A Mão do Diabo

A story about a single father trying to convince his two sons that there's demons everywhere seems like the sort of thing that would come out completely idiotic. But they pull it off here rather neatly. It's the story of how Dad Meiks (Bill Paxton, in his directorial debut) got his sons to help him kill people whom he claimed were demons in 1970s Texas. Does he sound crazy? Maybe, but after you see the movie, you may have doubts about everything. Because believe you me, contrary to what you may expect, Matthew McConaughey can actually play a creepy role; and that's just what he does here.

Texas sure has turned out some interesting directors: first Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson, and now Bill Paxton.

"That was crazy!" was my response to nobody after watching this movie by myself. As this dark movie was slowly snaking its way toward a conclusion I kept wondering, "What's going to happen here?"

"Frailty" starts with Matthew McConaughey's character seated in a Dallas FBI office waiting to talk to a particular agent. When the agent, Wesley Doyle (Powers Boothe), finally meets Matthew M., M.M. conspicuously doesn't shake his hand and proceeds to tell Doyle that he knows who the God's Hand killer is. From there M.M. goes into a story going back to 1979 and his father (Bill Paxton) who believed he was receiving divine guidance to kill. His dad was such a believer that he included his sons in his "work." Dad said that he was called upon by the Lord to "destroy demons" who walked around in human form. He even had a list of names that was revealed to him.

*Just imagine the show "Supernatural" if Sam and Dean Winchester were hunting people.

While M.M. is telling this story we're seeing it happen as a flashback. The longer he tells this story the more you're wondering where it's going to wind up, but you're totally engrossed in the entire ordeal because a DUDE IS KILLING PEOPLE WITH HIS YOUNG SONS, and one of them whole-heartedly believes his dad.

The craziness doesn't stop until the very end where we get a serious twist. The thing about twist endings is that a movie has to be compelling enough up until that point. Using the IMDb scale, a movie can't be a 1/10 for an hour and a half and then throw a 10/10 twist in there. No one is going to bear through a paltry movie just for a good ending. A movie has to be at least a 5/10 to make an ending worth it. This movie was better than a 5/10 already, and the 9/10 ending only made it better.

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.

I had to see this gem twice to really appreciate all of it. When a widowed father of two interrupts his two sons' sleep with a shocking revelation, they are torn between believing him and not. As the horrifying events of this tale unfold, we learn a lot about the father, about his two sons, and about their destinies. With shocking twist after shocking twist, this film never allows for a lull in the plot. Bill Paxton plays the father, but the most notable performances are that of his older son, Fenton, played by Matthew O'Leary and his younger son, Adam, played by Jeremy Sumpter. This is one of the best thrillers that I have seen in a while, and you will want to watch this a few times to appreciate every intricate aspect of the plot. I give this film a 9/10.

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.