FRANK
Directed by Lenny Abramson
Written by Jon Ronson, Peter Straughan
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Domhnall Gleeson, Maggie Gyllenhall, Scott McNary
It is wrong, wrong, wrong to put Michael Fassbender’s lovely face behind such a ludicrous blowup head, but if you can get beyond this, you might find FRANK a quirky and kind-hearted movie. Its subject is mental illness and how the insertion of a sane person into a fairly stable group of nuts can quickly throw the group dynamics off.
Gleeson plays a key-boardist, who’s recruited beachside after the near-drowning of the group’s current musician. Jon seems like a likable enough fellow, but it becomes clear that his attempts to reach beyond the groups functional lack of ambition throws all of them into danger. Your sympathy with his rallying of the troops quickly fades into dislike as you see where it leads.
This is not a laugh out loud movie and sometimes its quirkiness wears a bit thin. But on the whole, it works well in a low-keyed way. Hard not to like it, but I sure wish one of the others had worn the disguise.
 
Patti Abbott