Quirky is the best way to describe this one...

Rating: 7/10 (12 October 2014)

"Frank' is NOT a film for everyone, as it is totally bizarre and makes very little sense at times. However, it DID make me laugh and even smile a bit. It has a quirky strangeness that I liked and I am glad I saw it, though it think it would be a hard film to sell on the average person--mostly because it makes little attempt to be conventional.
The film begins with Jon (Domhnall Gleeson) in Scotland. He's an apparently talentless young man (who looks a lot like Rupert Grint-- the guy who played Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter films) who somehow is still quite happy. One day, he meets a guy from a band who needs a keyboard player and Jon tells him he can play--and he's in the band with no try-out! Well, he turns out to be horrible and can barely play the keyboard at all--which would be a SERIOUS problem with 99.99% of the bands in the world. However, this one is very avant-garde--more like a combination of a New Wave band and performance art. The bottom line is that NONE of them seem to have much musical talent at all and their 'music' is not good. The most talented of the band's members is Frank--a seriously mentally ill man who wears a giant Jack-in-the Box style head! In fact, he NEVER removes the head and sings in it, sleeps in it and even drinks nutrients through a straw in it! He's odd...but the rest of the band is pretty weird as well and apparently Frank and another band member met while institutionalized. Despite these folks being ultra- weird, perhaps the most misplaced of all is some ways is Jon, as he does not appear to have any talent whatsoever. Yet, oddly, he is able to somehow fit in with this group of misfits. And, by the end of the film they somehow manage to become a sensation. The bottom line is that the film is apparently never intended for a huge audience--it's more of a quirky niche film. Because of this and the bizarreness of the characters, it's definitely an acquired taste. In many ways, this reminds me of "Napoleon Dynamite"--a film many folks love and many hate because they think it just doesn't make any sense. It is NOT a film for everyone--mostly just for folks who don't mind a meandering plot, a lot of stuff that makes no sense as well as many strange, almost nonsensical characters. As for me...I actually enjoyed it.
By the way, if you think that the idea of a severely mentally ill guy becoming a sensation as a lead singer and songwriter sounds impossible, watch the film "The Devil and Daniel Johnston". Johnston, a real artist and musician, despite a severe Bipolar Disorder and a history of ultra- bizarreness is both a huge hit within certain circles. I wonder if his life was in any way the inspiration for Frank.
UPDATE: Rex Reed picked this film as one of the worst of 2014. Considering all the interesting and quirky parts, I wouldn't agree but I could see someone objecting to the film overall as it certainly is strange. I like strange but not everyone wants that in a movie.