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Good concept, poorly executed.

Excellent but underrated film

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

Frank is a quirky, thrilling, and extremely entertaining film about an underground musician with a huge fake head and his band's mission of making an album, which is led astray by a newcomer. With its incredible soundtrack and stellar performances from Michael Fassbender, Domhnall Gleeson, and others, it's truly worth watching.Lenny Abrahamson does a great job of blending the music the bands play into the soundtrack for the whole film. This blending of diagetic and nondiagetic sound gives the film a charming quality and leads you to be more engrossed in it. Not only the band's music, but the dynamic of the band itself is gripping the whole way through. Although it's hard to pick a favorite, Fassbender's performance as Frank is concrete and strange in the best way. Pair this with the insecure qualities of Domhnall Gleeson as Jon and you have a great dynamic of friendliness, frustration, and even manipulation. After many watches, this movie remains truly impressive and worth watching more.With that said, some of the second half of the movie doesn't end up being as surreal and entertaining as the rest. Maybe it's a needed rest in the time line of the movie, but after each watch, this segment just doesn't remain as attention grabbing as the rest. That's only a minor gripe though, as I personally am a huge fan of this film.Overall, with a great story, acting, soundtrack, and more, Frank is a unique and excellent movie that I would recommend anybody to watch.

"Frank" explores the fine and not-so-fine line between creative genius and insanity. Although you might assume a movie about an alternative rock band with a lead singer who wears a giant fake head that he never takes off would be a work of fiction, the truth, as they say, is stranger, and provides a compelling basis for a movie."Frank" is co-written by Jon Ronson based on his experience playing keyboard in the Frank Sidebottom Oh Blimey Big Band in the late '80s. Frank Sidebottom was the alter ego of a man named Chris Sievey, who wore a giant fake head almost identical to the one Frank (Michael Fassbender) wears in the movie. Ronson based the film's main character, Jon (Domhnall Gleeson) on himself; both real and fictional Jon found themselves randomly in this band, ditching their existing lives in pursuit of musical greatness, trying to make sense of the enigma of the man in the giant head.With screenwriter Peter Straughan's ("Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy") help, Ronson dives into a fictional replication of his experience with the band. Gleeson's Jon is an aspiring songwriter completely lacking in inspiration who gets an unusual opportunity to play a gig for an experimental band called Soronprfbs after he witnesses their keyboardist attempting to drown himself. Jon has the time of his life and agrees to travel to Ireland with the group, only to discover it's not a road trip to play a few shows, but a retreat at which the unorthodox Frank will stop at nothing until he's recorded an astounding new album.For all the mystery shrouding his character, Frank is far from the most eccentric band member. In fact, he's the most congenial. We also learn about the other keyboardist, Don's (Scoot McNairy), volatile history with mental illness and musician Clara's (Maggie Gyllenhaal) propensity for violence. Unsurprisingly, Jon's gleaning from it all is that deep adversity and mental anguish is a pre- requisite to talent.Director Lenny Abrahamson brings a natural yet surreal quality that honors the weirdness of the story, while also helping us access the psychology of the characters and take interest in what's happening in a very rooted way. He keeps the reality of what's going on with its characters in play while experimenting with a number of scenes that push the bizarreness to varying levels. There are elements of black comedy, but also of honest, soul-stirring truth.The first half of "Frank" focuses more on the creative process and the mental headspace necessary to operate at peak creativity. When Jon signs them up for a very promising gig and begins pushing his own creative agenda, forcing the story to leave the confines of the Ireland vacation home, the film turns to examine the real pain of its characters and what happens to creativity when complications of fandom and notoriety enter the mix.Throughout it all we see a gradual change in Jon as a character, and he becomes less likable because of all that his dreams and naiveté have wrought. This has a slightly adverse effect on the viewing experience, making it kind of painful to watch all these troubled characters with their misguided attitudes drown themselves in a sea of expectations and principles. At the same time, this leads to an honest, moving redemptive arc in the final half hour of the movie, when this bizarre flower of a story opens up to reveal its fragile insides."Frank" can feel rough and disjointed tonally at points and grow a little irksome, but much like how a band with a weird sound still has artistic integrity somewhere underneath that drives that creative choice, "Frank" stays committed to looking at talent, creativity and mental illness in a very authentic, productive way that makes it worth the quirks.~Steven CThanks for reading! Visit Movie Muse Reviews for more

I truly wanted to like this movie so much. After I saw the trailer I was so excited. However, it turned out to be 90 minutes of gloom and despair with a sad ending. It's true the acting is good if not great but I cannot say I enjoyed this movie at all. For some reason I cannot submit a review with less than 10 lines of text. So I will be blabbering on for the next few. If you're reading this I would like to apologize for wasting your time and hope that my review didn't break your balls. I am only at 8 lines as of now so I will still be blabbering on for a bit. I am currently watching the new X-Men: Apocalypse film and will apparently not be doing a review on it considering I can't find enough content to write. That's all for this guy.:(

An office worker with pop dreams, Jon (Domhnall Gleeson), joins a touring band with an unpronounceable name. Turns out the charismatic frontman, Frank (Michael Fassbender—though you may not recognize him at first), is very, very good at doing what Jon's been doing badly—improvising hooky songs about the little things in life, including a ragged tuft in a carpet and a smelly bathroom in a bar. After a year of woodshedding at a remote spot in Ireland, Jon thinks the band's ready for some exposure… Not-so-hilarious complications ensue, and the film really comes together in the final scenes, which are unexpectedly poignant. Even if you're put off by all the indie shenanigans—my wife thought the big papier-mâché head was creepy; I thought it was a therapeutic prop, like David Byrne's big suit—I urge you to hang around for Frank's last song. Good work by Maggie Gyllenhaal as the temperamental Theremin player and François Civil as the disdainful French guitarist. Fans of musical savants like Captain Beefheart and Daniel Johnston, even Wild Man Fischer (if any), should definitely watch!