The titular Frank is a depressed 50-year-old widow trying to raise a son
who is a university student. She helps the local nuns and takes care of her
daughter's kids, but the frequent explosions of pineapple cans in her pantry
are a strong clue that things could be better with her. Her son finally
tells her to get her own life and stay out of his, so she decides to go back
to the university to study poetry. Son Matthew is mortified, and feels that
his mother's presence will prevent him from ever winning the girl of his
dreams, Rose Byrne, away from his best friend who doesn't deserve her. This
sets the stage, and I will leave the twists and turns of this delightful
film for you to discover.
Male IMDb readers rate the film 6.8, but it receives a whopping 8.1 from
women. While I am not surprised at the estrogen response to this film about
a strong woman, it is not without something for the guys, with the subplot
of a nice guy trying to win the girl from Mr. Macho. Performances from
Sinéad Cusack, Rose Byrne, Sam Neill and Matthew Newton are all excellent.
The characters jump off the screen.
If you are not familiar with our grading system, you need to
read the
explanation, because the grading is not linear. For example, by
our definition, a
C is solid and a C+ is a VERY good movie. There are very few Bs
and As. Based on our descriptive system, this film is a:
