Bathed in a softly glowing palette of muted colors, DEAR FRANKIE puts three bruised characters in the forefront, surrounds them with believable supporting characters grounded in reality, and takes its time in letting a well-written script unwind as these actors draw you into the story.
The idea behind the story is a simple one of a mother protecting her deaf child by shielding him from the truth about his brutal father. When the son builds up the fantasy of a sea-faring father too busy with his work as a sailor to spend much time with them, the mother invents a surrogate father for a day who will fulfill the boy's wish to see the father who means so much to him through letters (actually written by the mother).
The only shortcoming in the script is giving The Stranger (Gerard Butler) too little screen time. He comes into the story after a good 45 minutes have been spent building up to his entrance and his performance is a well crafted one, sturdy and dependable throughout. His scenes with the boy are tender without becoming mawkish or overly sentimental and have the ring of truth about them. The aquarium scene shows how much he has warmed to the idea of being the boy's father with just a simple close-up of Butler's face watching the child (Jack McElhone), conveying without words the gradual change coming over the gruff man.
But the mainstay of the film are the performances by the female lead, Emily Mortimer and, of course, young McElhone, who carry the first part of the film entirely. There never seems to be a false move or moment between them. The woman's grandmother, Mary Mulligan, is also excellent, providing rough humor but always very real.
A charming musical score provides a nice background touch to the proceedings and the bleak Glasgow landscapes give the film the sort of brooding atmosphere it needs. The ending could have opted for more of a Hollywood touch, but this was avoided and viewers can suppose what they like of the fact that the mother and The Stranger may indeed have a future together when she has time to think about it.
Well worth watching but an independent film not likely to draw a wide audience unless Butler's fans increase its box-office worth. Nevertheless, there are some strong individual scenes that more than make up for the slow pacing and the story maintains interest because all of the characterizations are right on target.
The idea behind the story is a simple one of a mother protecting her deaf child by shielding him from the truth about his brutal father. When the son builds up the fantasy of a sea-faring father too busy with his work as a sailor to spend much time with them, the mother invents a surrogate father for a day who will fulfill the boy's wish to see the father who means so much to him through letters (actually written by the mother).
The only shortcoming in the script is giving The Stranger (Gerard Butler) too little screen time. He comes into the story after a good 45 minutes have been spent building up to his entrance and his performance is a well crafted one, sturdy and dependable throughout. His scenes with the boy are tender without becoming mawkish or overly sentimental and have the ring of truth about them. The aquarium scene shows how much he has warmed to the idea of being the boy's father with just a simple close-up of Butler's face watching the child (Jack McElhone), conveying without words the gradual change coming over the gruff man.
But the mainstay of the film are the performances by the female lead, Emily Mortimer and, of course, young McElhone, who carry the first part of the film entirely. There never seems to be a false move or moment between them. The woman's grandmother, Mary Mulligan, is also excellent, providing rough humor but always very real.
A charming musical score provides a nice background touch to the proceedings and the bleak Glasgow landscapes give the film the sort of brooding atmosphere it needs. The ending could have opted for more of a Hollywood touch, but this was avoided and viewers can suppose what they like of the fact that the mother and The Stranger may indeed have a future together when she has time to think about it.
Well worth watching but an independent film not likely to draw a wide audience unless Butler's fans increase its box-office worth. Nevertheless, there are some strong individual scenes that more than make up for the slow pacing and the story maintains interest because all of the characterizations are right on target.