Frank
(2007/First Look DVD)
Picture:
C Sound: C+ Extras: C- Main Program: C-
Though
most of the entries are slight and forgettable, there is a whole cycle of
animal films, telefilms and TV series aimed at children. Not that they are ever that good, with their
illicit appeals to pity and false senses of warmth, but they keep on coming,
with a particular upsurge since the 1980s.
The 1980s are over, but no one seems to have told the makers of Frank, a silly 2007 exercise that only
has watchable performances of Jon Gries and Garrett Morris to save it from
total disposability.
Starting
as a “joke” as if it were a Horror/Slasher film, that horror is replaced by a
new one of boredom, formula and phoniness that has nowhere to go and will make
you want to see every pre-Hunted Benji
film ever made. This is very quickly
forgotten, the pug dog is likable at best and the children are never convincing
in their performances. Talk about your
dog of the week and weak it is.
I hoped
for something good and got condescending instead. Skip it!
The
anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image is shockingly weak, especially in the
pale Video Black, detail issues, depth issues and inconsistency
throughout. Was this shot on
analog-level digital video? Either way,
it is poor. The Dolby Digital 5.1 mix is
weak and the 2.0 is barely better, yet is the default highlight of the
set. Extras include deleted scenes,
location featurette and useless Music Video.
- Nicholas Sheffo
