Freaks
Come one, come all, last chance to see...

The original Freaks movie poster.

During a preview for Freaks back in January 1932, a woman not walked, but ran out of the theater. She later tried to sue MGM Studios, claiming that the film had induced a miscarriage. This is only one example of the kind of myth that surrounds this controversial, unforgettable movie.

Freaks is a circus-melodrama-horror film directed by Tod Browning (Dracula, The Unholy Three) and one that only he could make. Over the years, Browning has been dubbed as The Edgar Allan Poe of Cinema, or The Master of the Macabre, but also, he had first-hand knowledge of the going-ons in the circus, having worked in carnival sideshows as an escape artist for several years. The irony is that Freaks bombed terribly at the box office when it was released. It was just too much for audiences to handle and its failure is what subsequently ended Browning's Hollywood career. Sixty years later, what with its authentic performers and its sadistic, shock ending, Freaks is consistently placed in horror movie top ten lists by film buffs and critics alike.

It is a twisted love story that stars for the first -- and only -- time, real-life sideshow performers. Among hermaphrodites and conjoined twins, Prince Randian (The Human Living Torso), and Johnny Eck, the Half Man, stand out (no pun intended) in particular. The plot however, follows two other characters -- a wealthy midget Hans (Harry Earles), who has a crush on the beautiful Cleopatra (Olga Baclanova), a trapeze artist. Although she already has a relationship with Hercules the Strong Man, Cleopatra gets wind of Hans' wealth and she decides to marry him for his money.

Prince Randian and Johnny Eck.

Hans' fellow sideshow buddies welcome her to their community at a wedding feast by chanting the infamous, "Gooble, gobble, gooble, gobble, we accept you! One of us!" Cleopatra is appalled that she could ever be associated with such a bunch of freaks. When she mocks and betrays Hans in front of his friends during the dinner, he is completely destroyed and humiliated. What she does not realise is that if you offend one, you offend them all. In fact, this is actually explained in a written disclaimer before the movie even begins -- how anyone with a physical abnormality is not accepted by society, how these outcasts find each other in the circus. There in the circus, they become a unified whole. It's kind of like West Side Story. You know, when you're a Jet, you're a Jet? When you're a freak, you're a freak! You look out for other freaks. And anyway, freaks have feelings too. So, it's almost justified that all of the ridiculed sideshow performers, on behalf of Hans, go out for a little psychotic revenge on Cleopatra.

What always amazes me every time I watch it is its darkness, its audacity and well, the very fact that it even got released at all. Especially in the Production Code era of cinema. Despite the fact that some places did ban it and that MGM foolishly hacked out parts of it that are now lost forever, Freaks still got away with a lot, for its time. I'm not only talking about the casting of real so-called freaks, or of the implied violence, but of the racy dialogue and double entendres littered throughout the film. I once read a guy's review that compared his experience of watching Freaks with a watching a good porno movie. I won't go that far, because I think it's much smarter than any kind of smut, but its exploitative qualities are sort of similar. You are repulsed by what you are seeing, yet fascinatingly allured at the same time.

Cleopatra mutilated to a Feathered Hen.

You may love this movie for its compassion towards the imperfections of nature, or you may believe it to be a sadistic and excessive piece of trash. And that, dear readers, is the real beauty and staying power of Freaks. I've never met anyone who has not had a strong emotional reaction of some sort to this movie, because it is a truly unique, one-of-a-kind specimen that could never, ever be duplicated. First of all, circus sideshows don't even exist anymore, and secondly, the subject matter isn't exactly what you'd call P.C -- especially for the bland, inoffensive tastes of studio pictures. If ever there is a day when Gus Van Sant or some other fool tries shoot to remake of Freaks, I will gouge out my own eyes and become a freak myself.

DROOL FACTOR: Um... none.

GROSS-OUT FACTOR: Unless physical abnormalities really sick you out, none. This isn't exactly the Jim Rose Circus, so there's nothing quite as nasty as Mr. Lifto raising heavy cinderblocks hung from his penis. Personally, I think that watching these real life freaks can actually be very humbling. It will make you think twice before you bitch about having a bad hair day, that's for sure.

STRONG CHICK FACTOR: The movie does suggest that there is a lot more to a woman than just her looks. But who am I kidding? Unpunished infidelity by the lead male protagonist. An attempted rape, foiled by a clown. Gruesome mutilation and torture of a woman as the grand finale. Not exactly a pioneering film for women's rights.

-- Julie Ng

Freaks is currently available on video.

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