Frailty

Rating:
Summary: One Heck of a Movie !!!!
Review: This movie was enthralling. It's starts with the sound of thunder - suggesting you should know better than to believe everything you see and hear.

The biggest surprise is that this movie demonstrates that Bill Paxton is a talented actor & director. After his self-created talent purgatory of "Twister" and other gems, I assumed he was void of substance. Quite untrue. An excellent performance enhanced by a great script, EXCELLENT child actors and supporting cast.

Whether you you like drama, suspense or horror, this movie is great fun. See if you can guess all the twists and turns!

Rating:
Summary: The Family that prays together, SLAYS together!
Review: Faith, like sex and sacrifice, is one of the most mysterious aspects of human existence; what is it that would spur a man to give his own life for that which cannot be glimpsed with the eyes, or proved by the senses? With that in mind, "Frailty", Bill Paxton's fine little nugget of terror in the American Heartland is a fine film that marks the actor's promising directorial debut, and a desperate, dark journey into the depths of religious hysteria and the implosion of what seems a picture-perfect American family.

The movie is awe-inspiring, stunning, mystifying; it is so good that I'm not going to spoil any of its twists and turns, other than to say that Paxton's movie (with spare and well-paced writing by Brent Hanley) is a taut, nasty little homage to Alfred Hitchcock.

The plot, very quickly (and spoiler free): the FBI have been hunting for the "God's Hand Killer", a West Texas axe murderer who has been terrorizing the region for two decades. The film, presented as what Hitchcock would have called a 'frame story', begins with Matthew McConaughey confessing to the startled Dallas FBI Agent Wesley Doyle, played succinctly by Powers Boothe. McConaughey, who plays Fenton Meiks, contends that his brother, Adam, is the killer the FBI is looking for.

The movie then flashes back to Thurman, Texas in 1979, where Fenton and Adam (played remarkably by two awfully poised and very natural young actors, Matthew O'Leary and Jeremy Sumpter)are growing up with their father (Bill Paxton), an affable auto mechanic and a good father, who wakes his sons in the middle of the night to tell them that he's had a vision from the Angel of the Lord. Paxton, whose acting is solid and discomfiting, announces to his startled boys that the End of Times is at hand, and the family has a new duty: to cast out demons masquerading as people.

Paxton's new religious fervor don't come from the peaceful New Testament side of Christianity, either: new 'visions' follow in rapid succession, and Paxton brings home some grisly new tools the family of "Holy Superheroes" will need to carry out their new mission against the forces of Evil, including an axe named Otis. As might be expected, bloodshed and horror (though not gory horror; this is not meant to be a splatter film, and the camera averts its eye during the more horrific sequences).

What follows in the next hour and a half is an taut and astonishing suspense thriller in which the audience naturally empathizes with the plight of young Fenton Meeks: what do you do when you're 10 years old and your beloved father (and only parent) goes stark raving mad? Even better is the growing rift between older brother Fenton and the rest of the family; as Paxton's character drifts further into religious madness and blood frenzy, youngest son Adam embarks with him into credulity and a kind of idol-worship.

The cinematography (by Bill Butler, who worked on both "Jaws" and "One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest") is stark and haunting; Paxton uses the sere, flat, barren California landscape to telling effect, and the sequence in which Paxton finds 'Otis' is haunting and eerie. The acting here is also solid; Paxton portrays his religious zealot with an unnerving practicality and steadiness, McConaughey turns into a fine performance in which he gets to use his native Texas accent, and the two child actors lend strength and vitality to a film that would have been lost without good child leads. It's also nice to see Powers Boothe back in a film, and he does a nice job with the meaty role he's been given.

Be warned: "Frailty" is not a piece of horror-movie fluff, and it is not for those who are easily disturbed. Its horrors are as familiar as a family reunion, and its terrors linger long in the mind's eye. There are rewards for those who follow this unsettling little film to its end, but be warned: the price of looking is having to watch.

Rating:
Summary: great movie, great DVD
Review: After reading all the positive reviews for this movie, I decided to check it out. I'm glad I did, because I found this to be a very effective horror movie, and a terrific directing debut for Bill Paxton. Listening to the director's commentary on the DVD showed just how much effort and care was put into making it, and I found myself really interested in hearing about how this movie was constructed.

