Review of Frailty (2012) by Andy R — 11 Aug 2009

Frailty is a very good horror\thriller with a creepy atmosphere, well written characters and an interesting story that keeps you gripped until the films mostly unexpected finale. Debut director and actor Bill Paxton creates a genuine creepy atmosphere as we witness him slowly descending into madness and taking his family with him. There is also good performances from rom-com king Matthew McConaughey, which makes you wonder why he continually chooses to do rubbish films these days, as well as excellent acting from the child actors.

The plot revolves around a man who walks into an FBI agents office and tells him that his brother is the killer known as the "Gods Hands Killer" who is responsible for the murder of 6 people. In order to make the agent believe him his unlikely revelation, he begins to tell the story of his childhood life where his religious fanatic father had visions of God telling him to kill demons that walked the earth. He used his two sons to help him commit the murders which he called the work of Gods Hands. I don't want to give too much of the plot away but there are some twists and turns as the narrative switches from flashback to present day. This structure is handled perfectly and always keeps you interested in what will happen next. The flashback scenes make up the bulk of the film and provide some great tension as the father forces his older son to help with the killing of these demons while brain washing his younger son to believe everything he says. The narrative is clearly a dig at people who bring up their kids to believe in their crazy religious beliefs.

The film is more a psychological horror\thriller as there is very little actual scares, the film relies mainly on tension and atmosphere. There is almost no gore which is refreshing for modern horror films and the few use of effects are handled very well. The films success is based on the excellent direction and acting from all involved. Some parts may be slightly predictable but the revelation at the end works very well and makes you think about everything that happened before hand.

Frailty is an original horror film which is rare these days, it has an excellent story, good acting, great tension and atmosphere and is well worth a look.