#73. Freaks (1932)

"We accept you! One of us! Gooble, gobble!" - The Freaks

I first heard of this movie back in college when I worked as a clerk at the local Video Warehouse. I was really into horror movies, and so my co-workers were always telling me to watch this. For some reason, it was never on my shortlist of must-see movies. Perhaps it was that it had been built up in my head as this truly horrific movie with real side-show freaks, and I was maybe a little too scared to watch it. Plus, I seem to recall thinking it was a documentary. It isn't. 

So, now I've finally seen it (after having the Netflix DVD for over a year). Was it worth the hype? Sure. But was I "freaked out" by it? (Sorry, I couldn't resist). No, not really.

I was a little torn by how to feel about this movie. Was the director exploiting these people who were born with physical abnormalities? It's hard to tell. After all, the "bad guys" of the movie were two of the "normal" looking circus performers.

The main plot centers around the beautiful and conniving trapeze artist Cleopatra, who discovers that Hans, one of the circus dwarfs, has recently inherited a large sum of money. She then begins to plot with Hercules, the strong man, to marry and kill Hans. Not all of the "normals" in this movie are evil, though. Venus (I'm not sure what her job was) and Phroso (a clown) were very kindhearted and treated everyone with respect. It was hard for me to accept Phroso as a good guy, because you first see him in his make-up, and it was terrifying.

The plot was a little uneven as they kept weaving in vignettes of life with the "freaks" to showcase their talents with that of the main story of Hans and Cleopatra.

I won't spoil the ending for anyone, but it felt sort of like a really good episode of "The Twilight Zone." The aspect of this movie that sets it apart is that director Tod Browning employed real people with abnormalities as the "Freaks," but it was the "normal" people in the movie who were the real monsters.

Upon first release, the movie was not well received and lost a ton of money. It wasn't until the early '60s, and throughout the '70s and '80s, that it was rediscovered and gained cult status. There were several scenes that were banned from release and have since been lost, and the ending was changed three times.

Grade: ★★★★☆

Why you should watch Freaks: I would really only recommend this if you love horror movies. Or if you're watching with a bunch of friends and turn it into a drinking game. Everything's better with booze.

Why you should skip it: Bad acting. Cleopatra is just the worst.

Did you know? In the United States, this film was banned in a number of states and cities. Although no longer enforced, some of the laws were never officially repealed. Therefore, it is still technically illegal for this film to be shown in some areas of the US.

U.S. / RUNNING TIME: 64 minutes

PRODUCER: Tod Browning

SCREENPLAY: Clarence Aaron "Tod" Robbins, from his novel Spurs

CAST: Wallace Ford, Leila Hyams, Olga Baclanova, Henry Victor, Harry Earles, Daisy Earles

RELEASE DATE: February 20, 1932

BUDGET: $316,000