As this story unravels it becomes clear that it's not going to offer anything out of the ordinary and that's to the films benefit because it's strength comes from the performances of it's actors. Story starts out with Lizzie Morrison (Emily Mortimer) who is the mother of 9 year old Frankie (Jack McElhone) and along with her mother Nell (Mary Riggans) they keep moving from city to city so that Frankie's abusive father cannot find them. Frankie is deaf and doesn't know about his real father because Lizzie has told him that his father is part of a crew on a ship called the Accra and is always away at sea.
*****SPOILER ALERT*****
Frankie writes to his father through a post office box that Lizzie has set up so that she can intercept his letters and write back to him herself. One day a real ship called the Accra comes into port and Frankie hopes that he will meet his father so now Lizzie tries to find a stranger to become him and her friend Marie (Sharon Small) sets up a meeting with a man she knows. Lizzie meets the stranger (Gerard Butler) and they agree to the arrangement that he will pretend to be Frankie's father in return for money but after spending time with the Morrison's the stranger starts to care for them.
Director Shona Auerbach makes her debut with this film and she shows good instincts and patience with her actors especially the scenes between Mortimer and Butler. One stands out in particular and it's the scene where the two actors stand in a doorway and just look at one another and one can't help but think that these two characters are feeling the exact same thing for one another. For the most part there are no surprises in the script by Andrea Gibb but the film comes across as surprisingly effective in it's straightforward manner which also allows for the actors to each have strong moments. I was one of those who thought Butler was terribly dull in "The Phantom of the Opera" but he makes up for it here in a nicely played quiet performance that makes me want to see him again. For me this film works especially well due to the performance of Mortimer who has slowly developed into a good actress over the years and though she has no formal training her honest and natural persona shine through. This isn't a film that will tug at your heart nor will it make you scream for Academy Award nominations but it's a story that (for the most part) excels in it's simplicity and gives it's actors the chance to expose some true emotions.
*****SPOILER ALERT*****
Frankie writes to his father through a post office box that Lizzie has set up so that she can intercept his letters and write back to him herself. One day a real ship called the Accra comes into port and Frankie hopes that he will meet his father so now Lizzie tries to find a stranger to become him and her friend Marie (Sharon Small) sets up a meeting with a man she knows. Lizzie meets the stranger (Gerard Butler) and they agree to the arrangement that he will pretend to be Frankie's father in return for money but after spending time with the Morrison's the stranger starts to care for them.
Director Shona Auerbach makes her debut with this film and she shows good instincts and patience with her actors especially the scenes between Mortimer and Butler. One stands out in particular and it's the scene where the two actors stand in a doorway and just look at one another and one can't help but think that these two characters are feeling the exact same thing for one another. For the most part there are no surprises in the script by Andrea Gibb but the film comes across as surprisingly effective in it's straightforward manner which also allows for the actors to each have strong moments. I was one of those who thought Butler was terribly dull in "The Phantom of the Opera" but he makes up for it here in a nicely played quiet performance that makes me want to see him again. For me this film works especially well due to the performance of Mortimer who has slowly developed into a good actress over the years and though she has no formal training her honest and natural persona shine through. This isn't a film that will tug at your heart nor will it make you scream for Academy Award nominations but it's a story that (for the most part) excels in it's simplicity and gives it's actors the chance to expose some true emotions.