"Dear Frankie" is a heart-tugging family romance with decidedly non-Hollywood touches that add to its charm and poignancy.

We are swept into both sides of an unusual epistolary relationship -- one between a mother and son, as each takes on alternative identities to communicate, and we get to hear their adopted voices as well.

The son is an isolated deaf kid who won't talk but pours out his heart in letters, while his fiercely protective mother pretends to be his fictional seagoing dad in response. We are drawn into their parallel stories from each perspective, as their defensively claustrophobic relationship has an outlet in this fictional geography as they gradually start dealing with the real world.

Emily Mortimer combines strength and naked vulnerability, as she did in "About Adam" and "Lovely and Amazing," while the son is captivating in an almost mimed role without being as treacly as the kid playing Peter in "Finding Neverland." Debut director Shona Auerbach keeps the movie tethered to reality with evocative use of Glasgow and its active port. We are anchored in a working class bloke territory that becomes a rocky shore for an untethered single mom living with her mother and her kid. This is tellingly symbolized when Mortimer braves a rough waterfront bar.

And then re-emphasized in a hotel tea parlor whose atmosphere electrically changes the minute rugged Gerard Butler pops up on screen. Epitomizing that cinematic manliness that is so talked about as lacking from most American actors these days, Butler's absolutely authentic masculinity instantly telescopes what this mother and child have been missing, and not just his sexual gravitas. Butler movingly demonstrates how a guy's guy plays paternal through such simple things as football, skipping stones, eating and of course dancing.

I don't know if I missed the clues to the concluding twists, but Hollywood would never let these lovely mysteries be, let alone as an achingly long look into each's eyes.

It's nice to see faces from Scottish TV shows in atypical roles, Sharon Small deservedly having a steady boyfriend on screen for a change, and Cal Macaninch, the nice guy from "Rockface" as the not nice guy here.

The Scots accents are thick and I did miss some punch lines in the dialog here and there.

The song selections are lovely, including a Damien Rice track that hasn't been overused yet.

Bathed in a softly glowing palette of muted colors, DEAR FRANKIE puts three bruised characters in the forefront, surrounds them with believable supporting characters grounded in reality, and takes its time in letting a well-written script unwind as these actors draw you into the story.

The idea behind the story is a simple one of a mother protecting her deaf child by shielding him from the truth about his brutal father. When the son builds up the fantasy of a sea-faring father too busy with his work as a sailor to spend much time with them, the mother invents a surrogate father for a day who will fulfill the boy's wish to see the father who means so much to him through letters (actually written by the mother).

The only shortcoming in the script is giving The Stranger (Gerard Butler) too little screen time. He comes into the story after a good 45 minutes have been spent building up to his entrance and his performance is a well crafted one, sturdy and dependable throughout. His scenes with the boy are tender without becoming mawkish or overly sentimental and have the ring of truth about them. The aquarium scene shows how much he has warmed to the idea of being the boy's father with just a simple close-up of Butler's face watching the child (Jack McElhone),conveying without words the gradual change coming over the gruff man.

But the mainstay of the film are the performances by the female lead, Emily Mortimer and, of course, young McElhone, who carry the first part of the film entirely. There never seems to be a false move or moment between them. The woman's grandmother, Mary Mulligan, is also excellent, providing rough humor but always very real.

A charming musical score provides a nice background touch to the proceedings and the bleak Glasgow landscapes give the film the sort of brooding atmosphere it needs. The ending could have opted for more of a Hollywood touch, but this was avoided and viewers can suppose what they like of the fact that the mother and The Stranger may indeed have a future together when she has time to think about it.

Well worth watching but an independent film not likely to draw a wide audience unless Butler's fans increase its box-office worth. Nevertheless, there are some strong individual scenes that more than make up for the slow pacing and the story maintains interest because all of the characterizations are right on target.

In Scotland, Lizzie (Emily Mortimer) is constantly moving from town to town with her nine year old son Frankie (Jack McElhone) and her mother Nell (Mary Riggans) escaping from her husband. Frankie is a very intelligent deaf boy, and the protective Lizzie invented that his father is a sailor of the vessel "A.C.C.R.A", traveling though the most different countries and permanently writing to Frankie, telling his adventures. Frankie tracks the route of the vessel in a map, and when the vessel is scheduled to arrive in their coastal town, Lizzie decides to hire a stranger (Gerard Butler) to act as if he were Frankie's father for one day.

"Dear Frankie" is a touching simple but unforgettable story. Everything is perfect in this little gem: the screenplay tells a wonderful and realistic story, without clichés and the commercial or corny end of most of Hollywood productions; the direction is sharp and precise, exploring the best from the excellent cast; the fragile and gorgeous Emily Mortimer is amazing in the role of a protective mother, capable to sacrifice her life to give a dream to her young son; the boy Jack McElhone has a great performance and shows that he is a promising star; the always perfect Gerard Butler is one of the most underrated actors in cinema industry. I am a great fan of Emily Mortimer and Gerard Butler, but I believe their performances are topnotch in this film. If you like statistics, 90% of IMDb reviews loved this movie, and only 9 comments in 145 total hated it. It seems to be a movie made with love about unconditional love. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Querido Frankie" ("Dear Frankie")