Frailty
| release date | April 12 2002 |
| studio | 20th Century Fox |
| director | Bill Paxton |
| writer | Brent Hanly |
| starring | Bill Paxton, Matthew McConaughey, Matthew O'Leary, Powers Boothe |
| rating | R |
| tagline | No Soul Is Safe |
| site | frailtythemovie.com |
| trailer 1 | Trailer #1 |
2 Comments
I enjoyed this movie. It had a really good storyline and a really good cast.
I liked it great storyline.
good story, good movie.
what an amazing movie. This is one great movie. It is loosely based on a real killer. The ideas in here are horrible and frightening. The use of kids is always scary. I remember being in the theater and my girlfriend at the time made us leave. To possible for her.
Not bad, but the reviews tend to make it some kind of masterpiece. Worth a rental.
Quality movie with tension and some really good acting. Angels of god… not to sure about that, but the story line was interesting and very entertaining.
I would definitely recommend seeing this movie. I love it!
Frailty is a wonderful masterpiece of a drama horror that really should have had some oscar nominations for this picture including best oscar nomination for bill paxton, and best supporting actor for matthew o’leary.
great film, this and “a simple plan” is bill paxton’s best acting work.
i didnt think much of him as an actor until i saw this and a simple plan.
This is one of the best psychological horror films ever made. Showing incredible skill for a first time director, Bill Paxton crafted a brilliant film that will leave most people thinking long after the final credits roll. The acting is superb and the “flip” at the end, as writer Brent Hanly calls it, is electrifying.
I love this movie. Creepy, spooky , psychological and atmospheric with a great ‘twist’ at the end I didn’t see coming . A simple but brilliant story told so well by director Bill Paxton. Reminds me of old Twilight Zone/ X Files episodes. One to watch with the lights off and let the shivers run up your spine.
i wasnt expecting much but this is a great little movie very good story!
Great movie. And it was nice to finally see a movie with a twist ending that i didnt already know the ending going in, like Sixth Sence or Fight Club.
Strong debut by Bill Paxton as director.Every actor was above there past work as far as perfomance.GREAT plot,great acting,and a twist that is brilliant as far as endings go.
Way better than I would’ve thought. Really captivating and unique. Too bad the twist ending was kinda cliche and unnecessary.
This one slowly reels you in & gets more disturbing the deeper you get. Bill Paxton gives an amazingly frightening performance & Matthew McConaughey comes across quite well, killer ending.
Bill Paxton’s debut thriller as a director is not only disturbing and frightening, but most of all interesting and well-executed in which the story is carefully unfolded, heading towards an inevitable impact. Paxton delivers a gripping and sympathizing performance.
Great movie! I love the ending!
Decent movie, probably one of Bill Paxton’s best films i’ve seen.
hahaha i remember this movie, i downloaded it by mistake by that time we had Kazaa or something like that, i was downloading porn but instead i got this movie and i loved it!! Best Film by Bill Paxton… GAME OVER MAN!! GAME OVER!
Excellent thriller about religious insanity (or is it?) that gets you hooked, this is a great debut from Bill Paxton.
I thought this was a fantastic film! It was also great how you could make up your mind if it was truly God or just his crazy mind (I think it was his messed up mind to be honest with you) the directing was great and keeps you hooked from beginning to end.
I thought the ending was fine and worked well with the whole story, it wasn’t a HUGE twist but it was a nice little one to be added to the story. I think the reason why I like it is because the story and directing is simple so it’s easy to follow.
SEE IT NOW!
pretty good horror movie,but to slow.
really good horror/thriller movie. The ending is a hit or miss depening on your view of religion
A movie that is such a mind trip and the ending is one of the best I ever seen.
A hidden gem. And although it isn’t saying much, this is one of McConaughey’s best roles.
This film is great. The twist ending is great and the story is Brilliant. This is Bill Paxton’s best performance ever. This film proves that Horror can be just so different to Masked Killers and Vampires. The idea of The ‘God’s Hand’ Killer was fantastic. I like the way how the Demons are different from Hoved Beings with Large Horns but instead are just Humans that have Killed. This film is a Superb!!! A must buy if you come across it in a shop!!
fantastic actors, fantastic plot, fantastic twists, fantastic ending – fantastic movie!
Brilliant!!! The first 2/3rds of the movie are good, but the ending is a home run. My family left the theater almost dazed and we couldn’t wait to discuss the film among ourselves! Great, believable acting gives life to the story…no typecasting here. If you missed this flick, buy it now, Netflix it, come borrow my copy…just see it!
Great film. I liked it much more than I expected to. The way it turns out is brilliant, but the whole Angel thing is just a tad rediculous.
This is an example of a GREAT movie. I watched it when I was younger…like 6 or 7 years ago…and it impacted me then as a good movie.
