Freak Talks About Sex

I really liked this film but I can understand that its not for everyone. The film seems to meander around while focusing on the life of Josh Hamilton as David who's stuck in a major post-college, post-heartbreak, rut. All he wants to do is put in his time working at the mall and get stoned with his high school pal, a likable goofball named Freak (perfectly acted by Steve Zahn). This slice-of-life film with its many seemingly random scenes, dry humor, and a gentle epiphany at the end, really worked for me.

I feel I have to come to the defense of this movie by first stating some of its flaws. 1)make-up and 2)trying to make 30 somethings look younger than they are. So just make-up, I guess. I swear, I could NOT believe David's girlfriend in the city was a day under 35. And this movie is clearly about 20 somethings.

Im guessing this might be a play adapted to screen because of the rigid shots and the strong dialogue. Plus Josh Hamilton (David) has a lot of these under his belt. Just look at House of Yes if you're not convinced.

The inclusion of weed as a supporting cast is done tastefully. Lots of movies have relied on it to be a major source of humor. So lets get a few things straight- Weed itself is not funny. Watching people smoking weed and the 'hilarious' consequences of them doing so isn't funny (even on weed). Because of Cheech and Chong, we're repeatedly hit over the head with the stereotypical squishy-headed stoner in all sorts of bad movies. So Don't Do Drugs.

The reality of smoking pot is expressed in this movie (in just a few scenes)in a very truthful way that I sympathized with. This is why Blowin Smoke might be a misleading title though it could be argued that it describes Steve Zahn's character Freak as a guy who likes to talk out his ass.

This isn't the only great thing about the movie. Steve Zahn is dead-pan funny and Josh Hamilton has always been a good man-boy character. Its too bad he'll be older someday.

Nothing really new here, just another paint by the numbers 'we graduated from college and now were waiting for life to start' flick. The formula has been done better, several times by Zahn himself(Dancer Texas, SubUrbia, and the classic Reality Bites) and a lot of this film feels lifted from other projects, the bad job at the mall, the car that won't start, going to the dessert to write. But thats not to say it doesn't work. Josh Hamilton is earnest and engaging, Zahn is always worth watching, and newcomer Heather McComb holds her own. Worth watching if you like this type of movie, and I do.

This is an interesting view of two unlikely guys who are on a journey to find themselves. The humor is much more subtle and intelligent than Garth and Wayne but will probably appeal to the same audiences. There are many technical problems that expose the inexperience of the writers and directors of this film. The editing is bumpy in places and light changes from a drug induced red glow to bright white in a couple of places but the story line prevails and the main characters stay true to themselves. Watch this one more than once the humor is terrific. The stars and writers are sure to be bigger names in a few months and you will be able to chart their creative growth.

I said "MEHH!". No but seriously, this movie is alright, not a bad watch if you enjoy "slacker" or just "slice of life-ish" light comedies. Being a Steve Zahn fan is also a big plus, though I coulda stood for a little more screen time for him (he does get plenty though). Not a whole lot of plot here which is, in my mind, where this movie kinda fumbles. I think that was kinda the point though. Anyways basically, just shows a month (few weeks, or so who knows) period in the life of a post college wanna-be writer (not sure who the actor was, he was alright), chillin with his stoner buddy (Zahn) working at the mall, and random run-ins with old high-school acquantinces. Subtly makes its way into a somewhat (IMO) poignant coming of age (some age anyway) story. Dont want to give anything away - not that it would matter much or that theres even much to give away - but at the end I was actually left somewhat affected by what I considered to be the message. That could be because Im in generally the same circumstances as the guys though. Overall , if this sounds like something you would like you probaly will to some degree. I wouldnt consider this an immediate must see or anything though. If this genre, or the actors dont interest you, I cant see you liking this much. Hope this helps Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaate