The Grandmother Plot

Directed by Shona Auerbach, Dear Frankie revolves around nine-year-old Frankie (Jack McElhone) and his mother, Lizzie (Emily Mortimer). The mother and son duo have been on the run for as long as Frankie, who has been deaf for years, can remember. In an effort to protect Frankie from the truth – that a psychotic father, whose physical abuse caused his hearing loss, is at the root of their constant need to move from one home to the next – Lizzie pens a series of letters from Frankie's "father" in hopes of assuaging his curiosity. However, when Frankie becomes convinced that his father is taking a break from his exotic adventures and making his way back home, Lizzie must make a tough decision: find another way to pacify Frankie's desire to meet his father or tell him the awful truth.

Brecha is a particularly vivid and realistic portrayal of the emotional rupture between a father recently released from jail and his 12 year old son, following a dark family tragedy that no one has strength enough to confront. Herself victim of the same in-communication, the boys grandmother tries her level best at normalizing their lives. However, not counting on the fathers incapacity at forgetting the past, and his sons increasingly peculiar behaviour. All three of them awkwardly attempt to plug the rift, only to worsen the situation with every try, leading them slowly to the brink of a new and permanent - disaster.