The plot concerns a seemingly psychopathic father who claims to have visions from God that instruct him to murder certain people. He always brings his two sons along to observe the murders (which he refers to as "destroying the demons"), and eventually he gets his sons to help him in his "mission." It's a scary thought to think that a guy like this exists, but an even scarier thought once we're forced to consider the possibility that this man might not be as crazy as we first suspected.

The "surprise ending" isn't really much of a surprise if we think about all the possibilities at the beginning of the movie. Matthew McConaughey is a suspicious character all along, when he comes out of nowhere to tell the FBI agent that he knows the identity of the God's Hand Killer. It's very suspicious, yet somehow the story he tells (made effective by the remarkable performances of Bill Paxton and the two child actors) sucked me in and made me believe mostly everything he was saying and suggesting in spite of myself.

A great movie, with a DVD amply loaded with interesting features, makes this a highly recommended purchase.

Rating:
Summary: Well paced thriller
Review: FRAILTY could be considered a horror, but it's too good to be placed in that genre. Most horror films are fairly B-grade, but Frailty is a well made film, with excellent acting and a nicely paced plot. I would class it as a thriller movie. An interesting theme about a father who receives a 'message' from God asking him to rid the earth of certain demons. The father enlists the help of his young sons, willing or not, on his mission. Surprise ending which perhaps puts a question mark over the father being a total nutcase.
Matthew McGaughley plays the son retelling the story later in life. This helps pace the film nicely and will keep you on the edge of your seat. I wasn't expecting much to begin with, as I had almost given up on so called new horror and thriller films - but Frailty is a very enthralling, if not disturbing, film. It made me think of two Christopher Walken fims ('At Close Range', and 'Dead Zone'). You'll see what I mean when you watch Frailty.

DVD SUMMARY:

Released by Paramount in Australia, the DVD has a nice 5.1 mix with great use of the subwoofer. Not much in the way of extras, except for the theatrical trailer. I rented it, but fans of this genre will probably want to buy the DVD.

Rating:
Summary: Much Better Than Expected
Review: I had, of course, heard of this film when it came out in the theatres. Nonetheless, I did not obtain the chance to see the film then. I did finally see the film now that it has been out on video and the like. I was totally surprised by how it developed and turned out. Some people are classifying this as horror and that is not the case. This film is more in the mystery, suspense territory: (the UNBREAKABLE league). I mean what the story sets the viewer up for takes a very stunning twist and turn at the end. Because I know movies well, I kind of was on target with my initial prediction but it was further off point than I would have ever imagined.

This is one of those films that contain many religious elements about God but SEEMINGLY taken too far to the zealous and fanatical level. However, although I am a devout Christian, I was kind of turned off by the craziness of Bill Paxton towards his children about killing the demons that lurk the earth. I thought for sure that he was out of his mind; that he had some kind of mental condition that was seriously affecting him. I was wrong as the film went on though because it is something that was substantial. It was actually a mission from God that he was put on with his sons who have their own twists with who is really who and who is not on the dad's side and who is really what the dad is against. I do not want to give all of the plot away but this is definitely a film that you gotta see. I really do not promote films that much but I am going to get all the people I know to see this masterpiece of a film. The directions that it travels down is fascinating. Although it did not make too much noise at the box office, it stil is a very good film. Get it and watch it to see what I am talking about.

Rating:
Summary: Promising, but ultimately average
Review: Frailty is the type of suspense/psychological thriller that relies heavily on a surprising plot twist to make it stand out in a genre that is usually over saturated each year. If done well, this type of film leaves a lasting impression and usually develops quite a fan base, the prime example being The Usual Suspects. By placing so much emphasis on the plot twist or surprise ending though, the film effectively "puts all its eggs in one basket", so to speak. The surprise ending therefore must not only be excellent, but must also be able to stand up to scrutiny from viewers who will attempt to punch holes in the plot.
Frailty is based on a very promising and intriguing, albeit unoriginal, concept. The film presents a killer who takes the lives of sinners in God's name, then blurs the lines between whether or not that killer is actually justified in his actions. The premise itself certainly raises questions, sparks debate, and provokes thought on the part of the viewer, all of which are aspects of good filmmaking. However, this idea has already been explored and presented much better in the film Seven.
The area in which Frailty really suffers though is at its very heart, its surprise ending. The film does a good job of leading the viewer down one path and then completely turning around and catching the viewer off guard, but the twist seems forced and rushed, and we are left with very little evidence to strengthen its plausibility. The film expects its viewers to accept much of its plot twist on faith alone, which is ironic and clever, considering much of the film deals with faith, though I doubt it is intentional. In the end, the surprise ending of Frailty, and therefore the entire film, does not pack enough punch to remain nearly as memorable as many other movies based upon similar formulas.

