Dear Frankie (2004)

After having responded to her son's numerous letters in the guise of his father, a woman hires a stranger to pose as his dad when meeting him.

Director:

Shona Auerbach

Writer:

Andrea Gibb (screenplay)

Stars:

Emily Mortimer, Jack McElhone, Gerard Butler

8 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Emily Mortimer	...	Lizzie
Jack McElhone	...	Frankie
Mary Riggans	...	Nell
Sharon Small	...	Marie
Sophie Main	...	Serious Girl
Katy Murphy	...	Miss MacKenzie
Sean Brown	...	Ricky Monroe
Jayd Johnson	...	Catriona
Anna Hepburn	...	Headmistress
Rony Bridges	...	Post Office Clerk
Douglas Stewart Wallace	...	Stamp Shop Keeper
Elaine M. Ellis	...	Librarian (as Elaine Mackenzie Ellis)
Carolyn Calder	...	Barmaid
John Kazek	...	Ally
Gerard Butler	...	The Stranger

Storyline

Nine-year-old Frankie and his single mum Lizzie have been on the move ever since Frankie can remember, most recently arriving in a seaside Scottish town. Wanting to protect her deaf son from the truth that they've run away from his father, Lizzie has invented a story that he is away at sea on the HMS Accra. Every few weeks, Lizzie writes Frankie a make-believe letter from his father, telling of his adventures in exotic lands. As Frankie tracks the ship's progress around the globe, he discovers that it is due to dock in his hometown. With the real HMS Accra arriving in only a fortnight, Lizzie must choose between telling Frankie the truth or finding the perfect stranger to play Frankie's father for just one day...

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Plot Keywords:

jackknife | payphone | telephone booth | letter writing | stranger | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for language

Did You Know?

Trivia

The song that plays while Lizzie (Emily Mortimer) is sitting on a bench crying after a fruitless attempt to find a "daddy" for Frankie, is written by one of the most famous contemporary Estonian composer - Arvo Pärt.

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Goofs

In one of Frankie's letters to his dad, the text of the letter does not correspond to the voiceover. We hear Frankie say, "Ricky Munroe told me. Trust him to put his big feet right in it." but the letter reads, "Trust him to put his size threes right in it."

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Quotes

[writing a letter to his dad]
Frankie (Voice-Over): Dear Da, did you know something? We're moving again. Ma says it's time. She says it's definitely the last time but she says that every single time. Nana Gourley says, if there is a next time, they'll have to carry her out in a box and ma says don't tempt her!

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Crazy Credits

Special thanks to ... all at Deaf Connections, ... all at Sigma Films, ... Esther and Harvey ...

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Soundtracks

The Secret Sun
(2003)
Written by Jesse Harris
Published by Sony / ATV Music Publishing Ltd.
Performed by Jesse Harris and The Ferdinandos
Courtesy of the Verve Music Group
Licensed by kind permission from the Universal Film & TV Licensing Division

User Reviews

A Heart-Tugging Family Romance

"Dear Frankie" is a heart-tugging family romance with decidedly non-Hollywood touches that add to its charm and poignancy.

We are swept into both sides of an unusual epistolary relationship -- one between a mother and son, as each takes on alternative identities to communicate, and we get to hear their adopted voices as well.

The son is an isolated deaf kid who won't talk but pours out his heart in letters, while his fiercely protective mother pretends to be his fictional seagoing dad in response. We are drawn into their parallel stories from each perspective, as their defensively claustrophobic relationship has an outlet in this fictional geography as they gradually start dealing with the real world.

Emily Mortimer combines strength and naked vulnerability, as she did in "About Adam" and "Lovely and Amazing," while the son is captivating in an almost mimed role without being as treacly as the kid playing Peter in "Finding Neverland." Debut director Shona Auerbach keeps the movie tethered to reality with evocative use of Glasgow and its active port. We are anchored in a working class bloke territory that becomes a rocky shore for an untethered single mom living with her mother and her kid. This is tellingly symbolized when Mortimer braves a rough waterfront bar.

And then re-emphasized in a hotel tea parlor whose atmosphere electrically changes the minute rugged Gerard Butler pops up on screen. Epitomizing that cinematic manliness that is so talked about as lacking from most American actors these days, Butler's absolutely authentic masculinity instantly telescopes what this mother and child have been missing, and not just his sexual gravitas. Butler movingly demonstrates how a guy's guy plays paternal through such simple things as football, skipping stones, eating and of course dancing.

I don't know if I missed the clues to the concluding twists, but Hollywood would never let these lovely mysteries be, let alone as an achingly long look into each's eyes.

It's nice to see faces from Scottish TV shows in atypical roles, Sharon Small deservedly having a steady boyfriend on screen for a change, and Cal Macaninch, the nice guy from "Rockface" as the not nice guy here.

The Scots accents are thick and I did miss some punch lines in the dialog here and there.

The song selections are lovely, including a Damien Rice track that hasn't been overused yet.

Details

Official Sites:

Miramax [United States] Official site

Country:

UK

Language:

English British Sign Language

Release Date:

15 April 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dear Frankie

Filming Locations:

St Andrews Street, Glasgow, Scotland, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$37,542, 6 March 2005

Gross USA:

$18,025

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,656,829

Company Credits

Production Co:

Pathé Pictures International, UK Film Council, Scottish Screen

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1