Have you ever noticed that only people in small, backwoods towns ever see aliens or demons? Is it the fresh air that does it? Or the total lack of anything to do other than tool around in pickups or, at Halloween, pump-kin?
But really, it’s gotta be the moonshine, or at least the fumes. As anyone who has ever tried moonshine knows, it’s hideous, ungodly stuff. You really have to work to choke it down, and if you do manage to take a few slugs, it’s worse than Jagermeister, causing you to become a savage beast of a human - like a werewolf, only blind and stinking of cheap booze.
Well, whatever the reason, in the new movie “Frailty” the characters do indeed see demons. The cool stuff is what happens next. And it’s a doozy - a thrilling little flick, complete with some fine acting and a great story. Top it off with a surprising ending, and it all adds up to a great first showing for Bill Paxton, helming a movie for the first time.
Paxton plays the widower father of two young boys, Adam and Fenton. He’s a good father, until he starts to believe that an angel has spoken to him and revealed his purpose - he and his boys are demon killers.
He believes that God will send him three magic weapons for his task, and before long he will also receive the names of those who deserve to be destroyed - not killed, destroyed. His sons think he’s off his rocker, until he brings home an ax, a lead pipe and some work gloves - and a list of seven names. Soon enough, the whole family is participating in the destruction of the people on the list - and their burial in a nearby rose garden.
We’re told this story by Matthew McConaughey, one of the grown-up sons, telling FBI agent Wesley Doyle (Powers Boothe). McConaughey relives the tale as he takes Doyle to the burial site. Why, you ask? Because McConaughey has arrived to tell Doyle that his brother is the “God’s Hand” killer, a serial murderer the FBI is hunting.
For me to go more in-depth with the story would reveal far too many twists, and to rob any moviegoer of experiencing it first hand would be a crime. Some are predictable, admittedly so. Hey, I’m a critic who has seen way too many flicks. I saw the end coming.
But watching it happen is a blast, and McConaughey really bites into the role, savoring one of the few decent parts he’s had in ages.
Paxton is his usual fine self in the dad role. But the real notable part is that he turns out to be a good director at the same time. Not only does he masterfully utilize the timing, light and camera movement that is now completely necessary for such a thriller, he allows each character to fully breathe and develop. A wonderful first shot at directing, and here’s hoping he’ll continue to work behind the lens, as well as in front.
My guess is that “Frailty” will probably get a short run at movie houses, with a release to rental on the way shortly. But for anyone who has ever enjoyed a tense thriller, “Frailty” is worth checking out. No, it won’t be a summer blockbuster. But it is an incredibly solid movie, an interesting entry into the thriller genre that won’t leave anyone unsatisfied.
That is, unless you’re a hillbilly and already blind from all that moonshine.