Good stuff.
near perfection, i love the characters the story and the ending, its one of those movies that you can watch over and over again, i love Frailty
amazing
I found this a unique movie with all around great performances, especially McConaughey. “Frailty” stands up to multiple viewings, despite the fact I know what is going to happen.
This is one of my favorites. I won’t rehash the plot and spoil the movie for you; if you haven’t seen it, rent it immediately. Very entertaining and not your typical horror film.
Soooooooo good. An absolutely breathtaking piece of cinematic brilliance.
Riveting and well made film. Don’t expect gore or big scares. But the story sticks with you for days after.
A strange and ominous man (Matthew McConaughey) is seated in an FBI office. He introduces himself as Fenton Meiks; the agent whose office he has entered goes by the name of Doyle (Powers Booth). The later has no idea what the former wants. He finds this oddball searching through his stuff when he finally arrives to the office after being called down to meet with Mr. Meiks. The agent is currently investigating a murder case centering on the infamous “God’s Hand Killer” of Dallas, Texas. It is highly suggested and eventually confirmed that Fenton Meiks knows his share about the murders committed by this notorious local serial killer.
I suppose it all begins back in Fenton’s childhood days; most of which he shared with only his Dad (Bill Paxton) and his younger brother Adam. The father of the two boys works as an auto-mechanic by trade; although at home, his life is devoted to but only two things, and that is his children and God. One night, however, Dad takes the second thing to dangerous and almost surreal new extremes; he comes to the boys’ bedroom at night and explains to them that he has received a vision from God.
Dad now believes that he and the kids were sent to earth to slay the demons that freely roam it; disguised by their deceptive exteriors. The father claims to have been sent a special list of the demons that the family must collectively hunt, and so he keeps that close by at all times. He claims that to kill the demons, they must first receive the heaven-sent weapons; one of which is an axe so important that it even gets its own credit: Otis. With Otis in hand, the demon killing spree begins; with Dad getting the first taste of the madness and eventually letting his children in on all the fun. Fenton would rather not explore such dark things; while his younger kin is more willing to follow his dad’s beliefs and values. In no time at all, the father has become the God’s Hand Killer, in hopes that his sons shall someday take the name for themselves and continue to slay those nasty servants of Satan.
This is precisely the story that Fenton tells the Agent throughout the film. He earns the trust of the man who is of higher power – the Agent – and eventually he leads him to the spot where the Meiks family stared their faith straight in the face. This place of danger and bewilderment comes in the form of a rose garden; it is a location of traumatic childhood memories and silent cries from beyond the grave. A lot happens here whether we’re seeing things through the eyes of children (in flash-back form) or in real-time as it’s happening in the plot.
I half-expected the film to turn into another generic slasher picture when that trusty bastardization (Otis) reared its ugly (and sharp) ends. An axe is always a sign of danger in a horror movie; someone’s got to use it, right? Most of the time, yes, this is the case.
However, my expectations of that turning point where very wrong. “Frailty” turned out to be anything but a familiar and boring excess in both violence and unsympathetic stupidity. In fact, it is a film of great sympathy; and perhaps even great horror. It’s being marketed as a film within the boundaries of the horror genre, although it’s one of those rare (and great) movies that takes it upon itself to mess with so many conventions that it almost transcends any classification, genre-wise. Paxton’s film could be a thriller – because it is thrilling – and it could also be a horror film – because it depicts humane horror with an agenda. But deep down, there’s this desire to be a drama; and among other things, I think this is where the film is most successful.
We identify with the childish sensibilities of the brothers; so we understand the pain that they must endure and the change that they are experiencing. I think they both fear their father – who is simply going mad in the head after being deluded by his religious beliefs – although only one out of the two is able to speak up for himself and voice his personal opinions. So there’s some good character development that allows us to really connect with the central protagonists. And then there is the father – who is nothing less than a modern example of a great “Bad Dad” in the movies -. He repeatedly manipulates his sons out of his delusion; which is the only thing leading up to the assumption that he is the antagonist of this story. Yet, I feel “Frailty” is such a well-done and skillfully written film; it inspires sympathy for both sides and while we never like the father due to the things he says and does, we never quite hate him either, because we understand where his actions are coming from; his shattered mind.
Horror movies are seldom thought-provoking; just as thrillers are rarely great anymore. Here’s a film that successfully makes a winner of itself in all genres that it covers: from horror to thrillers to, yes, even drama. It tells a sad, tragic, traumatic story of religion and how it can delude unassuming victims of psychological torment to committing acts of violence. This theme would have lost its relevance and its power if Paxton had intended to show much of the violence on-screen; but he’s more interested in tension and the disturbing things which we cannot see. He wants us to hear, to feel, and to sense; he does so like a true master. “Frailty” is a thriller with emotions unlike any I have ever seen; and a horror film that depicts the horror like a true genre picture should be. It is often silent, discreet, and oh so very smart. I’d say it’s about first-rate in every department.