FRANCINE
Francine
Brian M. Cassidy & Melanie Shatzky, 2012
Catalog No.:FTF-032
Length: 74 minutes
After years of incarceration, a quiet, lonely woman, Francine (Academy Award® winner Melissa Leo), is released to start a new life in a small, rural town. But despite opportunities for warmth and connection, her years of “rehabilitation” have left her with little ability to create relationships and happiness, finding her only solace in her connections with animals. What happens when a second chance isn’t enough?
Written and Directed by Brian M. Cassidy and Melanie Shatzky
Produced by Joshua Blum and Katie Stern
Cinematography by Brian M. Cassidy
Starring: Melissa Leo, Marietta Hanley, Brendan Burke, Robert J. Meredith, Danica Brodehead
Festivals: Berlin International Film Festival, SXSW, Bamcinemafest, Buenos Aires Festival, Internacional de Cine, Sarasota Film Festival, CPH: PIX, Independent Film Festival of Boston, Maryland Independent Film Festiva
WATCH THE FILM
PRESS
"Francine feels like a documentary in the mode of Frederick Wiseman or the Maysles brothers."
- Ian Buckwalter, NPR
"Spellbindingly unsentimental character study."
- Keith Uhlich, Critics Pick, Time Out New York
"Leo gives an absolutely devastating performance in this elliptical, mesmerizing microbudget drama."
- New York Magazine, Critics Pick
"A small gem."
- Stephen Holden, New York Times
"This offbeat character study gets at something true and stirring.”
- Justin Chang, Variety
“A legitimate discovery. Raw. Intimate.”
- David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
"A small but striking independent feature."
- Denis Lim, The New York Times
"A surprisingly provocative piece of stripped-down social realism."
- Patrick Gamble, Cinevue
"As a 74-minute snapshot of an American at the low end of the struggling 99%, it speaks far more eloquently than poverty statistics.”
- David D'Arcy, Screen Daily