Frêle

Frailty is a psychological thriller released in 2001 but definitively one escaped from the 90s, the pacing, narrative and visual style undeniably make it feel like so.

The film follows two little boys, the brothers Adam and Fenton Meiks, and their dad (Bill Paxton), a typical family in a small town in Texas, that is until an angel reveals a mission to the father, a holly one, one sent by god himself and that mission is to destroy the evil on Earth, to destroy demons.

The greatness of this film rests on the narration style and the multiple plot twists along the way. It's not visually impressive, and the score is nothing to remember; besides a jump scare here and there you will not be frightened while watching this film. However one thing Frailty gets right is storytelling, keeping you on the edge of your seat basically for its entirety.

The central theme of Frailty is religion. I find the film to be a beautiful exploration of what having blind faith means and how god works in mysterious ways.

Directed by Bill Paxton (his first work as a director), Frailty is, and will continue to be my favorite horror film of all time, and watching it multiple times just make me appreciate it time and time again, but in a different way every time. If you have not watched it, you are missing out big time!

This was recommended to me, and now I'm surprised it passed me by! A great play on the serial killer theme, and hearing voices from God, which many real life killers claim to have experienced. With solid direction from the late Bill Paxton and great acting throughout. And for a more mainstream horror movie, it still packed some serious punches.

Salut, Bill Paxton.

The film is very complete in what it is, keeping one continuously interested with the flashbacks to childhood and growing up with such a bizarre father, and interspersing it with the tails of serial murder, one simply cannot go wrong. The very plot in itself, the very story and essence of the film, is entertaining. It is the sort of story that the director (Bill Paxton) could do so much with, and in this case, he really did do a lot with it.

From beginning to end you are kept anticipating more and more about what is happening and where the film is going, and the creativity that is behind this story is first class. I felt as if this film was exquisitely done from start to finish, and one of those rare gems that seemed to be without any boring lulls -- the action flowing neatly, quickly, and tightly from one scene to the next.

It demonstrates just how far people can go: so as to do such horrible things to their loved ones, and to do such acts of evil, in the name of 'God' when they are disillusioned as in this case. It also is sometimes interesting in its' twists & takes on the concept of morality as a whole.

Overall, this is the sort of film that one easily overlooks, but I would recommend you to not do likewise and to check this film out -- it is very much so worth your time.

Bill Paxton stars in and directs this highly original film. Having watched the first time I was by how good it was. The reviews I had heard were OK . As a result I was expecting an average thriller at most .However because of Paxtons excellent directing and acting the film is well worth watching , especially if you are a horror film fanatic.The film is also helped by the plot twists which keep coming until the closing credits . The films strongest point is the storyline which I have to say is highly original and is like I have ever seen before. Well done also to the 2 young leads which perfectly convey the emotions if these confused boys. I give this film 9/10 and I highly recommend that everyone catches it.

Matthew McConaughey is a mysterious man waiting for Agent Wesley Doyle (Powers Boothe) in his FBI office. He claims to have information about a serial killer chased by FBI. When Agent Doyle arrives in the office, he tells him that the serial killer is indeed his dead brother. Agent Doyle requests some evidence, and the man tells the story of his life, since his childhood. They were a simple family of three: his widow father Meiks (Bill Paxton), his brother and himself. One night, his father gathers the two brothers and tells them that an angel of God had just visited him and assigned his family to destroy demons. What happens next is one of the most scary movie I have ever seen.

I watched this movie four months ago on VHS, and yesterday I watched again, now on DVD. Although being a low-budget movie, the screenplay is sharp, with no flaw. The cast is outstanding, but I would like to highlight the performance of Matt O'Leary as the young Felton. It is a very difficult and complex role to be performed by a young teenager. The direction of Bill Paxton is remarkable. There is no explicit violence in this horror movie. A great debut behind the camera. I regret the Brazilian title of this movie: 'A Mão do Diabo' (The Devil's Hand'). If at least it were 'The God's Hand', it might be acceptable. But calling this movie as 'the devil's hand' is indeed ridiculous. Brent Hanley, the screenwriter, did not deserve such a lack of respect from the Brazilian distributor. This film is highly recommended. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "A Mão do Diabo" ("The Devil's Hand")