Running Time: 83 Minutes
Starring: Conor Sweeney, Adam Brooks, Kristy Woodsworth, Matthew Kennedy, Meredith Sweeney, Rich Evans
Between co-directing 2016's The Void and taking the reins for 2020's PG: Psycho Goreman, Steven Kostanski has built a name as a genre filmmaker who embraces practical effects in impressive ways. Following up his previous feature, Kostanski returns with Frankie Freako; another slice of entertaining goodness named after a central character brought alive with fantastic practical effects.
The story follows workaholic yuppie Conor (Conor Sweeney), who is told by his boss to spice up his presentation as the blandness could threaten his promotion. This leaves Conor feeling insecure, as he discovers that other consider him to be an uptight "square." While channel-surfing one night, he catches a bizarre advert for a party hotline hosted by a strange goblin named Frankie Freako.
As he tries to get on with his life, Conor finds that he cannot get the advert out of his mind and, while home alone for one weekend, gives into temptation and calls the number. Releasing Frankie and his troublemaker friends, this unleashes chaos into his world and results in his house being trashed. It becomes a race against time as Conor tries to clean up the mess before his wife returns home.
Across the breezy 83-minute runtime, a wacky adventure sees the Freakos invading the life of a tightly wound lead. It is a major shock to Conor's system, as he is shown to be content spending his evening holding his wife's hand and watching an antiques show. This leads to fun moments where he tries stopping the Freakos, although it does feel Gremlins-lite and is admittedly the weakest segment of this film.
What's more shocking is how, as more time is spent with this zany trio, a larger understanding is offered for these characters. Through a stylized origin which resembles a comic-book, viewers come to understand that the Freakos' desire to party is their way of rising above a suffocating capitalist hellscape. This effectively mirrors adulthood, and how the desire to have fun can often be overshadowed by a need to work, while also segueing into the bonkers third-act.
No matter how wacky this feature may get, it remains grounded by believable characterization and relationships. There is an innocence to Conor, who just wants to be accepted for who he is and feel good enough for his wife, with Sweeney doing stellar work in the sweet role. There is genuine love felt between him and Kristina (Kristy Woodsworth), the wife who is feeling tired of the rut that the couple have fallen into. Even the Freakos have genuine feeling connection which feels impactful by the third act.
Key to this film are the practical effects, magnificently bringing alive the characters and scenarios with such interesting designs that help sell the goofy fun. It is all part of a madcap vision about finding direction in life, courtesy of a unique vision that is a joy to watch. At its best, Frankie Freako captures the vibe of a '90s comedy without the dated problematic elements.
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