Freaky Deaky

I once again must ask who I must speak to to get my latest wild imaginings put on film as this is a sure sign that they will make just about any piece of garbage into a film. Elmore Leonard (RIP) has some great works out there and some of the film adaptations of his work have been fine films. Unfortunately Freaky Deaky by Charles Matthau is not to be listed among that group. Christian Slater is a fine actor and brings something great to each role he plays as well as does Crispin Glover, who is the poster boy for edgy character. The biggest mistake the producers made in this film was casting Beanne Racano in a role. She brings new meaning to the term "wooden delivery". Wow, what a stick she is. This women should never be allowed near a script again.If she didn't look like she does and had to audition for the role based on talent, well...... I could not finish watching this film.

I love Elmore Leonard I have read just about every novel he has written this is not among my favorites. However some of my favorites (Stick, 52 Pick Up, Rum Punch) have been made into completely terrible films.

This on the other hand is a nice adaptation. Characterizations and dialog doesn't stray much from the original story. Much of it plays out just like it did in my imagination when I read the book. The acting was passable, though I thought Glover (and to a lesser degree Andy Dick) were miscast but they did a decent job. The tone of the movie was light and breezy just like the novel. I would love to see the director take a crack at one of Leonard's better novels like Stick or The Hunted.

Well, this movie was poorly made. It really was, which is probably why we didn't see it anywhere and I had to actively track it down.

But, a big part of it is likely the budget. It stinks of low budget and you can't really make an ultra low budget period flick and have actually turn out well.

But, 7 of 10 stars because it is unique. The story is original, and that is probably why it had such a low budget feel to it, but that doesn't really matter at all.

You still have an Elmore Leonard movie, which means you still have characters you haven't really encountered in stories before and a plot that you haven't really seen before all in a genre--crime--that is over done and paint-by-numbers.

So, watch it, if nothing more than you are getting a real story, a fresh story, an Elmore Leonard story and he is always worth it...because without him you get more of the same old crap on repeat.

It's a story you probably haven't encountered before and that is always worth a watching.

Writer Elmore Leonard has delivered some interesting characters over the years, but up until now it was really only Quentin Tarantino's Jackie Brown and Barry Sonnenfield's Get Shorty that really successfully brought them to life. The latest attempt to bring another Leonard novel to life comes in the form of Freaky Deaky featuring a great cast including Christian Slater, Crispin Glover, Billy Burke, Michael Jai White, Bill Duke and Andy Dick, but does it deliver the strange and unique qualities needed to bring his characters and world to life?

Freaky Deaky follows an ex-bomb squad officer who is thrust into an investigation filled with rape, revenge, and explosives during circa 1974. At first this film feels like its going to be a complete mess, but then something happens and it sucks you right into this ridiculous world. This is mostly due to the creative and interesting characters that populate this 1970's universe. As the story moves forward each character is seemingly given their own time to shine to help bring this quirky dark comedy to life. The story is a bit all over the place, but works fairly well to due to these quirky strange characters and the bizarre story they are thrust into.

This is far from a perfect movie and there are some moments that just seem out of place or forced, but for the most part it works pretty well. If you are a fan of any of the other Leonard films then you will most likely enjoy this one as well as it comes across s thought it's the same universe. If nothing else, the strange relationship between Michael Jai White and Crispin Glover's characters is worth this whole move.

I haven't read any books by the writer, but the film had me laughing out loud in a few places. Maybe not Oscar material but for sure it is entertaining.