“Frank” and Such

Hello Folks.

I had to pull myself away from binge watching “The Good Wife” and listening to the new Ryan Adams album to finally update my blog. (Guess what? David Letterman really likes Ryan Adams, too.)

I will say that hearing critics like Chris Ryan and Andy Greenwald gush about Adams’ new songs and how awesome he is just makes my day, almost as much as the time my sister and I saw him at Gluek’s bar after a concert many years ago.

Ryan and Greenwald also happen to be fans of “The Good Wife” and give regular shout-outs to homegirl Christine Baranski for some reason. I like it. Unfortunately before I realized what an addicting gem the show is I listened to a spoiler episode of their Hollywood Prospectus podcast that revealed a huge plot point from the finale of last season. Maybe it will make it a little bit easier now that I am prepared for the devastating news that caused fans to flood (Spoiler Alert!) Twitter with their 140-character reactions.

For those of you who are current on “The Good Wife” (anyone, anyone?) the season premiere is Sept. 21.

That’s right, it’s fall TV and movie season!

I may or may not have a Google doc saved to keep track of all the premiere dates of my favorite shows and a few new ones I want to watch (if you need a copy, let me know.) There are a lot of great shows airing soon, but I am really here to dish about what I did see during the past few months, fall movies I am so so so excited about and my recent viewing of “Frank.”

This summer was reportedly the worst at the box office since 1997 and not even “Guardians of Galaxy” (which is amazing) could save the day.

I guess I’m not helping because I work at a movie theater and therefore didn’t pay for any of the movies I saw this summer, except “22 Jump Street” (worth it.)

Most recently I saw “Frank,” starring Michael Fassbender, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Domhnall Gleeson and my boy Scoot McNairy.

I was hooked on what I thought was a completely fictional movie just from the trailer, only to find out at the end that it’s based on a true story documented in a newspaper article by Jon Ronson.

Ronson is the inspiration for one of the main characters, Jon Burroughs, an aspiring musician who stumbles upon an opportunity to play a gig with a mysterious band, the Soronprfbs.

The band leader is Frank Sidebottom, who always wears a paper mache head with a face painted on it.

The role of Frank Sidebottom is a departure for Fassbender, I think, but he masters the performance and the musical talent of the main character. Fassbender’s voice is key in the film as he performed many of the songs by the Soronprfbs and had to act, for the most part, without using any facial expressions.

After Burroughs lands a gig with the band Don (McNairy), the manager, invites him to record an album at a remote cabin in the woods. He immediately agrees and after a lengthy stay there sets his sights for the band on performing at the South By Southwest music festival in Austin, Texas. The rest of the band isn’t aware of Burroughs’ goals for some time, much less the fact he is promoting the band on Twitter and YouTube.

In their time together the Soronprfbs experience conflict, tragedy and happiness, which are themes displayed throughout the film. On the surface the theatrical telling of this true story is portrayed with quirk and humor, but the filmmakers reveal the true persona of Frank, and all the characters for that matter, by the end.

Frank is still in theaters, including the Lagoon in Minneapolis and is coming soon to St. Anthony Main. It will be on DVD on Dec. 8, 2014.

Wow this is getting long, I guess that’s what happens when I don’t work on my blog for a really long time.

I have plans to go to brunch and play Bingo, yes at the same time, soon so I better wrap this up.

Looking back on what else I saw this summer, “Obvious Child” starring Jenny Slate was by far my favorite film. I chose wisely with the aforementioned blockbusters “22 Jump Street” and “Guardians of the Galaxy”and I enjoyed “Happy Christmas” and “Boyhood” as well.

As for what’s to come I’m pretty excited about “Nightcrawler,” starring Jake Gyllenhaal as a freelance crime journalist in Los Angeles.

Bennett Miller’s “Foxcatcher” starring Channing Tatum and Steve Carrell is top on my list as well and David Fincher’s “Gone Girl” is looking better and better. The first trailers make the film look pretty cheesy, for lack of a better word, but I actually think the on-screen version of the story will be better than the book. Author Gillian Flynn is also the screenwriter, so it will be interesting to see how she turns around her own novel.

if you didn’t know the film is especially creating excitement in Cape Girardeau, Mo., where the story takes place and the cast and crew spent time filming during the last year. My aunt lives there and said the local movie theater will show the film on every screen during its opening weekend and a lot of other events are planned around the premiere. Maybe Ben Affleck will be there, in which case I will be too.

Gosh, I haven’t even covered all the movies I wanted to (including “St. Vincent,” and “Birdman,”) but if I do I will be late for Bingo.

As John Hodgman says, “That is all.”

Bye!