Still On the List

So, continuing in my plan to review here any movie I see, whether it's new or not... this weekend I watched the movie Frailty. I put this in my top 100 list when I first made it years ago, but I have to admit that since then, some of the details of the movie had become a bit fuzzy for me. I own the DVD, so I decided to watch it again -- not expecting my opinion of it to change, just to "refresh my memory" of it again.

I'm pleased to say I did enjoy the movie just as much this time around. For those who don't know, this is a movie directed by (and starring) Bill Paxton, about a man who believes he is visited by an angel and tasked with the duty to destroy demons that walk among us here on Earth. Demons, mind you, that look exactly like regular people. He has two pre-teen sons, one who embraces the holy cause, and one who sees his father as a cold-blooded killer that has to be stopped somehow.

The thing that impressed me most about this movie, both the first time around and now in this subsequent viewing, was that it's really and truly a horror film. That word is used to describe a genre that generally consists of movies designed to scare you, or provoke disgust and revulsion. And I'm not saying that's not valid, nor that there aren't some great movies of that kind out there. But Frailty is a movie about a situation that is truly horrific -- what if you're a young child and your father is a serial killer? How do you cope? What do you do? What can you do?

The pacing of the movie is excellent. It zips along at a brisk hour-and-a-half that leaves you tense all the way. The writing does an excellent job of putting you, the viewer, with the plight of the young boy trying to stop his father. The direction is taut; Bill Paxton knows better than to be showy for no reason in his major theatrical debut behind the camera.

The acting is also top notch. Bill Paxton himself plays a character that could have easily been a wild, crazy man, and does it with complete believability. Matthew McConaughey is incredibly contained and restrained, compared to the sorts of things we tend to see him in these days, and it's unsettling and absolutely right for this film. Powers Boothe takes a pretty thankless and uninteresting part on paper and portrays it in a way where you see the wheels turning in his head as well.

And young Matt O'Leary, who plays the doubter of the two boys, is simply phenomenal. From his performance in this film, I'm pretty mystified that he didn't show up in tons and tons of movies afterward. You go through the wringer with his character, and he sells it every step of the way.

The movie has a very interesting ending which I assume for some could be the most enjoyable aspect of it all. And don't get me wrong, I think it's pretty cool, too. But the real treats in the film are, in my mind, all the other elements I've mentioned.

If you haven't seen it, I give it my strong recommendation. It's still an A in my book.