Frank of Ireland
Dudes-behaving-badly comedy features sexual humor, drugs.
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Frank of Ireland
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this TV show.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Frank of Ireland is a comedy series about a 32-year-old musician who lives with his mother in Dublin, Ireland. The series stars real-life brothers Brian Gleeson (Peaky Blinders) and Domhnall Gleeson (Ex Machina) as Frank and Doofus, pals who are trying to sort out their love lives. Most of the plot revolves around Frank's relationship with his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend, and many of the jokes and plot points involve sexual situations. A lot of the humor comes from sexual content showing up in unexpected or inappropriate places. Drinking and drugs are also heavily featured, as characters are seen using MDMA and drinking to excess. Violence is occasionally shown or discussed, mostly fistfights, which are stylized and played for laughs. Generally, the comedy in Frank of Ireland tends to come from the central character's antisocial behavior, so there's a lot of boundary pushing with regards to sexual content, profanity, and drugs.
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What's the Story?
The title character of FRANK OF IRELAND (Brian Gleeson) is a 32-year-old wannabe musician who lives with his mother (Pom Boyd) in Dublin and is hung up on his ex-girlfriend, Aine (Sarah Greene). When Aine gets involved with a charismatic doctor (Tom Vaughn-Lawlor), it sends Frank into a tailspin. Alongside his trusty buddy Doofus (Domhnall Gleeson), he sets out to turn his life around, beginning with getting Aine back.
Is It Any Good?
The stunted adolescent middle-aged man has been a comedy trope for about 25 years now, beginning with Adam Sandler and Jim Carey becoming stars and driven off the rails by Will Ferrell. Frank of Ireland's take on the stunted adolescent feels pretty out of place in 2021. The series leans into the more problematic aspects of a dudes-behaving-badly comedy without adding anything new or reaching for the surreal extremes that make Carey's and Ferrell's performances (sometimes, occasionally) work. Instead, it's just a cavalcade of boundary-pushing jokes. Today, when there's a better cultural understanding of exactly how antisocial behavior affects others, none of the jokes seem to really land. Still, the comedy fetches some genuine laughs.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Frank. What do we know about him? What drives him? Is there anything likable about Frank? Is there anything that makes you root for him?
How does Frank's behavior affect the people in his life? What do you think draws people to him? Does he change at all over the course of the series? How?
TV Details
- Premiere date: April 16, 2021
- Cast: Brian Gleeson, Domhnall Gleeson, Sarah Greene
- Network: Amazon Prime Video
- Genre: Comedy
- TV rating: TV-MA
- Last updated: February 28, 2022
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