Freaky Tales
Writing/directing duo Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck winningly return to their indie roots.
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I’m not gonna lie – it’s kinda weird to see America’s Dad Tom Hanks in a flick where two female rappers obscenely battle Too $hort, but it’s 2025 and this is where we’re at. The film is “Freaky Tales” (in select theaters beginning Friday, April 4) and I’m here for it in a big, bad way.
Moviemakers Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck (“Half Nelson,” “Captain Marvel”) have gifted us a hyperlink anthology film recalling Alex Cox’s “Repo Man,” Quentin Tarantino’s “Pulp Fiction” and Jeremy Saulnier’s “Green Room.”
It’s 1987 in Oakland, Calif. and we’re introduced to a diverse cast of characters.
Punk rockers Tina (Ji-young Yoo) and Lucid (Jack Champion, he was Spider in “Avatar: The Way of Water”) are forced to protect their club from being attacked by Nazi skinheads led by Troy (Dan Marotte).
Female rap group Danger Zone comprised of Entice (singer Normani) and Barbie (Dominique Thorne, she played Riri Williams aka Ironheart in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”) have aspirations of superstardom and hopes of leaving their jobs at an ice cream parlor where they’re frequently harassed by crooked cop The Guy (Ben Mendelsohn).
Clint (prolific zaddy Pedro Pascal) is a collector/enforcer who’s looking to get out of the game since his wife Grace (Natalia Dominguez) is about to give birth to their first child.
We’re also introduced to an embellished version of Golden State Warrior Eric “Sleepy” Floyd (Jay Ellis), who encounters personal tragedy that must be avenged on the same night he has the game of his life.
Boden and Fleck have made a fun, funny and – believe it or not – freaky flick that deftly balances their indie roots and commercial breakthrough. It’s like those Tarantino knockoffs from the mid-to-late 1990s, i.e. “Things to Do in Denver When You’re Dead” or “2 Days in the Valley,” only it’s actually good. It employs stylistic flourishes such as animation and variable aspect ratios (sometimes at the same time) playfully and winningly.
There’s an authenticity to the proceedings by having Bay Area luminaries such as Rancid frontman Tim Armstrong, Marshawn Lynch, the actual Sleepy Floyd and Too $hort (who narrates) turn up in cameos and supporting roles.
“Freaky Tales” is very much a celebration of the underdog (so much so it sports the Sly and the Family Stone tune “Underdog”) and a stirring reminder that whether it’s 1945, 1987 or 2025 there’s no room for Nazism and it must be eradicated at its very roots.
It’s also heartening to see two indies directed by women in the span of one week succeed so heartily with the other being “Bob Trevino Likes It” (my review here). The underdogs aren’t only winning – they’re killing.