Frank and Cindy 2015

In 2005, G.J. Echternkamp sits down with his mother Cindy Brown for an on-camera interview that becomes the spine of a candid, raw documentary. She explains her tense present relationship with her long-time partner Frank Garcia as he continues to grow more overweight. The scene paints a fractured domestic rhythm: Cindy has carried the family load, often juggling two jobs, while Frank and Cindy sleep in separate parts of the house, and Frank’s daily life unfolds in a space where the floor he spends most of the day on lacks a toilet, forcing him to use coffee cans.

Two weeks earlier, G.J. returns home after earning his bachelor’s degree; Cindy vows to respect his personal space and reveals she has been sober for 15 months. He tries to connect with someone he met at a bar, but Frank and Cindy intervene, scaring her off.

Cindy shares her controversial plan to fix her teeth, land a high-end job, and perhaps marry a producer to divorce Frank. On the answering machine, Gilbert leaves a string of messages, which G.J. ignores. Frank suggests filming his music, and G.J. discovers they spent his savings for Art Center without his knowledge, leaving him with no money to study film there. G.J. makes Cindy repeat her promise to change on camera and vows to document them 24/7 so he’ll have evidence when they don’t follow through.

G.J. asks Cindy to tell him about the love of her life. Frank had been the bass player of OXO, an ’80s band with the one-hit wonder “Whirly Girl.” She was the ultimate groupie who he asked to marry him, although she was 20 years older. She hoped life would be glamorous, but the reality was far more complicated.

When G.J. asks Frank why he didn’t become a wildly successful musician, he vaguely blames the music industry and mentions that an intensely enthusiastic fan moment made him wary of fame. He explains that the video is part of a where are they now? project for G.J.’s future film-school ambitions.

G.J. meets Kate at a club and invites her home to play video games; unlike his other liaisons, their relationship remains largely platonic as she’s just leaving a bad relationship. They are brutally honest: G.J. shows her his collection of Polaroids of women he’s slept with, and they both admit they don’t believe in love. Kate confesses she used to be fat and dislikes men with tiny penises, and he admits he’s often cheated.

After G.J. posts a short video that racks up over 20,000 views, Cindy reveals more about a car accident they had and suggests sedatives may have played a role; she regrets missing his childhood.

Later, at Kate’s gig, G.J. recalls his father’s promiscuity; they end up growing closer, and intimacy follows. A while later he calls Kate and discovers his mother has been on sedatives; she concedes that people don’t change, prompting him to hang up.

Fed up when Frank breaks the videocamera, G.J. travels to see his father in a trailer full of cats. Gilbert reveals that Cindy used him to get pregnant and that she and Frank managed to tolerate each other for twenty years. G.J. returns to his mom’s for a job callback, promising to stay in regular contact.

Back at Cindy’s place, she returns the repaired camera and, as the project winds toward its end, suggests an OXO reunion concert to complete the documentary, framing it as a cancer-benefit event. Cindy makes posters, and after Kate ignores a flurry of his calls, she shows up at the restaurant where he waits; Cindy persuades her that he’s miserable without her, and they speak outside, both admitting they slept with other people.

In a final interview, Frank speaks to G.J. and the camera about his attempted suicide: after ingesting pills and cocaine, he begged the 12-year-old G.J. to plunge a display sword into him. The moment leaves a lasting impression and prompts him to urge reflection on how it affected him, while the stepdad insists that becoming a family has been his greatest achievement.

The gig is a success, bringing in $1,600 and real enjoyment from the crowd. Later, when pressed by Cindy, G.J. admits on film that she didn’t completely screw up as a mom and softly says that he loves her.

The movie includes a rearranged version of Whirly Girl and excerpts from the original video.