In 1987, Wrestle Mania III achieved the most significant attendance record for a live indoor sporting event in North America, Michael Jackson released Bad (his first studio album since 1982’s Thriller), and Eric ‘Sleepy’ Floyd made history with a playoff record for points scored in a quarter in game four of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Lakers.
Yes, 1987 was a good year for some, but everything is almost the opposite in Ryan Fleck’s (It’s Kind of a Funny Story 2010, Captain Marvel 2019) and Anna Boden’s (Sugar 2008, Captain Marvel 2019) Freaky Tales. Though the title insists that the film will be insane, the movie itself is not as ‘freaky’ as you might think. Aside from not matching the title, it includes some big-name actors and actresses and has massive backing from Lionsgate. The real question is, does Freaky Tales live up to expectations?
Hitting theaters on April 4, 2025, Freaky Tales stars Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian series, The Last of Us series), Ben Mendelsohn (The Dark Knight Rises 2012, Ready Player One 2018), Jay Ellis (The Game series, Top Gun: Maverick 2022), Too $hort, Normani, Jack Champion (The Night Sitter 2018, Avatar: The Way of Water 2022), and Ji-young Yoo (Expats series, Smoking Tigers 2023). The film even includes a cameo with the great Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump 1994, Cast Away 2000). There are a few others in the movie that one might recognize, though the more important ones mentioned above are the film’s true stars.
It starts with a commercial piece for Phsytopics, a spiritual school led by Sleepy (Ellis). Then you are sucked into a sequence of stories narrated by Too $hort.
The first story plays out like a scene from 2010’s Kick-Ass, with words randomly popping up on the screen during action scenes. A bunch of Nazi supporters is harassing a group of Punk kids. What do the Punks decide to do? Stand up and fight. It’s not really ‘freaky,’ but maybe the strange green lightning strike in the story signifies some freakiness.
Story two picks up with Entice and Barbie, two aspiring female rappers who attend a rap-off with Too $Hort himself. Of course, this story is nothing freaky besides the mic flashing that same weird green as the one in the first story.
The third story begins with Pedro’s character, Clint, getting a tragic phone call from the hospital telling him that his wife did not make it and his newborn baby girl may not make it. Then, the audience returns to the previous 24 hours, where Clint and his pregnant wife are at a video rental store. Here is the point when things take a turn for the worse, and also, the aforementioned great Tom Hanks shows up with a bit of strange knowledge about basketball teams and films. This story does not precisely conclude until the end of the last story.
The last story jumps back to the man himself, Sleepy Floyd. While playing against the Lakers, his house is robbed, and his mom, girlfriend, and brother get shot. Sleepy then decides to open a can of whoop ass on the guys that robbed him, but this is where everything and everyone from the previous stories combine. In truth, this is the only actual freaky part of the film. Since when did Sleepy Floyd become a martial artist and learn astral projection? Needless to say, watch the movie and find out.
Although Freaky Tales is not precisely ‘freaky,’ it is intriguing and entertaining. The camera work is excellent, and the shots are clear and professional. The soundtrack is also spot-on, and the acting is phenomenal. Something very entertaining and enjoyable to watch, Cryptic Rock gives Freaky Tales 5 out of 5 stars.
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