Review: Frankie Freako – “Shabadoo!”

Written and directed by Steven Kostanski (Psycho Goreman, The Void), the comedy-horror Frankie Freako is an homage to classic 80s movies like Gremlins, Ghoulies and Critters, available on digital in the UK & Ireland from July 14.

Buttoned-up square Connor (Conor Sweeney, V/H/S 94) has been branded “bland” in both the boardroom and the bedroom and is desperate to spice things up. When he sees a wacky ad on late-night TV for ‘Frankie Freako’s Funtime’, Connor fastens his freakbelt, dials and all hell breaks loose.

Weeeeeeellllllll, it sort of breaks loose. Three pint-sized mischief makers arrive and trash his house in a night of wild partying, but really strangely we don’t see any of it. The whole FUN bit is skipped over, and we awake with Conor the next day. In light of the promised crazy chaos we are sucked into a subplot that sees Conor travel to the Freakos homeworld to help free them from the rule of Trump stand-in, Munch.

It’s a bait and switch that some will love, but others won’t, and the comedy that fuels the crazy adventure is similarly Marmite. You will either be repeating Boink’s catchphrase “Shabadoo!” ad nauseum for a week after, or rolling your eyes every time it is uttered. Again.

Psycho Goreman fans keen to see Kostanski go Gremlins may feel a little let down. The madcap monsters are minimally puppeteered to a level that must have been intentional, but nonetheless disappoints. The designs are cool though, with each character recognisable and memorable. There is even an uber big bad final boss with a chainsaw that will delight practical effects aficionados, it is just a shame that its level of functionality wasn’t applied across the board. Compared to puppets being simply waggled up and down for the majority of the film, the disparity is huge.

It is most definitely more Hobgoblins than Ghoulies, but if you’re a fan of things like I Think You Should Leave and Dude Bro Party Massacre III, you will find plenty to enjoy here. Full of the kind of humour that gets funnier through repetition and quoting it amongst friends, Frankie Freako might not work for those who want straight comedy-horror, but if you like it weird, dial 1-900-555-FREAKO now.

Frankie Freako will be available to stream or download in the UK and Ireland via the Apple Store, Amazon, Sky Store and YouTube Movies from 14th July and can be pre-ordered HERE.