FRANK
Starring Domhnall Gleeson, Michael Fassbender, Maggie Gyllenhaal
Directed by Lenny Abrahamson
“Can you play C, F and G?” That’s the extent of the interview Jon (Domhnall Gleeson) endures before being thrust onstage as keyboardist for Soronprfbs, an avant-garde noise band fronted by Frank, a freeform lyric-spouting madman (and possible genius) wearing a giant papier-mâché head (and played by Michael Fassbender, already notorious for another oversized appendage).
Heavy on aspirations but light on talent, Jon soon finds himself holed up in a cabin with the band, making meagre contributions to their atonal recordings. Keeping his Twitter and YouTube followers apprised of developments as new musical scales and instruments are invented, he also finds himself a lightning rod for the scorn of theremin player Clara (Maggie Gyllenhaal). Despite Soronprfbs’ best efforts to remain undiscovered, they land a showcase set at SXSW. Alas, a shot at conventional success only sends Frank further off the rails.
Drawing from his own tenure as keyboardist for real-life oddball Frank Sidebottom, co-writer (and esteemed gonzo journalist) Jon Ronson also incorporates unstable elements of Syd Barrett and Daniel Johnston in creating a messianic figure who possesses an uncanny charisma despite his unchanging artificial visage. (One of the film’s best running gags finds Frank narrating his facial expressions: “Flattered grin, followed by bashful half-smile.”)
Deftly switching narrative rhythms like Zappa changed time signatures; director Lenny Abrahamson depicts the delirious exhilaration of being in the presence of someone transmitting on frequencies no one else is attuned to. As the film shifts keys from absurdity to tragicomedy, he also illustrates that not all outsiders can withstand going viral and there’s nothing particularly glamorous about mental illness. What a strange, uproarious and unexpectedly involving film this is.
