Film: Uncle Frank

Well, tv lately has generally been decent - but failed me as I was going to bed tonight. So I thought, hmm.. a chance to watch something else. Now, the film I chose was Uncle Frank - not originally on my list at all, it was actually one of the newspaper's recommendations; they have an article every Friday, suggested online viewing for the weekend. And this is available on Amazon Prime.

And wow, I'll pay more attention to them in future! This is terrific. Set in the 70s, it's told from the perspective of a teenage girl, just coming of age, whose life is shaped by her uncle Frank (Paul Bettany). They're from a redneck family in South Carolina - Margo Martindale plays his mother, Steve Zahn is his brother, who's married to Judy Greer; they're the niece's parents. Lois Smith plays his slightly dotty aunt.

We get a brief introduction to them when the girl is 14, then it jumps forward four years - by which stage, uncle Frank's influence has caused her to go to college in New York, where he teaches. Which, as promised, opens up a whole new world to her.. including the reason that Frank's father never seemed to like him, and so he escaped to the big city - he's gay. His partner is the gorgeous Peter Macdissi - who also produced; and apparently this is partly based on the life story of Alan Ball, who wrote and directed. Anyway, things come to a head when Frank's dad dies, and they all return for the funeral..

It's funny, and it's devastating. Dark scenes are lightened by some really funny characters - and gee, (almost) everyone is really nice! Mind you, when Frank's partner points this out to him, he's told that's just how it is, down that way. And you just love being a fly on the wall when Frank's secret comes out - but the revelation, in flashbacks, of how his life has been is what elevates this above a tepid comedy. Excellent recommendation by the paper, excellent choice on my part - I was really moved. And now I can recommend it, too! (Highly.)

Tomorrow, Up in the Cheap Seats is watching Michael Ball perform a Heroes concert, full of showtunes, on The Shows Must Go On. However, this is only in some parts of the world - here, they're showing us Ruthless, the musical that spoofs musicals. It'll be great to see a musical again, it's been a while - and hey, I couldn't have watched with the group anyway, they're watching too late for me..