SVS: “Dear Frankie”

Still in “Much Too Hasty” mode, but one of my “Draft-and-Follow” films just popped up on AMAZON PRIME, so I’m just going to roll this one out there and call it good.

Here’s Dear Frankie.

After years of lying to her son and pretending his deadbeat father is away at sea aboard the HMS Accra, a protective mother must find a man willing to pose as the boy’s dad when the ship docks right by their home.

In addition to PRIME, the film can be rented from AMAZON INSTANT($), YOUTUBE($), and SOME OTHERS($). And while it’s neither flashy nor groundbreaking, it’s a quiet-yet-powerful reflection on the importance of family and on the challenges of both fatherhood and motherhood. Well worth an evening’s attention.

It’s beautifully shot (which isn’t surprising, given that its director, Shona Auerbach, has worked as a cinematographer for many years), and the story is really sweet-hearted and gentle (if fairly predictable). But the real reason to watch this one is for its trio of leads, who are beyond charming. Mortimer is luminous; McElhone, mesmerizing. And almost miraculously, this is still the film I think of whenever someone mentions Gerard Butler, which probably makes Zack Snyder sad, but makes me very, very happy.)

Interestingly (and distressingly), this is the only feature feature Auerbach has ever made. And that’s sad, because she has a wonderful way of making her point without pounding it home (visually or script-wise). And goodness knows we could use a bit more of that in the cinematic realm. (OK, a lot more.)

In his review, Roger Ebert reflects not only the impressive subtlety of the film’s performances, but the equally-impressive (and subtle) choices of its director:

…the bold long shot near the end of Dear Frankie allows the film to move straight as an arrow toward its emotional truth, without a single word or plot manipulation to distract us. While they are looking at each other, we are looking at them, and for a breathless, true moment, we are all looking at exactly the same fact.

Attribution(s): All posters, publicity images, and stills are the property of Miramax and other respective production studios and distributors.