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Review: ‘Freaky Tales’ is an Anthology that Tries too Hard to be a New Cult Classic, but is Ultimately Far from Freaky
April 1, 2025Ben MK
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Whether it's horror movies like Trick 'r Treat, thrillers like Pulp Fiction, or comedies like The French Dispatch, anthologies hold a special place in moviegoers' hearts. Blending the cut-to-the-chase satisfaction of short films with the framework of a full-length feature, anthologies offer audiences an experience unique to the genre, thanks to their ability to serve up diverse storylines all wrapped up in an overarching narrative. With Freaky Tales, however, Captain Marvel writer-directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck put their own spin on this fan-favorite format — yet while this collection of stories may appear to check all the necessary boxes on paper, in reality, the result is far from freaky. The year is 1987, and in this alternate version of Oakland, California, something strange is afoot. A cosmic green glow has permeated the day-to-day lives of everyone in the city, and although it's not quite clear where it might have originated from or how it will ultimately affect humanity, one man has made it his mission to harness its power and try to use it for good. A star player for the Oakland Warriors, Sleepy Floyd (Jay Ellis) founded the Psytopics Spiritual Learning Center to help educate his fellow citizens about this cosmic energy, and to train them on how to become more in tune with this mysterious force that surrounds all of them. What he could never anticipate, however, is how he himself would have to put his knowledge of this this glowing green energy to use, after his home and valuable art collection are targeted by a ruthless gang of organized thieves led by a man known simply as The Guy (Ben Mendelsohn), leaving Sleepy's family injured and his girlfriend dead. At the same time, we also meet Clint (Pedro Pascal), a gruff yet softspoken thug-for-hire infamous for his ability to convince others with his fists, but who decides to leave his career of crime behind after his pregnant wife, Grace (Natalia Dominguez), and unborn daughter are shot and killed. One of The Guy's many employees, Clint finds himself coerced to do one more job for his boss, as a final debt to be paid before he can exit the criminal underworld completely. What he doesn't realize, though, is that The Guy has no intention to let Clint enjoy his freedom. And when The Guy takes Clint prisoner at his base of operations, will Clint be able to outwit his captors and escape a fate worse than death? Or will he have to rely on Sleepy Floyd, who goes looking for revenge after learning of The Guy's involvement in his girlfriend's death, and who will stop at nothing until he has decimated every single last one of The Guy's goons, including the man responsible for it all. Throw in a loosely connected story about a pair of teenagers named Lucid (Jack Champion) and Tina (Ji-young Yoo), who, along with the rest of their punk-rock friends, must defend their club from the relentless attacks of a group of skinheads, as well as another casually related tale involving a pair of aspiring singers named Barbie (Dominique Thorne) and Entice (Normani), who are able to channel the mysterious cosmic energy that runs through them in order to win a pivotal rap battle, and you have the makings of a movie that does its best to imitate the giants of the anthology format. Still, while Boden and Fleck clearly have their sights set on turning Freaky Tales into a new cult classic, it's the film's dull and generic tone, not to mention its reluctance to truly capitalize on its quirky premise and go all in on the insanity, that prevent it from achieving its goals. It's an ongoing problem that plagues the movie from start to finish, so much so that not even a fun little cameo from Tom Hanks can alleviate the boredom viewers will inevitably experience. And even though the final, action-packed act is accompanied by a decent dose of blood and gore, it all amounts to a case of too little too late, thanks to the bland nature of everything that's come before. Suffice to say, hardcore anthology fans may still be moderately interested in Freaky Tales, if only for the presence of Pascal and Mendelsohn. For everyone else, on the other hand, this is one not-so-freaky collection of stories that can easily be skipped. Freaky Tales releases April 4th, 2025 from Lionsgate Films. The film has an MPAA rating of R for strong bloody violence, language throughout including slurs, sexual content and drug use. Its runtime is 1 hr. 46 min. |
