Published in: Documentary Film Reviews

Documentary Review “Justice For Frankie”

Author OneFilmFan

Published on: October 25, 2019

WATCH THE TRAILER HERE

First, the Recap:

On October 28, 2018, a death occurred. Now, when we look on the surface, this would seem no surprise. In fact, each and every day, an average of 150,000 people pass on from this world. So, one might then inquire as to why the aforementioned date holds any particular significance over another? For the average person, it may never hold any overt meaning. But for one person, it would be a day that began a new journey, a sobering, heartbreaking, yet hugely necessary and determined one that would end up shining that all-revealing light of truth onto the entities that are the U.S. health system and the V.A., plus equally bring to painfully unsettling reality the plight of those who’ve served their country–our veterans.

In this instance, one particular veteran named Frank J. Coiro, born and raised in Little Italy, NYC, who chose to join the Marines at age 17 in 1960 and serve his country as any great American solider should, with distinction and honor. Yet, in the year post-retirement, medical issues began to arise, especially by 2018, when kidney failure began taking its toll on Frank. Yet, it is at this point where events transpired involved with Frank’s care and a subsequent surgery he endured that brought into question the actual quality (or more so lack thereof) of care he was receiving from the facilities treatment was being administered by, as suddenly, he was no longer alive when he should have been. This is the story of Frank J. Coiro by the woman who loved him for 15 years and whose drive for the facts has exposed conspiracy and cover-up.

Next, my Mind:

Honestly, stories like this make me both mad and disturbed in soul, which is precisely the intent, this critic feels, that writer/director/producer Diane Lenska was aiming for with this new 65-minute documentary effort that more than does its job uncovering and exposing the blatant hypocrisy, abuse of power, and sub-standard care that we continue to hear about when it comes to the V.A. and medical industry’s increasingly consistent failure to successfully provide what care was needed in a given situation that ends up causing the untimely passing of a patient, especially within the military veteran’s community. Now, so it’s understood, this is not as a blanket statement that ALL people involved with said industries are bad or inadequate, as there are plenty out there offering and delivering the kind of care and compassion that should BE the standard. However, when witnessing this film, hearing firsthand accounts, and seeing documentation that supports the worst kind of oversights, omissions, disregard for patient well-being, and evident covering up of circumstances, it is genuinely difficult to grasp how this is happening within a world where the patient’s best interest is supposed to be king.

What I personally treasure about a documentary executed in the manner it is here is that I feel one hundred percent confident it comes from the heart and the saddening but poignant direct experience-driven desire by Lenska to draw direct awareness to these situations in order that it might become both a cautionary tale to those who may have loved ones under medical care as well as a rallying cry to the rest of us who might be able to step up and find our own ways to aid in supporting those who have suffered this kind of loss already or just in bringing further notice to organizations out there that are trying to be the catalysts to see change occur that can prevent these disheartening occurrences from happening.  It is certainly a call for MUCH higher transparency and accountability within the medical field and V.A. ranks when it comes to ensuring that all procedures and documentation between the V.A. and associated hospitals a patient might find themselves transferred between is maintained on a level that solidifies and matches to the letter every stage of their existing conditions and treatments a patient has had, whether in the past, present, or future, so that nothing is missed, misdiagnosed, or simply ignored dare I say as was apparent in the narrative about Frank J. Coiro that Lenska so passionately presents to the viewer throughout the documentary.

Additionally, another facet of this film I very much laud is that this isn’t sensationalism, hearsay, or fabricated facts making the case here, but real world evidence that supports every single concern and treatment error that occurred in Coiro’s situation.  Some might also try to argue this is an attempt at a smear campaign against the V.A. and medical facilities mentioned brought about by an “angry lover”, but this is just not the case here. Lenska’s very forthright approach showcases a total commitment to be as dutifully, proactively, productively forceful as possible to pull the veil back on this unfortunate incident with Frank in order to demonstrate empathically what exactly was happening so that the facts speak for themselves and the proof is presented without doubt or any deniability. Also, candid interviews via Frank’s Tanglewood Manor, Jamestown, NY resident and friend Carl Cammarata plus former 9-year Tanglewood Manor employee Kristina Taft aid in bringing to bear extra elements of information that paint a not-so-flattering portrait of how the facility tended to conduct itself.  The phone conversations and hidden audio recordings likewise allow nothing to be in question as to everything involved that was missed in Frank’s treatment and care which lead to his demise under their watch. As stated earlier, some mentioned, such as Tammy, a nurse’s aide at Tanglewood, showed compassion and sincere care that one should or would expect, but the grander stage was set to illustrate how seemingly few and far between those types of individuals were that were somehow a part of Frank’s care.

The raw, uncensored nature of the film’s overall presentation, I felt, greatly assisted in pushing home the starkness of the project’s thematic purpose, and it certainly did raise more than a few queries in the mind about the nature and state of affairs that exists within the medical community when it comes to veterans and their treatments at facilities and V.A. hospitals.  These tales have been in the national news spotlight on more than one occasion, but seeing it portrayed on such a personal level such as Lenska has created here really has the kind of soul-stirring, deliberately emotional, conscious-rousing tone that this critic hopes will do what it should in elevating public perception, understanding, and acknowledgement of an issue that is a serious problem needing to be addressed, especially as Lenska clearly wishes that no one else would need to go through what she did in losing a dearly loved part of her life to the negligence of those whose decisions, medical malpractice, lack of true compassion, and severe lack of professionalism caused a man his life. This doesn’t remotely overstate or embellish anything at all that’s provided in this film, and this critic does hope many people have the opportunity to watch and take in the actual magnitude of what’s shown in order to ascertain and comprehend on their own exactly how the factors delivered impact them and, ideally, spur them to action in some form.

Therefore, in total, “Justice For Frankie” is indeed a cry for just that, a wake-up call to the medical and V.A. communities at large that this kind of irresponsibility should not go unnoticed at any level it might take place in and that people will not just stand by and accept it when there needs to be that larger measure of liability and answerability placed on these organizations so that we don’t have to hear any further stories like Frank J. Coiro’s, may he rest in peace, and may the love of God be with filmmaker Diane Lenska for having the fortitude to present us with such a deeply personal piece of indie cinema that, hopefully, will become one more catalyst for change. Wish to see what you can do?  Check out the Advocates For Justice website to learn more.

As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!