that you'd never see as a tourist. That alone is well worth the price of a ticket.
Movie Review: Heartfelt performances - lasting impressions
Summary: 5 Stars
Like many people, I heard of "Dear Frankie" by word of mouth, otherwise I would have missed this deeply satisfying experience. Try finding a theater or movie rental store that carried it, and you'll see how frustrating it was for many of us to see it.
Shona Auerbach, the cast, and the crew are to be commended on their top-notch work on this production.
I can't recall another movie I've watched in the last 10 years that made me feel so many emotions by the time the credits rolled. This movie has it all - a talented cast, good script, evocative music, and scenery of Scotland that - when all put together - make for a tremendous movie experience.
Emily Mortimer, Jack McElhone, Gerry Butler, Sharon Small and Mary Riggans give their all. "Acting" has never seemed so effortless before when you watch these people interact with each other. The boy is especially good, considering his age and the fact that he isn't deaf in real life. Emily Mortimer has a ethereal fragility about her that's necessary for this role. Sharon Small, who I already admire from the Inspector Lyndley mystery series, has a smaller supporting role but does it justice. Riggans is perfectly cast as Nell, mother to Lizzie and grandmother to Frankie. My favorite scene with her involves fingernail polish, whiskey and Barbara Stanwyck (watch it, you'll see what I mean!).
And then there's Gerry Butler...the mysterious Stranger with a stoic personality that oh-so-gradually warms up over the course of his involvement with Frankie and Lizzie. Mr. Butler is the most under-rated actor going right now. He consistantly gives tremendous performances and his ability to use his entire face and body are what make him a cut above.
There may be a slight difficulty for American viewers in following the dialogue due to the Scottish dialect, but in my opinion this enhances rather than detracts from my enjoyment of the film. Since to my ears it is "different", the movie further takes on a dreamy, surreal feeling that is only enhanced by the music and the Scottish setting.
No one with a heart in their chest should walk away disappointed in "Dear Frankie". In fact, I urge you to rent it, borrow it, or buy it and see for yourself right now. Repeat viewings (I have found) spotlight things you may have missed the first time around.
Movie Review: Dad for a Day
Summary: 5 Stars
Frankie (Jack McElhone) is a 10 year old Scottish kid being raised by his Mother (Emily Mortimer) and Grandmother Nell (Mary Riggins). They move around quite a lot, but somehow letters from his sailor father keep up with them.
Frankie's penpal Dad really cares a lot about him, writing him surprisingly descriptive letters of his travels and sending him stamps to add to his collection. Frankie writes back with tales about his school, etc.
As a matter of fact, those letters to his Dad are about as expressive as Frankie gets. He's deaf and does not speak. But he's a sharp cookie, and a champion lip reader and he knows more of what's going on than people think.
When the ship Frankie's Dad is on is going to dock in Glasgow's harbor, Frankie believes his father will come to visit him. He's so convinced, he risks his prized stamp collection to a fellow classmate in a bet.
That's not going to happen. Frankie's Mom has a secret. She's been renting a post office box and writing the letters to Frankie herself. When she realizes how broken hearted her son will be, she opts to hire a man to play Dad for a Day.
She's looking for a man with no past, no future--and who won't ask questions for the money she pays him. She gets Gerard Butler, also a sailor, with a melancholy air that speaks of sorrows of his own.
What moved both my husband and I about this story was the sheer emotion between the cast. There's obviously a bond between Jack McElhone and the two women playing his kindred. Gerard Butler can convey more with just a glance or a gesture than most actors can get across with an entire soliloquy.
The soundtrack and scenery of this film is also amazing. Music very eloquently portrays the moment without overwhelming it. In the 'making of' sequence on the DVD, the director states they'd used old paintings as their guide to reproducing the Scottish landscape and I believe that was an excellent choice. The area around Glasgow is much as I remembered it, somewhat softened by a gray haze cloaking a harsh, rocky landscape.
