Featured Audience Ratings

• Mark W

  
  This is a highly underrated little gem from first time feature director Shona Auerbach. It's a film that shows a real delicacy and understanding for human relationships and a sensitive perception of life in general. Frankie (Jack McElhone) is a 9 year old deaf boy has never met… More
  This is a highly underrated little gem from first time feature director Shona Auerbach. It's a film that shows a real delicacy and understanding for human relationships and a sensitive perception of life in general. Frankie (Jack McElhone) is a 9 year old deaf boy has never met his father. His mother Lizzie (Emily Mortimer) left him years ago but never had the heart to tell her son. Instead, she concocts a story and tells Frankie that his father is working on a ship, sailing around the world. She also sends letters to Frankie, pretending to be his dad in far off places. Her story threatens to come to pieces though when Frankie discovers that his dadâ??s ship is due to dock at their hometown of Greenock. Instead of telling Frankie the truth, Lizzie employs the services of a stranger (Gerard Butler) to pretend that he's Frankie's father. Every now and again you come across a low-key drama with real depth and honesty that when it's all over you are left feeling genuinely touched; a tear may even well-up or for that matter fall. This is that type of drama. It's a film that tugs on the heartstrings but doesn't use any form of manipulation to do so. It's just good, honest, storytelling that uses observation and an understanding of life and the heartbreaking complexities therein. It touches on the extent that parents will go to protect their children and also the difficulties faced by broken, impoverished families. What it also does, is put your faith in the kindness of strangers. That being said, this is not a film that's depressing. In fact, it's quite the opposite. It's a life-affirming story filled with humour as well as pathos and everyone hits just the right note. It's also a film that could claim to showcase the real charm and charisma of Gerard Butler before he hopped aboard the fame train. He's an enigmatic presence and delivers a wonderfully subtle, turn that gained him a lot more recognition amongst critics and filmgoers alike. The same could be said of Emily Mortimer; she is absolutely superb as a supportive but desperate mother striving to protect her son and further excellent support is delivered by young Jack McElhone as the eponymous and gentle natured Frankie. He doesn't physically talk throughout the film but we get to hear his thoughts through the letters he writes to his absent and elusive father. It's through these heartfelt, emotional performances that the film really resonates. That's not to take away from writer Andrea Gibb's endearing screenplay or director/cinematographer Shona Auerbach's sensitive handling of the material though; everyone pulls their weight in capturing just the right tone here. It's a such a shame that Auerbach hasn't made a film since as on this evidence, she certainly has the ability and a 15 minute standing ovation at Cannes would further fuel that. A sweet and poignant little drama with fantastic performances all round. A film with a head and a heart and good feel for the moment.

• Cynthia S

  
  My heart ached throughout the entire movie. Wonderfully done...

• Mark H

  
  Utterly charming, family drama about a mother who, out of love for her 9 year old son, maintains a deception designed to protect him from the truth about his father. Bittersweet and touching, this film tugs at your emotions, not in a manipulative way, but genuinely, with a… More
  Utterly charming, family drama about a mother who, out of love for her 9 year old son, maintains a deception designed to protect him from the truth about his father. Bittersweet and touching, this film tugs at your emotions, not in a manipulative way, but genuinely, with a heartwarming story. British Shona Auerbach is a director to watch.

• Jennifer X

  
  A sweet, simple movie in tune with the holiday spirit. The performances are pure heart and portray real, live people without resorting to stereotypes.

• Red L

  
  Lizzie is raising her deaf son after running away from an abusive husband. Frankie thinks he is writing regularly to his Da who is a seaman on a ship. The ship is about to dock in town, so Lizzie has to decide what to tell her son about his dad.

