It’s always a pleasure opening up a film festival with a winner and “Frank & Zed” was the perfect movie to start my 2021 Fantasia Fest adventure with, even if I was limited to watching it online instead of experiencing it with an enthusiastic audience. Writer/Director Jesse Blanchard is an absolute madman and I love him for it! He’s fashioned a wonderfully creative ode to monsters with this creature-centric fantasy/adventure/monster mash. And what truly sets this movie apart is the puppetry that’s used to bring this vibrant world to life. Such artistry on display here! It took six years to bring “Frank & Zed” to life and that makes the experience even more impressive. Take note, though; This isn’t “The Muppets” although Jim Henson is quite obviously a big-time influence. “Frank & Zed” plays more like “The Dark Crystal” with a couple of old-school monsters thrown in for good measure. And blood…Buckets and buckets of blood!
Taking place centuries in the past, “Frank & Zed” weaves its tale around the title characters, an isolated Frankenstein’s monster type and a zombie who, for years, have depended on one another for survival. Frank spends his days scouring the woods hunting rodents and feeding their brains to Zed to keep him nourished while Zed, in turn, aids Frank by way of fueling his dying heart through the assistance of lightning on a nightly basis. Both monsters find their symbiotic routine interrupted when angry, confused, and scared townsfolk catch wind of their existence. As it turns out, however, there might just be a separate diabolical presence pulling strings on both sides.
What an entertaining film this is! It’s an often bloody affair, particularly during a crowd-pleasing splatterfest of a final act, but aside from the blood, “Frank & Zed” has a surprising amount of heart and it isn’t at all afraid to go the bittersweet route. Further still, even though there’s a kind of poignant bromance at the core of this movie punctuated by a sad truth where it pertains to Frank and Zed as a duo, Blanchard allows these characters to be monsters. This is to say that while they are endearing characters, they still do plenty of monstrous things and this movie is all the more entertaining for it.
Blacnhard and his innovative team at Puppetcore have created a wonderful roster of puppets, most notably Frank and Zed themselves. These are marvelously drawn puppet characters brought to life through virtually no dialogue. It’s all visual splendor and the occasional grunts and growls. Additionally, the film is populated with the aforementioned townsfolk. All are voiced with colorful energy and a great sense of humor. Kudos to the puppeteers and vocal actors who’ve brought these amusing characters to life. Further props to the production design team, the effects crew, and composer Michael Richard Plowman for his terrific score.
“Frank & Zed” has an irresistible oddball charm to it and as it happens, I’m quite the oddball myself so I was completely engaged by this experience. It’s not necessarily a movie for children (although I would have loved this when I was a kid) but if you grew up on the works of Jim Henson and you fancy yourself a fan of irreverent puppet-centric opuses like “Meet the Feebles” and “Team America,” the audacious undeniably creative spirit of “Frank & Zed” should be right up your alley. Actually, in truth, in terms of overall subject matter this film isn’t even quite as extreme as either of those movies (believe it or not, there’s very little questionable language here and absolutely no puppet sex to speak of) but from a visual standpoint, it’s every bit as impressive. And from a story standpoint, if you grew up a monster kid, you’ll find a lot to chew on, if you’ll pardon the pun. “Frank & Zed” is a blast and it’s the kind of zany, bloody, and creative movie that I’d love to experience with a crowd. Hopefully, I’ll get that chance someday. But even if I don’t, this is a film that will definitely be a part of my extensive movie collection when it becomes available.
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