Short Film: Frankula

Frankula is a 7-minute short film directed by David Barry and is a British cinephiles’ dream. Barry, you might recall, played Frankie Abbott (Mummy’s little soldier) in the film and series “Please Sir!” and the spin-off series “the Fen Street Gang”. In this he reprises his role but Frankie is now of a certain age and is in a rest home.

He is reading a Wolverine Vs Deadpool comic when his carer, Agnes (Emma Dark, Sieze the Night), comes in to inform him that it is nearly time for bed – she just has to administer another person their meds. This leads to a small outburst by Frankie about his fellow patient. However, he soon falls asleep in the chair.

Caroline Munro as Clarissa

He is wakened by Agnes, now in Gothic attire, who in the best Alice in Wonderland tradition declares by “tainted blood” that she is late. She leaves the room and Frankie follows after her. In the hallway, at the front door, appears a vampire who calls herself Clarissa Cobra (Caroline Munro) – the description of herself as a bloodsucker gets a return quip about working for a city bank. She tells him that he should be at the coven dinner being held is in honour, making Frankie long for some chips.

something odd with the ketchup

Following her, he is suddenly in a graveyard and waiting for him are Agnes, Dr. Spritzer (Martin Rudman) and Vera Vomit (Judy Matheson, Lust for a Vampire & Twins of Evil) - all, of course, vampires. They do, indeed, have chips but there is something not quite right about the tomato sauce and he might be deemed “a new recruit” but the term victim has also slipped out…

the vampire women

Fabulous stuff. I need to mention that towards the end of the short there is a brief narration by the wonderful Fenella Fielding. The short is played for laughs and they are all dialogue driven and the photography is beautifully done – the graveyard looks especially lush. Most definitely worth 7 minutes of your time.

The imdb page is here.