• Lanning :

  
  An interesting side of Gerard Butler. I think we should see a <i>Dear Frankie II</i>; I want to see Emily Mortimer find true love. If it's Butler, great. If it's someone else, that's fine too. Tremendously sad how she sacrifices all for her son,… More
  An interesting side of Gerard Butler. I think we should see a <i>Dear Frankie II</i>; I want to see Emily Mortimer find true love. If it's Butler, great. If it's someone else, that's fine too. Tremendously sad how she sacrifices all for her son, protecting him from the truth of an abusive father who is responsible for Frankie's loss of hearing. <p> Children are wiser than adults realize. Why do we forget this as we get older? Remember how you knew that when you were a child? How you knew that adults didn't know how much you knew? <p> This movie definitely falls in the bittersweet category.

• Leigh R

  
  Sweet movie.

• Walter M

  
  [font=Century Gothic][color=royalblue]"Dear Frankie" is about Lizzie Morrison(Emily Mortimer) who has told her young son, Frankie(Jack McElhone) that his father is a seaman on a ship that is far from home. Frankie writes his father letters that his mother intercepts and… More
  [font=Century Gothic][color=royalblue]"Dear Frankie" is about Lizzie Morrison(Emily Mortimer) who has told her young son, Frankie(Jack McElhone) that his father is a seaman on a ship that is far from home. Frankie writes his father letters that his mother intercepts and answers in his father's voice. Did I mention that Frankie is deaf? Then it turns out that his father's ship is returning to port...[/color][/font] [font=Century Gothic][color=#4169e1][/color][/font] [font=Century Gothic][color=#4169e1]There are so many ways this movie could have gone wrong but somehow amazingly it does not. First of all, the performances of Mortimer, McElhone and Gerard Butler are all excellent. Lizzie Morrison is not flighty and it does turn out that she has very good reasons for acting the way she has been. It is not on a level of Ken Loach's social realism but it does not rely on easy sentiment either. "Dear Frankie" snuck up on me and turned out to be a very pleasant surprise.[/color][/font]

• Dannielle A

  
  A beautiful movie about a woman who lies to her deaf son via writing him letters from his father. Then, when he wants to meet his father, she hires a stranger to pretend he is him. Great ending.

• Erin C

  
  Cute. I didn't like the ending too much and the acting was a little lacking at times, but it was a sweet story.

• Daisy M

  
  The movie Dear Frankie was a wonderful story about a boy with a hearing disorder. The actor who portrayed him did an amazing job communicating without words, his needs and longing for his father. Emily Mortimer, who played his mother in a passionate performance, attempted to protect… More
  The movie Dear Frankie was a wonderful story about a boy with a hearing disorder. The actor who portrayed him did an amazing job communicating without words, his needs and longing for his father. Emily Mortimer, who played his mother in a passionate performance, attempted to protect her son from the truth about his absent father. I enjoyed Gerard Butler's performance as the Stranger. This part for him was a different role from the action movies characters he played previously and as the bad guy in the Phantom of the Opera. He brought a hopeful quality to the Stranger role and makes you wonder what will happen with the three characters. The movie starts out a little slow but turns into a fantastic, heart warming experience. The beauty of Scotland can be viewed in its landscape shots of Glasgow. Simply beautiful.

• Sarah B

  
  Beautiful little film. Sentimental and immensely heartfelt, yet realistic and genuine. The performances are all brilliant. The premise more than lives up to its potential. Watch it and fall in love.

• Moe E

  
  This will probably get my membership in "The He-Man Woman Haters Club" revoked, but I'll say it anyway. Dear Frankie is a darn good movie! There...I said it. Call it a chick flick, a tear jerker, or whatever you like. None of that will take away from the fact that… More
  This will probably get my membership in "The He-Man Woman Haters Club" revoked, but I'll say it anyway. Dear Frankie is a darn good movie! There...I said it. Call it a chick flick, a tear jerker, or whatever you like. None of that will take away from the fact that it's a well done story with fine performances from Emily Mortimer, Gerard Butler, Mary Riggans and Jack McElhone as Frankie.

• Sunil J

  
  Predictable but sweet.

• FanGirl B

  
  A heartfelt flm about a boy looking for a father and the lengths his mother goes to protect him.

Read all 15 featured audience ratings