Frailty - Bill Paxton thriller with pace & originality

Good condition DVD of an excellent thriller that somewhat slipped under the radar

Steeped in gloomy atmosphere,Frailty locates its horror in the tyranny of religious fanaticism. Making an assured directorial debut, actor Bill Paxton co-stars as a Texas widower who believes God has recruited him to destroy demons in human form. Feeling divinely justified in committing a series of axe murders (discreetly unseen), he urges his two young sons to assist him in the killings--a living nightmare recalled in flashback by one of the now-adult sons (Matthew McConaughey) to the FBI agent (Powers Boothe) who's investigating the murders. But mystery is of secondary importance in Brent Hanley's cleverly twisting screenplay; Frailty suggests, with unsettling subtlety, that Paxton's mission may not be delusional, thus burdening his deadly wrath with spiritually disturbing significance. It's definitely not a feel-good film, but with celebrity endorsements by Stephen King and directors James Cameron and Sam Raimi (who both made films with Paxton), Frailty gets under the skin with insidious efficiency.

'Frailty' didn't do much at the UK box office on it's release - maybe because it was up against M. Night Shyamalan's much-anticipated (and slightly over-rated) 'Signs'. A bit of a shame as this is an excellent and gripping thriller from start to finish. It deals with the FBI's search for a serial killer known as 'God's Hand'. When Fenton Meeks (McConaughey) walks into the FBI's offices claiming he knows the identity of the killer his claims are initially met with scepticism. He relates the story of his motherless family's transformation from an everyday happy unit into one of serial murder. This change is caused when Fenton and his brother Adam are awoken during the night by their father (Paxton) who claims he has been given a mission from God. The mission is to kill demons who are masquerading as human beings. Fenton believes his father has gone raving mad but Adam believes him and a trail of death ensues. 'Frailty' is Bill Paxton's directorial debut and I look forward to seeing what he does next as this is a cracking film that nearly always keeps you guessing. The acting is mostly top-notch with Paxton delivering a fairly low-key performance as the father and McConaughey goes into sombre mode as Fenton. It is also worth noting that the child performances are very good too. There are one or two formulaic moments when certain plot elements and some character backgrounds seem a little obvious but on the whole it all builds up really well toward the final twist. I enjoyed 'Frailty' a lot more than 'Signs' and it seems baffling to me how it didn't do a lot better at the cinema. Still, that's what a bit of hype can do I suppose.