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.

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.

I wanted to like this film. I love Elmore Leonard novels, and loved Get Shorty, 52 Pickup, Get Straight and Jackie Brown (Rum Punch). In the hands of a master like Tarantino, Elmore Leonard's complex and fast-paced plots, with numerous characters throwing witty street banter around, really shine.

Unfortunately, Charles Mattheau isn't up to the task, and characters are miscast, pacing is awful, even the score is wrong in so many places. This film often comes off as a bad TV tongue-in-cheek crime show, complete with dramatic musical flourishes when the camera zooms in on the sexy legs of actresses Sabina Gadeki and Breanne Racano. (Their legs and other beautiful body parts are the best things about these mediocre actresses, in my opinion). The explosion scenes are evidence of a severe shortage in the sfx budget as well as the actor budget.

Even the usually outstanding Crispin Glover as the spacey drunken rich guy Woody Ricks is tepid, either overacting scenes or underacting them. Everything seems out of sync in this film.

Perhaps I'm holding it up to too high of a standard with the aforementioned Leonard film adaptations. But it is what it is...and cool 70's sets and apparel (the novel was set in the 60s), witty Leonard dialog and clever plot apparently weren't enough for director Mattheau to pull this off. I have to believe Elmore Leonard is supremely disappointed in this effort, since as I recall he labeled this his favorite novel. One can only hope that someday a director like Tarantino remakes this film the right way, and captures the crazy 60's vibe from the novel.