One of the best movies I saw at the SXSW film festival earlier this year was definitely Frank, an offbeat musical dramedy starring Michael Fassbender as the title character, the elusive and papier-mâché head-wearing lead singer of a band called the Soronprfbs. Filled with humor, heart and a compelling story about the nature of true artistry, Frank is a truly unforgettable experience.
Today, Magnolia Pictures released a new trailer for the film, along with a poster and some new images. The trailer focuses a lot on Fassbender’s title character, which is exactly how it should be. Though Gleeson’s character, a young man named Jon who joins the Soronprfbs after a chance encounter and soon finds himself way in over his head, is the audience’s way into the story, I found Frank to be the better and more well-rounded protagonist – in fact, Jon becomes the de facto antagonist in some places.
Again, I really loved Frank. In my four-and-a-half star review, I concluded that:
Darkly funny, whip-smart, impressively original and boasting one of Michael Fassbender’s most towering performances to date, Frank just about has it all.
I certainly stand by that consensus – if anything, the movie has grown in my estimation since I first saw it. It boasts some truly terrific music, a darkly funny and deeply emotional story and absolutely sublime performances by Fassbender, Domhnall Gleeson, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Scoot McNairy. And its ending is one of the most surprisingly affecting that I’ve seen in recent memory. I’ll definitely be heading to see Frank again when Magnolia opens it in limited release on August 15th – and you should too.
Unfortunately, the trailer is only available at Apple right now, but we’ll update with an embed soon.
FRANK is an offbeat comedy about a wannabe musician who finds himself out of his depth when he joins an avant-garde pop band led by the enigmatic Frank – a musical genius who hides himself inside a large fake head.
