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"The character of Alan seems to be
modeled on controversial French politician Dominique
Strauss-Kahn, and Nyqvist does a fine job of
leaving us in doubt about the true nature of this suave
but possibly predatory bigwig. Emmanuelle Devos has a
small but pivotal role in the Paris scenes, and Justin
Long gives a likable performance as Lola’s employer." ...Stephen Farber, The
Hollywood Reporter
"Frank learns that there’s another man in Lola’s
life, a kinky aging married French playboy, played by
the always terrific Michael Nyqvist, and the
scenes in which these two get acquainted, circling each
other like the predators they are, are the sign of a
born filmmaker. Ross has the confidence to take a movie
places you didn’t think it was going to go and to seize
the audience’s fascination." ...Owen Gleiberman,
Variety
"Frank & Lola is a pleasant surprise at the end
of the year as Oscar season looms ominously in the
distance. If adverse to the dreck that usually goes up
for the awards, Matthew Ross’ debut is an enjoyable and
dark alternative." ...Film critic Michael O'Sullivan
"Director Ross keeps the level of tensions high until
the end, and Shannon’s strong performance is aided quite
a bit by an equally good one from Nyqvist as the
smooth, seductive Alan. Occasional moments of violence,
even sexual violence, make this a very edgy film, and we
never know how it will all turn out up to the last
moment." ...Cate Marquis, wearemoviegeeks.com
"Frank & Lola works amazingly well as a quiet
piece of sex-driven film noir (like Body Heat)
where even fancy restaurants seem to be places of doom
and deception. Las Vegas is the perfect setting, almost
a character in itself." ...Jeffrey M. Anderson,
Combustible Celluloid
"Writer/director Matthew Ross
appropriately sets his modern-day film noir in Las
Vegas; Sin City makes the perfect setting for this tale
of two emotionally scarred, relationship-shy
characters... With Rosanna Arquette as Lola’s mother and
Michael Nyqvist as a suave and cagey old friend
of Lola's, Ross’s film is always utterly gripping. The
intrigue is palpable as the story examines issues of
truth, jealousy, and trust. A romance at its core, the
picture asks that age-old question: can we ever really
know who we fall in love with? ...Carrie Kahn,
Spinning Platters
"Suffice it to say that Frank & Lola is a picture
that casts a moody spell as it wends its way through
plot convolutions that depend as much on atmosphere as
surprise. That’s a perfect fit for Shannon, who is able
with near-minimalist gestures to convey the inner
distress of a man obsessed with a woman and bent on
sweeping away all doubt about her fidelity... Poots
sketches Lola vividly, but she remains a relatively
opaque presence by comparison to Frank... The rest of
the cast add significant supporting turns. Nyqvist
smoothly keeps you guessing until the very end, while
Long adds a hint of a possible darker motivation to a
character who, on the surface, just seems to be a
good-natured back-slapper." ...Frank
Swietek, One Guy's Opinion
"Shannon shines as Frank, who is
easily one of cinema’s most inscrutable and indomitable
characters since Lee Marvin’s Walker of Point Blank
fame, and the devious Nyqvist and the distressed
Poots excellently complement his character."
...Reggie Peralta, Film-book.com
"Nyqvist, for the record, is better used here
than he has been since Hollywood adopted him as a go-to
Euro-villain some five years ago. There’s something more
unsettling about him in this less obviously villainous
role than there was to him when he appeared as
boss-level baddies in Mission: Impossible: Ghost
Protocol and John Wick." ...Brogan Morris, We Got
This Covered
"Ross proves himself to be adept at conjuring an
enveloping, grownup romantic mood that allows Frank and
Lola’s love affair to burn with a palpable, volatile
passion. Incorporating a lush score from composers
Daniel Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans, and utilizing
occasionally elliptical editing, Frank & Lola weaves a spell
in its early stretches as we sense the sexual chemistry
but also an odd tension between the main characters...
Nyqvist provides just the right amount of vaguely
sinister veneer to Alan." ...Tim Grierson, Screen
Daily
"Nyqvist (so good in the Swedish Dragon Tattoo
films) and Emmanuelle Devos are deliciously sordid as a
kinky European couple with a lax attitude about
fidelity. And Poots, who seems one film away from
becoming a huge movie star, is terrifically
unpredictable—vulnerable one minute and manipulative the
next." ...Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly
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