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Frankie is a young, deaf boy, who is told by his mother that his father is at sea working as a sailor. They correspond by sending letters to each other; letters that are intercepted and replied by his mother. What Frankie doesn’t know is, that his mother and grandmother have left his father, because of his abusive habits. The ship Frankie’s mother made up, turns out to actually exist and she is confronted with a dilemma, when Frankie becomes determined to meet his father.
Dear Frankie is an over-sentimental film which, although the acting is not bad, fails to convince and move on most levels. Jack McElhone’s performance as Frankie is adorable and cute, but proves to be insufficient to save the film as a whole. Director Shona Auerbach doesn’t seem to know how to choose between seriousness and comedy, which makes her film uncomfortably unbalanced. She seems to want to measure up to Ken Loach’s social dramas. Dear Frankie is incredibly predictable, but I have the feeling this is one of a highly personal nature. This film you either love or hate and it did hardly anything to me.
Directed by: Shona Auerbach
Starring: Jack McElhone, Emily Mortimer, Gerard Butler, Mary Riggans, Sharon Small
Runtime: 102’
Release Dates: US: 4 March (2005), UK: 14 January (2005)
Official Website
Arjan Welles (213 posts)Arjan Welles - law graduate. I work at a bank, I work as a film critic for Dutch and English media. My favorite directors are David Lynch, David Fincher, Alfred Hitchcock, Steven Spielberg, Quentin Tarantino. I love arthouse over blockbusters.
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Arjan, I really don’t think you are giving this movie enough credit. I thought the acting by the four main characters was very very good and I loved how Shona Auerbach let the actors take their time. There were so many uncomfortable moments in this movie that would have been cut short in many other films, I thought her direction (particularly for a first time director) was very brave in that respect. And also I thought that, because she adds all this discomfort and awkwardness, the sentimentality is in fact kept to a minimum. To me this film was actually anyting but a tearjerker because of the soberness and consistency of the colour palette, the well-balanced imagery and the way the actors are allowed to develop their characters. And the little bit of comic relief prevents the film from being top heavy and gives it a ring of truthfulness (my favourite scene is the one where the stranger is sitting in the kitchen and is being eyeballed by Frankie’s grandmother). It handles the subject matter with an air of respect where this easely could have ended up being a “movie of the week” kind of thing. The only thing I disliked was the bit at the end. The semi-happy ending felt forced to me.
Comment by mariken — Mon June 6, 2005 @ 21:20So, I guess it’s true. One either loves or hates this movie. You hated it, I loved it. We are probably both right…..