Not Coming to a Theater Near You

Freaks / USA / 1932

It is difficult to discuss Freaks without breaking numerous rules of political correctness, the very title of the film likely to elicit negative feelings in viewers and readers alike. To these dissenters I can only point out that Tod Browning does not use his powers as director to tell a tale that disparages and mocks these unfortunate souls. Rather, he keeps his focus on showing us all that is beautiful, special, and worthy about these fascinating people. Instead of the negative label applied to these folks by cruel manipulators, in Browning’s hands the title of the film becomes a point of pride, stripped of it’s negative connotations. It is as if Browning is saying, here are those which have been deemed Freaks; see what honor and beauty lies within them.

And indeed, although an overarching plot does manifest itself by the film’s astonishing and horrific conclusion, for the bulk of Freaks it seems as if Browning was working with no goal in mind but to champion the humanity of his stars. Thus amidst a cordon of rickety wagons scattered about the dusty lot of a traveling circus show, we see Siamese twins courting a pair of would-be husbands; a microcelephic girl showing off her new dress; a torso nimbly lighting himself a cigarette; and Hans and Frieda, the vertically challenged couple, struggling with pre-marital difficulties. Although this last tale eventually comes to dominate the story (with Hans’s love for another woman, a regular-sized beauty named Cleopatra, threatening to destroy not only his relationship with Frieda, but also his life), the moments leading up to it are actually more affecting, the threadbare narrative allowing for an undiluted intimacy with these singular people.

Rumsey’s review

by Thomas Scalzo | Source: Warner Bros. DVD
17 Oct 2007 11:47 PM | Submit Comment