Freaky Tales

It's probably one of those 'you're either gonna like/love it or hate it' situations. It's definitely not a movie to be taken seriously but i think that's pretty obvious before you're even ten minutes into it.

What I'M wondering is how they got some of the people in it to BE in it...i know one of them grew up in Piedmont(Oakland), but still...he's one of THE most popular actors from the last 45 or so years...i think he did it as a favor. A salute to, 'cool that you're doing a movie in Oakland'.

As far as story elements go, the movie is all over the place...but, overall, it was FUN. Of course, having lived in Berkeley for 20+ years helped me to enjoy it. And i liked seeing Angus Cloud again.

These are the tales of four strangers whose lives were unknowingly intertwined and changed on a freaky night in Oakland in 1987 when NBA history was made.

This movie is hard to describe or even summarize without spoiling it. The story is told through four chapters, each from the perspective of one of the four individuals. The movie has violence, drama, cameos, and a smidge of history. The story becomes clearer over the one-hour and forty-six-minute runtime, but it is a wild ride throughout. It is an interesting and unique watch, especially when going blind. Stream it when available, if you are intrigued.

Presented in a 4:3 aspect ratio, this film in its presentation emulates an old videotape. Cut-off titles and all. Clearly shot on digital video, I still appreciated the Betamax (not VHS) artifacts. But it finds Inspiration from many direct to VHS (mostly horror) films from the 80's. The "tales" (as in Tales from the Crypt, etc.) in the title promises multiple story segments and this promise is kept. But rarely did period pieces overlap so perfectly with their segments. Worst case: 3 or more short films added together by a narrator. Not here however.

At the same time, it's impossible to view this and not see this as being inspired by the Grindhouse format from Quintin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez. Both in "retro pulp" and violence terms.

Any criticism? Yep. For non-Americans the second segment is not that interesting. We found ourselves "sitting it out" this part on the strength of the first (imperfect) segment. Only to be rewarded by the third segment. International audiences will be unlikely to make it to the third segment. Thus my "Hizzle for Zhizzle" in the title of this comment. We are Dutch, so associate this subject matter at best with "Do The Right Thing" (and at worst with "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air".

Pedro Pascal "did some acting" and the other well known actor... from Forrest Gump... Tom Hanks... they are in this. Pascal did a descent job. A good one in fact.

This is a film you should see if you remember 1987. And like violence and stuff. Or if you enjoy well made pulp-films.

If the threads connecting their segments are strong & inter-woven enough, anthologies CAN work... like "Freaky Tales" whose four segments (based in 1987's Oakland, California) see: punks Ji-young Woo & Jack Champion fight Dan Marotte's nazis; rappers Dominique Thorne & Normani catch a break (in an unnecessary segment); reluctant tough guy Pedro Pascal reaching his end (crossing a delightful Tom Hanks cameo and corrupt cop Ben Mendelsohn (terrific)); and baskeball star Jay Ellis going "Kill Bill". With its deliberately dated, cartoonish style co-writers / co-directors Ryan Fleck & Anna Boden's fun tribute to popular '80s cinema is a treat. Props to them & it.

Freaky Tales (2025) is an action comedy anthology movie and it was very good to say the least.

Positives for Freaky Tales (2025): The cast of the movie is the thing that kept me invested with Pedro Pascal, Ben Mendelsohn, Jay Ellis, Normani, Dominique Thorne, Jack Champion, Ji-young Yoo and Angus Cloud. There is a lot of intrigue in the ideas of an action comedy anthology movie. The movie has a good pace to it. There is some good use of humor and action sequences throughout these different segments. And finally, the movie works better as background noise.

Negatives for Freaky Tales (2025): None of the short stories were all that interesting or compelling. None of the characters get any development despite being played by great actors. And finally, the movie isn't nearly as funny as I syyt

Overall, Freaky Tales (2025) is a good action movie that could've been so much better, but I can see myself rewatching it later on in the future.