Each summer, Hollywood pumps out it biggest budgets, explosions, and laughter to get mass audiences into theaters. But certain films with lower budgets, limited releases, and honest humanity slip under the thunder of whatever Marvel is putting out. Boyhood and A Most Wanted Man were two of my favorites that fall into that category. And then there's Frank, under-under the radar–one of those you can only see if you live near a bigger city that has a little theater that has a manager who cares about movies as an art-form, and not just a piggy bank.
I stood in line at the Classic Gateway theater in Fort Lauderdale a couple weeks ago, excited to finally see Frank. Then the theaters electricity went out–all movies cancelled for the night. I scrambled to my phone to check showtimes for the rest of the week and alas, my last chance to see it was foiled. I later discovered that Frank was available to rent off Amazon and iTunes for $6.99, cheaper than most movie tickets and a convenient trend recently followed by limited release films. I’ve since watched it twice, and I think you should consider seeing it too.
Frank follows wannabe musician Jon. Like most people wanting to be something they’re not, Jon lives with his parents and works a cubicle job. Chance smiles on him when he’s offered to fill-in as the keyboard player for “The Soronprfbs” one night; this propels Jon onto his journey of recording an album with the band of misfits–all led by Frank. Frank wears a giant papermache head and never takes it off. Ever. Frank’s mystery and talent as a musician intensifies Jon’s hope for greatness as a part of the group. He contributes rent money to their secluded recording house. He starts building a social media presence to get the band’s name out there without them knowing. All this builds up to an opportunity at an important gig in America. Is this the chance at greatness the band’s been waiting for? Or just Jon’s?
Frank’s first two acts nearly succumb to typical Sundance quirkiness, but the movie takes a massive tonal shift in it’s last chapter–and it’s then that it goes from an interesting and funny movie to a poignant essay on mental illness. Domhnall Gleeson is an endearing protagonist–he’s a ginger we can root for and I commend his talent. He’s great in Anna Karenina (2012) and he’s great in this. I wish him and his career the best, but Gleeson’s efforts are overshadowed by the powerhouse of Fassbender as Frank. He disproves and even makes you forget that actors faces need to be seen in the first place. His use of voice and physicality is unprecedented. Remember when The Dark Knight Rises came out and people were like “Oh wow, Tom Hardy shows so much with his eyes, we don’t even need to see his mouth talk!” Frank takes that notion a few steps further. In the actors medium of film where eyes are everything, our title character’s whole head is covered. But Fassbender makes it work remarkably.
The makers of Frank make sure you don’t dwell on just one thing about the film; it’s packed with subtle moments that are telling of who the characters are as artists (insane people). The film opens with moments of Jon unable to escape his art. He can’t help but come up with a shabby song about a lady with a red bag passing by him. One of my favorite moments was seeing Jon in one scene involuntarily play notes of a keyboard on his bed. I played the trumpet through 10th grade and am cursed to this day by the idiosyncrasy of playing invisible trumpet notes. All artists have vices like Jon’s. Film majors critique the lack of directional lighting in your Instagram feed. Graphic Designers are haunted by the Papyrus fonts in restaurant menus. Writers unfollow you on Twitter because you think you’re cool for avoiding capital letters.
You don’t necessarily have to enjoy making things to enjoy Frank. If you like alternative music you’ll enjoy the fun that’s poked at the sometimes absurdity of indie tunes. If you like celebrating weirdness, you’ll like Frank. I recall a scene where Jon admits to Frank his fake head is kinda weird, to which Frank replies: “Well, normal faces are weird too. The way they’re… Smooth, smooth, smooth… and then BLEH! All bumpy and holes. I mean what are eyes? Like a science fiction movie. Don’t get me started on lips–like the edges of a very serious wound.” This funny but profound dialogue calls to attention why we perceive something is weird. If we only live and consume a narrow worldview, culture, and diet, every other religion, thought, food, language, and custom unlike our own will alienate us. Diversifying our psychological and spiritual intake of media, reading, and friendship will widen the lens through which we see the world and ourselves.
At the heart of Frank is still this torture of trying to make something. “I try, but it doesn’t come out good”, one of my favorite (yet so simple) quotes from the film. Frank’s band of misfits has serious issues. Their manager Don is nearly suicidal. Clara wants to control Frank, hurting the band’s chances at success. Each main character ultimately wants something they can’t have. Success, love, being great. As much as you think you’re finally doing it well or right, hard work is met with failure rather than immediate success. Finally, and what Frank drives home with its last moments, is the fact that we can’t know we’re in the wrong place or mindset until we ruin ourselves or others.
“Frank”: The Insanity of Creating