A Very Special Halloween Under-Rated!

Halloween is rapidly approaching and I have to ask what is scarier than watching a Matthew McConaughey movie? How about a good Matthew McConaughey movie? (That is a movie where he doesn’t proclaim his love for high school girls.) The film I am talking about is called Frailty, an intelligent horror gem from 2001 that seemingly went unnoticed and is the subject of this installment of The Under-Rated. 

Frailty begins with Fenton Meiks (Matthew McConaughey) entering an FBI office. He warns them of the actions of his younger brother Adam. Fenton claims his brother is a mass murderer known as the God’s Hand killer. So Agent Doyle (played by Powers Boothe) intently listens to Fenton’s story about his serial killer brother in the hopes of gaining details to bring him to justice. From there the story is told in flashbacks from the perspective of Fenton as a pre-teen.

As per his contract, Matthew McConaughey must appear 

shirtless in at least one scene in every movie he stars in.

Imagine being sound asleep in your bed. Your father awakens you with exciting news. He claims to have been visited by angels who told him that he was to do the work of the Lord by seeking out and killing the demons that walk among us… demons that look like everyday people. Then he tells his kids to have sweet dreams.  We follow the perspective of Fenton, the oldest son, who immediately sees his happy adolescent life shattered. He wants nothing more for this to have been a bad dream, but soon finds out his nightmare is just beginning.

 ... and that's why Daddy had to shoot Santa Claus.

So this angel reveals to the dad through continuing visions that he will find three “tools” to assist in his crusade. The first is a glove to prevent him from revealing the demon’s sins prematurely; the father claims to be able to see the demon’s sins by placing his hand on them. The second tool is a lead pipe, to knock out the demon so he can take it to an area to execute it. The final tool is an axe, named Otis, which is used to destroy the demons.

 I said, who wants to watch Thunderbirds?

Fenton comes to the logical conclusion that his dad has lost it. Unfortunately, his younger brother Adam fervently believes his father, despite Fenton’s attempts to dissuade him. So Fenton’s father ends up dragging him along to help ‘do the Lord’s work.’ This leads Fenton to question his loyalty to his father and faith in general, ultimately putting him at odds with his family and their divine mission.

Little known fact: When the pilot for Big Love was 

originally submitted to HBO, it was a very different show.

Frailty stars Bill Paxton, who also makes his directorial debut on the film. He does a great job portraying the boys’ father. He plays a simple, honest, hard-working man who genuinely loves his kids. But, the strength of Paxton’s performance is that his character remains subtle throughout. He never goes “All Work and No Play Makes Jack a Dull Boy.” If you question his sanity at all, it’s that he almost seems blindly devoted to his cause, never once questioning his own intentions and motivations. The young actors to who played Fenton (Matt O’Leary) and Adam (Jeremy Sumpter) were exceptional as well. Often times kid actors are annoying or over-the-top, but they were exactly how I would have directed them if it were my film.   

 I'm so sorry you had to watch Twister, son! 

But believe me, it hurt me more than it hurt you! 

I would honestly place Frailty on my list of truly “well-done” horror films right up there with Poltergeist and the original Halloween. It saddens me how few people have ever even heard of this movie. This isn’t some gore fest or a formulaic slasher flick. The horror doesn’t rely on cheap “leaping from out of nowhere” scares; the horror is psychological, which frankly is something that the entire genre has really been lacking in recent years. Plus, there are some great twists and turns in this original and intelligent movie. I highly recommend you check out Frailty, if nothing else to see the rare oddity that is a good Matthew McConaughey movie. (Hey, it couldn’t be any scarier than Failure to Launch!)