Dear Frankie

This movie is a little Gem. Gerard Butler is such a great actor and the little boy in this movie was superb.

The people who made this gem of a film have every right to be proud of it. 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. Much of the story is not told through the dialogue, but rather through visual images, bits of Scottish scenery that only someone who lived there would know, and through the expressions that flow across the faces of the actors. Although Shona Auerbach didn't get gimmicky about it at all, 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. For example, there's a lovely moment where, just by the way the characters chew on bits of candy, you can read volumes about what they are thinking and feeling. In a later scene, 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 parade of emotions that comes across his face, from shock, to pity, to sorrow, to anger, and then to a profound respect. It's a powerful, pivotal moment in the film, and Auerbach and her cast handle it brilliantly. 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. He's already demonstrated uncanny versatility in other roles, and I had been thinking that he has the stuff to become a top-notch actor, given some better opportunities and the right challenges. His work here proves that he already IS a remarkable actor - not only one of the most talented working at this time, but also one of the most SKILLED. The story itself is very simple, and in less skilled hands, it could have been overly sentimental. As handled here, it is memorable and very, very dear. And for the record, I studied and worked in theatre for several years, so I know a little about the level of artistry that is showcased here. These are all careers to watch.

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.

This is one of my favorite movies. Most people haven't heard of it, but it's a gem. The story is enthralling, the acting is superb, the characters are very lovable, and the fact that we never even learn Gerard Butler's character's name is perfect. He is The Stranger, hired by a mother who keeps fleeing her abusive husband to play her husband when a set of circumstances arises and her deaf son thinks his father is coming to the town in Scotland where they have just moved to. The boy has been writing letters to his dad, not realizing he is writing to his mom, who answers the letter so he feels some connection to the dad he doesn't know is the cause of his deafness. So the mother asks a friend for advice what to do, how to hire someone to pretend to be her husband, and spend real time with the boy. The friend suggests Gerard Butler's character, who turns out to be an amazing part of the story. Only at the end do we learn who he is, and we are left wondering, in true magical style, what might happen after the curtains close on the movie, and the credits roll. It's one of those perfect movies. I highly recommend this, and have given it as gifts before. I've had it for years, and watch it at least once a year.

I saw this film in 2006, although I've wanted to see it since it was first reviewed on television. I remember thinking, "yes, I think this is a kind of movie I'd enjoy. Gentle and full of real people, with a dash of romance." It took me a while to find it on DVD. I'd forgotten the name. I only remembered "The Stranger" and that a kid was involved. So, I finally get it, watch it, and I think, "Oh, my. That was wonderful." Here's why: 1. Gerard Butler is a revelation. I'd seen him prior on a DVD I own, Tomb Raider: CRADLE OF LIFE, and thought he was very hot and charismatic, holding his own amazingly well against the also charismatic and physically stunning Angelina Jolie. But in DEAR FRANKIE, he delivers a lower key and layered performance. He's not just the hunk or the bad boy or the muscle-bound hero. He's the unnamed man who comes out of the blue to help a woman who needs him to pretend he's a young boy's daddy. He needs to play his part then leave. For money. But we can see something else: He's a man with secrets, and secret hurts, and deep needs that the film never reveals. No, you see it in Butler's eyes, in his body language, in his reactions. Lovely. 2. Emily Mortimer. She is absolutely wonderful as the protective mom who has had a very hard time due to an abusive husband from which she flees. She portrays both determination and vulnerability and neediness and a waifishness that makes you root for her. She's believably desperate. The woman who plays Emily's mother also adds something special to the film, as does the somewhat strange air of the boy Frankie. He's deaf in the film, and he doesn't get much dialogue, so he has to make it work with gestures and expressions. He does fine. A bit wooden in spots, but for the context, it's fine. As the story unfolds and we learn things--why Frankie is deaf, who the Stranger is--and we see a believable chemistry erupt between Butler and Mortimer, all we can do is surrender to the gently-paced, emotional stroll through these wounded people's lives. And that kiss...that kiss. It's so perfectly done, mixing apprehension and desire and all the holding back and baggage and tenderness. Oh, that kiss. A lovely, lovely little film. I recommend it.

For some reason, unlike some viewers, I had no trouble understanding the accents and I listen to BBC in the wee hours when I awaken. On some programs there are some people interviewed who I can not understand much of what they are saying. So I am a tough critic on accents. I am American. This movie rated in popularity just beneath Phantom of the Opera for Gerald Butler. All actors were believable. The little boy was also excellent. It was a heartwarming movie, realistic but not overly dramatic, with good timing. The long pauses were true to life. No sex scenes and no blood. My kind of movie!

The acting pleased me, and the shape of the story, and the look and feel of the film. Good work! The first time I saw the film, I needed more help to notice the right things and ask the right questions. For instance, I wanted more time to watch Frankie as he met with clues to his Mother's Lie. [spoilers] Later it struck me that there is an interesting parallel between Lizzie's Stranger and another Stranger who also (1) came as if from nowhere, (2) won the heart of a needy girl, (3) showed what a "real" Father is like, and then (4) left -- but he is coming back. What he did was a gift. We don't know when he will return, so we wait. He is even a hero on a white horse. There may be a hundred literary parallels, but you will have guessed that I'm talking about Jesus (see the writings of John and Paul in the Bible). Of course I don't mean that the parallel is perfect. Lizzie's Stranger has his own needs; he is a pale reflection in a troubled pool. And I don't mean to say that the writer and the director/cinematographer had the other Stranger in mind. He was off camera; suddenly we realize he is there. Only the surface of this movie is what some people call "realistic." (That's rather like our lives, isn't it?) The problem posed at the outset is Lizzie's Big Lie, and the movie never deals with it to the satisfaction of some people. Maybe they are right. But I see the silent mercy of God releasing Lizzie from the spider's web she has woven, the sticky web that protects and ensnares. God, unrecognized, still cares for Lizzie and Frankie. His mercy is also for a Stranger closed in on himself. It is even for the man who was Frankie's physical father, when the last of his capacity for self-giving love has died. A few things are done poorly, or are in poor taste. And, sad to say, "Dear Frankie" shows signs of spiritual emptiness. Well, so do I. Let's notice the symptoms, but let's enjoy the film for the good that is in it. Even at the end, Lizzie has something still to learn: no one has to deserve to be forgiven. The Scottish accent was not too hard to handle, and there are subtitles. Anyway, for some of us the accent is like music. So is a good story well told.

Dear Frankie was an endearing movie. It was simply a lump in your throat kind of a story from beginning to end. The boy that played Frankie was equally as good as the boy cast as Peter in "Finding Neverland". I loved the charaters (all of them, even Mom (except for her language). The story was beautiful, sad and sweet with a couple of wonderfully surprising twists. I really didn't know that Frankie had caught on. The acting was so good that it made the movie. We all know the story and the acting go hand in hand. I've shown it to several people who had never heard of it and so far I haven't sat through it with anyone who didn't need a kleenex before it was over. I did see room for a sequel and I would be thrilled if they would do one. It's so refreshing to see movies like this. Can never understand why it wasn't a bigger hit in the U.S. I'm always amazed at how the film industry can put so much junk in movie houses just because somebody famous is in a bad movie. If you haven't seen this movie - you will miss joining the rest of us for some "warm gingerbread and cinnamon tea". I know Gerard Butler and Emily Mortimer both said they were proud of this movie as they certainly should be. I was too!!!!