Rating:
Summary: Chilling Gothic Horror Flick that is sure to please.
Review: This movie has got one of the most twisted endings I have ever seen, but it only adds to the characterization and storyline that makes "Frailty" stand alone in the world of horror movies. Relying more on plot than on gore, you learn more about the characters in the film rather than the anatomy of their insides. With excellent acting by Bill Paxton and newcome Matt O'Leary as young Fenton, the film shows religious fanaticism and doubt. Based on God in the old testament, it shows how God's will is above the law in order to protect His kingdom. Another great aspect of this film is trying to figure out who is telling the trunth and who isn't. We all know Fenton doesn't believe his father, but the question "Frailty" asks is, who do we believe? Even at the end your head is still spinning from the fast, dramatic plot change, so even seeing the movie once isn't enough to figure out EXACTLY what happened. An excellent movie promising scares and suspense, in a gothic version on the Old Testament.

Rating:
Summary: Disturbing and Clever Debut from Paxton
Review: This is one of the better horror movies that I have seen for a while. This film's original storyline is reminiscent of classic horror movies that were acutally scary. Frailty kept my attention with it's great preformances and brutal overall feel of its story. Also, this film could have been extremely gory, but instead wasn't. It focused on building tension and unsettling suspense, without the 80 liters of blood per frame. I definitely recommend this one to any horror or suspense movie fan.

Rating:
Summary: Spooky & Unsettling
Review: This is probably one of the better horror movies I've seen in a long time. Unlike those cheesy, slasher flicks that cause you to jump maybe once or twice in your seat, this movie presents a subtle horror that stays with you long after you have watched it.

The movie is about a widowed man, played with fierce intensity by Bill Paxton, who wakes up in the middle of the night one night and has a vision. He believes God came to him and asked him to rid the world of evil demons aka humans by murdering them and that God would send him special weapons to do the task. The religious (insane?) man wants to fulfill God's will and asks his two sons to help him.

The oldest son believes his father is crazy while the youngest boy is too little to believe anything different than what his father says is true. Skip to the future and the oldest son, now played by Matthew McConaughey, goes to a detective to tell him everything he knows about the murders.

Flash backs and flash forwards help this unsettling tale unfold. The scariest part for me wasn't the murders themselves (which aren't really seen), its the fact that these boys' innocence was stripped from them and they watched helplessly as their father went on a mad murder spree.

Also unsettling are the questions this movie raises about the father's sanity and God. Was the father really insane or was it really God's will for him to rid the world of those people? Does God seek out certain people to take out the bad seeds for him? If the man was insane and God didn't want him to kill those people, why did he find that mysterious axe and where did "the list" come from? Its questions like these that will leave you hanging and leave you feeling spooked.

With great performances (what else would you expect from Bill or Matthew?), an incredible cast and an extremely spooky setting, this is the perfect scary movie to watch if you want to be scared out of your mind.

The most gripping moment of the movie for me was how the father punishes one of his boys for telling the police sheriff about the murders. That scene will stay with me for days now and I'm sure I'll have nightmares about it too.

For another deep thinking thriller that leaves you wth tons of chills, check out Identity with John Cusack, Ray Liotta, Amanda Peet and Clea Duvall. It's about a bunch of strangers who find themselves all stranded at a little Motel during a rainstorm. When they all begin to die one by one they realize that they aren't there by chance and that someone or something has them there for a reason.

Rating:
Summary: A New Horror Classic
Review: For a horror film in this day and age, they are few and far between to find great ones.
Although, I'm a Horror Film Fanatic. I see every horror film that is released in the states.
Frailty is a homage to great classic horror films. The intensity of the film is overwelming. It's low-budget but it works because it's the simplicity that makes it scary. It's not glamourous or pretty. But, it's a horror film. In my mind pretty horror films never work. It's gritty, it's mean, but it is something that could take place in any neighborhood in America.
It's simple but real.
All of the scares and emotions are real.
A great film and a Horror Classic. I saw it in an Independent Film Theater and bought as soon as it hit shelves on DVD.