The weekend sees the release of a movie we really dug when we caught it at Sundance way back in 2024. The film is Freaky Tales, which is a kaleidoscopic tribute to 80s movies. Set in Oakland in 1987, the film features a memorable collection of tales centred around the various violent encounters our heroes (and anti-heroes) have with a collection of Neo-Nazi skinheads terrorizing the city. Notably, it’s the only Sundance movie since The Raid 2 that I can remember that ends with a kung fu massacre.

It’s directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, who started their careers with lower-key Indies like Half Nelson and Mississippi Grind before directing the billion-dollar-grossing Captain Marvel. Freaky Tales plays like a mash-up of the two sensibilities, with it having the edge of an indie, but the scale and excitement of a blockbuster (as well as a particularly cool A-list cameo).

Recently, we spoke with the directing duo about their approach to the film, which counts rising superstar Pedro Pascal among its main cast members. Check it out, and if you get the chance to see Freaky Tales, give it a shot. It’s a real gem. 

Here’s the Freaky Tales synopsis: An NBA star, a corrupt cop, a female rap duo, teenage punks, neo-Nazis and a debt collector embark on a collision course in 1987 Oakland, Calif.

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Fun fact: I saw Freaky Tales over a year ago at the Sundance Film Festival. In a fest known mostly for prestigious fare, it was a refreshing change of pace, with it a fast-paced action flick set in Oakland in 1987 that followed four interconnected stories over the course of one violent night. Despite mostly solid reviews, this one has sat on the shelf for a while, but now Lionsgate is giving it a theatrical release on April 4th. You can check out the trailer in the embed above.

Directed by Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden, in their follow-up to Captain Marvel, the film stars Pedro Pascal, Jay Ellis (Top Gun: Maverick), Ben Mendelsohn, and the late Angus Cloud (Euphoria). As shown by the trailer, this is a fun, fast-paced flick, that tells four inter-connected tales over the course of a single night in Oakland. In the first story, a young man (Avatar: The Way of Water’s Jack Champion) gets involved in a violent punk vs skinhead brawl, while in the second, two aspiring female rappers try to make it. The third and fourth stories take up the majority of the running time, with Pedro Pascal playing an enforcer who tries to go straight in the third, while Jay Ellis plays a basketball player on an ultra-violent revenge mission in the fourth. There’s also a fun, extended cameo that – miraculously – wasn’t given away by the trailer but will no doubt be spoiled before the movie comes out. 

You can read my review (which is quoted in the trailer) HERE, but suffice it to say I had a blast with this one. Pascal is seriously cool playing an anti-hero, while Jay Ellis gets to rack up some major carnage in the movie’s finale, which seems heavily inspired by eighties classics The Last Dragon and Big Trouble in Little China, crossed with a significantly more modern influence, Kill Bill.

Freaky Tales hits theaters on April 4th! What did you think of the trailer? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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