Crappy film

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

This is ultimately a movie about the very bad things that can happen when we don't address our unease, when we just try to brush it off, whether that's to fit in or to preserve our self-image.

I first saw this when it came out some years ago, and I still remember that it left me feeling very uncomfortable... Although as I said it is highly stylized, in some ways it reminds me of a novel set to film like a music video. However, while the dialog may be a bit slow, the acting by Jeff Goldblum as the charming and highly intelligent psychotic is excellent and worth watching for his performance alone. The concept is not a new one, by any means, yet the story itself is unlike any other I have experienced to date. I found the reaction of the inspector who turns him over to the psychiatric hospital particularly interesting when he has just turned Mr Frost over to them and the staff asks for some insight into him... and his reaction is that Mr Frost should be put to death immediately, this even though he admits he is against capital punishment in general. Still, I must say that overall even with its flaws, I found this to be a captivating, disturbing, and often underestimated film.

"Mr. Frost" isn't that bad, but really could've used a few problems fixed with it.**SPOILERS**Trying to solve a crime, Inspector Felix Detweiler, (Alan Bates) stops by the home of funeral caretaker Mr. Frost, (Jeff Goldblum) and manages to stumble onto the fact that he's one of the most notorious mass-murderers of the day. Arrested and taken into custody, he is soon transferred to the St. Claire Mental Hospital where he is put into the care of Dr. Sarah Day, (Kathy Baker) owner Raymond Reynhardt, (Roland Giraud) and her staff. Attempting to get through to get through to him, she is constantly told that he is Satan and his great evil puts her in danger. The more time spent in his graces, the more he makes her believe that his story is true and that he may in fact be the Antichrist. Trying to decide how to deal with his threats, they try a few radical ideas and finally discover his real motive.The Good News: This wasn't all that bad. The fact that this takes a really unconventional approach to the fact of the protagonists identity. There's a really new angle here, as it's not entirely clear if it's just playing into the suggestion or if it's actually true. There's enough given for both angles quite efficiently, and they can't be spoiled but they do manage to make it seem like it could go either way. That is a wonderful skill for the film to have as it really manages to build up some suspense during the middle section of the film. When all the events start to unravel, there's plenty of reasons to believe either version, and that is what holds the film over. It's quite new to have a film use this approach, as they'll usually give one subtle reason and just make it all the creative. This even has a few really chilling moments to go along with it, including the root-top jumping encounter and the showdowns with the influenced patient with potential victims that are pretty chilling. There's only one other positive aspect, which is the rather quickly-paced last half of the film. The attempts to diagnose and find the problem are really toned down when compared to the beginning half, the displays of power start to sweep into the frame and it becomes a little more frantic in it's quest to get it through. This finally gets the film into the watchable realm and is it's best feature. These here are what work for the film.The Bad News: This here does have some problems with it. One of the main flaws is it's slow, down-tuned way of going about things. It's not really an easy film to get into if a requirement is a lot of excitement to get into it. The film's approach is so low-key and unaffecting that it's possible to forget the film's events shortly afterward, especially when nothing really leaps out with it's effects. The majority of everything in the film is done through dialog and explanations for what has happened before the previous scene. There's a really large amount of analysis going on in here that it can just take a lot out since the action is simply non-existent for most of the running time, and when it actually decides to spring it out, there's nothing that really sticks out. The other really big flaw is it's ending is simply confusing. There's nothing that happens here which makes any sense at all, as it just simply happens to contain so much nonsensical ideas and actions that it's a real blow to the film. This is the biggest flaw, aside from the lifeless narrative, and will be responsible for most of the negative feelings toward the film.The Final Verdict: With only a few problems keeping this one down, this one's kind of in the middle of the road. It does have enough good points to be watchable, leaving this one only for the curious or completists of the style or genre.Rated R: Language and Violence

*************WARNING! This is more a perception of the film as a whole from my point of view and NOT so much a review (in the classic sense)! It could spoil the film for you. If you haven't seen it, then I HIGHLY recommend watching this fantastic movie and THEN reading this piece. ENJOY! ***************************************************************I won't re-hash all the things in the other reviews about acting and characters, most are right on the money. But I was astounded that no one else got what I got from this incredible film! To me, it was a character study in being the "Devil" in this day and age. Jeff Goldblum plays this role to the max as stated in all the other reviews ...BUT ...What I got was that his character felt like people had become so wicked that they had FORGOTTEN that evil was "his" and that people didn't believe in him anymore. What I saw his character doing was that he was on a mission: His mission wasn't to just get the world to believe again, it was to QUIT BEING THE DEVIL! He doesn't want the job anymore. He's "tired". (He wants to cook, for crying out loud!) Listen to his dialog CLOSELY. (Especially in the kitchen as he meets the Detective and when he first begins to speak to the unsuspecting lady Doctor) To find a suitable replacement, he comes to earth as a mortal and he has to find someone who believes that he is, in fact, the Devil; and THAT soul would take over his position. He, as the Devil would do, uses trickery and deception to lull the good Doctor into becoming a candidate. He wants to know that she can commit the ultimate evil and kill another person ... namely HIM! That will prove she is a worthy candidate and release him from his duties.In the end of the film, when she shoots him, you see the crosses of light that had shown in his eyes, suddenly appear in the Doctors eyes as she repeats his words ... "Stronger than passing time" .... it sounds like his and her voices together. The words become an oath, of sorts, and so it appears in the end of the film that SHE has taken his duties and he can now "retire" or whatever it is that Satan would do if he left his "position"! It's a very deep screenplay/storyline and if you get up to go the the bathroom or get a drink, you could easily be lost or miss an important part. Also, the sound recording is the most dynamic I've ever heard in a film. Some moments are so soft you must ride the volume up to hear them speak and some are so pressured, that you must ride the volume down from the yelling or Foley effects. Again, if you don't, you may miss or overlook an important bit.Definitely one of my favorite screenplays and films of all time! To truly "get it": Watch it alone, remote in hand, on a rainy afternoon ... TWICE! Pause it, if you get up. You WILL NOT regret it. For once you have "gotten it", I promise this will become a favorite of yours as well.

Ranks with THE FLY as Goldblum's greatest performance. He is mesmerising from his opening scenes with Alan Bates as the detective on a real mission impossible.Way too intelligent for most audiences of the new millennium, here in Goldblum's character and given the ring-melting sequence, there is no real enigma as to who he is - we have "cool" utterly personified.Awesome in its contemplation even - the Devil's reincarnation as a means to "renew the faith" as it were, Goldblum is hypnotic and absolutely commands attention and respect for every little nuance he projects in his time on screen.The end is only anti-climactic for the average "boofhead," who would more than likely have switched off long before the final reel anyway. It never was a question of "who won?" There ARE no winners! I have seen this film several times and only ever known it incidentally as "The Deadly Mister Frost" as is titled my own recently-acquired DVD copy.Rare and thought-provoking little gem.