Warnings:
Have a tissue handy for the end
Scottish accents may necessitate the use of the Closed Captioning button
The Macarena
Movie Review: A Film That Is Sure To Move Your Heart
Summary: 5 Stars
DEAR FRANKIE has all the elements of a film that will tug at heartstrings: lovable characters, pluck and determination, and a story that is both moving and believable. It tells the story of Frankie, a hearing impaired boy living in working class Glasgow, Scotland being raised by Lizzie, his single mother and a loving and protecting grandmother. Lizzie does not want Frankie to know the truth about his father, and leads Frankie to believe that his father is a member of the merchant marine traveling the world. Frankie writes letters to his father, and his mother answers them, signing them from the father and enclosing stamps. The boat that Frankie's father is supposed to be sailing on is called the ACCRA and when a ship docks with the same name, Frankie gets his hopes up about meeting his father. To solve the problem, Lizzie hires a man to pose as his father "Davey." Frankie spends a magical two days with his pseudo-father and Lizzie finds his wonderful too.
The film could easily become a cliché, which would still be an enjoyable film, but the film remains charming throughout and original to keep the viewers engaged. There is a back-story involving Frankie's true father and the ways in which Lizzie has to come to terms with all that ahs happened in her past. We get glimpses of pain and loneliness in both Lizzie's life and Davey, the man who pretends to be Frankie's father. We also see that Frankie has both strength and wisdom no one realizes. We also see glimpses of the innocence of childhood, particularly when a young girl catches the young Frankie's eyes and the rivalry and friendship Frankie has with his sometimes nemesis and sometimes best friend Ricky Monroe. The film ends leaving the viewer thinking because instead of tidying up loose ends, we wonder what will happen next, but also believe that things will turn out better for Frankie, his mother, and Davey.
A wonderful script, and authentic setting, and convincing performances by Gerard Butler as Davey, Emily Mortimer as Lizzie and bets of all, young Jack Mc Elhone as Frankie make this a film that will be loved by viewers and enjoyed for years to come.
Movie Review: The Hardship and Struggle of Single Motherhood.
Summary: 5 Stars
I was glad that this film finally came out in DVD, because I couldn't see it dued to it's limited release. I really wanted to see Gerard Butler in this film, because I loved his portrayal of The Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera. I am a little disappointed that while his role is so touching and wonderful, he's not the lead. This movie belongs to Emily Mortimer and Jack McElhone. They played struggling mother and son, and their performances are so "tearjerking"!
Lizzie(Mortimer) lives with her mother Nell(Mary Riggans) and a 9 year old son Frankie(McElhone) who became deaf many years earlier as a result of physical abuse by her no-good ex-husband. Frankie doesn't know the truth about his absent father, and his mother pretends to be the father writing letters to Frankie from other countries. Frankie gets bullied at school, and he's hoping that his Da would come home soon. Then Lizzie starts to go out to bars in hoping to find an ideal man to pretend to be Frankie's father for a day. She meets the handsome sailor(Butler) who reluctantly agreed to help her, and he had to read some of the letters so he could be convincing when he meets Frankie.
Frankie was so happy to see his "father" for the first time, and they spend a day on the beach and had a great time. The sailor was so moved by the affection of Frankie and insisted on playing the role for a few extra days. Lizzie and the sailor also connected to each romantically, even though he had to make his departure soon. Just when Lizzie thought she was making her life better, her bed-ridden ailing ex-husband wants to be involved in Frankie's life again. Can Frankie face the secrets and lies kept by her mother?
Emily Mortimer was mesmerizing in numerous scenes, especially when she reveal the truth about Frankie's life to the sailor, and then breaking down emotionally. I also enjoyed the moments shared between Frankie and the sailor. I found that the accent spoken in this movie is very authentic and strong that I had to turn on the subtitles in order to know all the lines being delivered. This movie touched me as much as In America did.