Do you remember the horror movies of the 90s like Puppet Master? How about the wholesome adventure movies with stop-motion or puppets? Well, you get both in Frankie Freako. The film comes from Steven Kostanski, who directed and wrote the equally as wholesome and inventive Psycho Goreman. Frankie Freako goes a bit more adult than the proceedings of Goreman and focuses on Conor, a workaholic and, quite frankly, a square. It stars Conor Sweeney, Kristy Wordsworth, Matthew Kennedy, Adam Brooks, and Meredith Sweeney. Steven Kostanski writes and directs.

Conor works an office job and is about as wholesome and boring as can be. His boss, Mr. Buechler, is pitting him against his co-worker for a promotion. Conor and his girlfriend Kristina are also a bit on the rocks. Conor has what we can call an intimacy issue. The farthest he’ll go with Kristina is holding ONE of her hands. It’s from here that the humor and tone of Frankie Freako is really set. Kristina goes out for the weekend, leaving Conor at home to fend for himself. He’s tired of being called a square and remembers a late-night pay-per-minute phone line for Frankie Freako. The entire course of his life changes as he calls the number, 1-900-555-FREAKO.

You don’t see the full-on raging party that the Freakos and Conor have, but you do see the aftermath. His house is destroyed, some of Kristina’s prized sculptures are teetering, ready to fall off and break. It seems like the Freakos are the villains of this story, but Frankie Freako does something wild with its plot. The Freakos and Conor end up grappling, and they follow him to his job. Mr. Buechler wants Conor to “shred some important financial documents on camera” after hours. The Freakos, including Frankie, Boink Barto, and Dottie Dunko end up as heroes. They’re running away from an evil dictator, Munch, who’s taken over their world, Freak World. From there, Conor gets sucked into their conflict and ends up on their home planet. The sections on their home planet are some of the most ingenious and fun of the entire film.

It’s here where Frankie Freako really hits its stride looking like a 90s toy commercial for Boglins or something similar. The puppetry, while silly looking, works incredibly well. It’s hilarious to see the Freakos toddling around while Conor chases after them. If you’re into cartoonish, silly comedy, you’ll love Frankie Freako. Conor Sweeney goes all the way in his performance as Conor, giving it his all to make the film as wholesome as possible. In a lot of other shoes, this performance would have come off as annoying, but here, it’s charming and whimsical.

That’s really how the whole movie plays out. It’s insane, wild, and nostalgic, but it never veers into annoying territory. It’s a testament to the entire scope of the filmmaking here. All the performances go all-in, and they are surrounded by excellent puppetry and set design.

Frankie Freako is an absolutely wild time at the movies. A burst of joy, partying, and one of the most fun movies of the year. The nostalgic feeling that permeates throughout, evoking those ’90s adventure/horror movies, is joyous. This feels like a Disney Channel movie of the week on steroids with somewhat satanic puppets that like to party. The ending follows a similarly hilariously wholesome routine, but could throw off some people with its “twist”. It doesn’t change anything, but it builds up the tension of Kristina coming home to a destroyed house really well. You’ll be humming along to the party song from the movie for a long time after the credits roll.

Frankie Freako releases in theaters on October 4th, 2024.

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