Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Frank (2014)

Director: Lenny Abrahamson. Cast: Michael Fassbender, Domhnall Gleeson, Maggie Gyllenhaal. 95 min. Rated R. UK/Ireland. Comedy/Drama.

Rocker wannabe joins an eccentric band (aren't they all?) lead by a musician with a big fake head. I know, it's so odd. But with some patience, you'll find this an extremely brave and poignant film. Some of the symbolism ("fake" head, shattered head) is obvious, but the film is mostly open to interpretation. My take: it's a more complicated rendering of one Woody Allen film, that some eccentricities are better left untouched. As with any Fassbender movie (even when he has a big fake head on), I found this recommendable. Guaranteed to hum the ending song when it's over.

Mo says:

5 comments:

  1. Although I was expecting a biopic of the eccentric English 'musician' Frank Sidebottom (check him out on youtube: http://youtu.be/w8KQhbWDeI8 ),they only really used his mask. It was still an enjoyable romp and I will be lending the DVD to a few friends.

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    1. Wow. I had no clue this person really existed. The guy is till creepy, even by today's standards though.

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  2. He was a truly weird person and made little impact in his home country, sadly he died almost penniless in 2010.

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  3. I just discovered that the movie was co-written by Jon Ronson who was the keyboard player in Frank's band. He was written a biography of Frank Sidebottom which I just bought for my Kindle.

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    1. Your interest made me look further into life. Bizarre story:

      http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Sievey

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