Francophrenia (or: Don’t Kill Me, I Know Where the Baby Is)

When James Franco announced he was to play a role in the TV series General Hospital, it caused quite a stir. Franco is known as a serious actor, so what was he doing in a soap series? There were rumours that his performance had something to do with an art project.
Not such a crazy theory, as James Franco (who acted in Spider-Man, 127 Hours and Howl) has many talents. He directs, writes, studies and makes (performance) art. Francophrenia demonstrates that there is more to his role as artist/murderer Franco in General Hospital than meets the eye.
The film starts innocently: we follow him during a day’s shooting of the soap series. But it soon becomes clear that directors Ian Olds and Franco didn’t want to make an ordinary documentary. In voice-over, we hear Franco’s thoughts as these become increasingly paranoid and megalomaniacal. Francophrenia is a humorous, experimental psycho-thriller that Franco grandly and stunningly trips up. ‘I’m everywhere. I’m the light of this world!’

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