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Bookmark this pageFrankie (2005)
Director: Fabienne Berthaud
Movie review
From Time Out London
Frankie is ‘a coat hanger about to be retired’. A 26-year-old model, she knows all too well that her career is ending. Make-up artists tut over her skin, casting directors say she’s too fat. Former model Diane Kruger takes the titular role in this French character portrait that flits between a clinic and modelling assignments, documentary-style, in an unclear chronology. It seems Frankie has been hospitalised for depression and a burgeoning eating disorder. Scenes at casting sessions and on shoots reveal the lonely life that drove her there: critical, unfriendly faces talk about her in the third person (‘she doesn’t understand,’ sighs one petulant photographer). Everyone is smoking, all the time. This is far from the glamorised fashion world seen in Hollywood chick-flicks. Here, a sparse soundtrack, harsh lighting and long scenes emphasise the dull side of the work – not a plea for sympathy, but an atmospheric picture and well-performed by a suitably downbeat Kruger. The chauffeur love interest feels a little tagged-on, but this is still a worthwhile watch for those interested in the dark side of fashion.Author: Anna Smith
Time Out London Issue 1921: June 13-19 2007
Cast & crew
Director: Fabienne Berthaud
Producer: Fabienne Berthaud, Bruno Petit
Cast: Diane Kruger, Jeannick Gravelines, Brigitte Catillon, Christian Wiggert, Jay Alexander, Gérald Marie, Jean-Louis Place full cast
Genre(s): Drama
Rated: 18
Duration: 88 mins
UK Release: Jun 15 2007
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