Freaks
Composite Score: 82
Starring: Wallace Ford, Leila Hyams, Olga Baclanova, Roscoe Ates, Henry Victor, Harry Earles, Daisy Earles, Rose Dione, Daisy Hilton, Violet Hilton, Schlitze, Josephine Joseph, and Johnny Eck
Director: Tod Browning
Writers: Willis Goldbeck and Leon Gordon
Genres: Drama, Horror, Romance
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Box Office: $4,072 worldwide
Why should you Watch This Film?
Freaks is the 1932 film about a group of circus performers and the drama that unfolds among them when a trapeze artist marries the leader of the “freaks” for his money. It features actual people with various “deformities” playing the film’s characters and showcases their acting abilities in a way that tries to not put them on only as a show but to explore their humanity. It serves as a social commentary on our obsession with things that are different or “freakish” as entertainment and also delivers a solid plot about greed and love and justice. It is different from just about any film that I have ever seen in terms of its subject matter and the overall delivery of its story, certainly worth a viewing.
Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?
In showcasing people who are differently abled, the film flirts with putting them on display, as the circus that it seeks to critique does. While some of the characters get their own character development and exploration, many do not, leaving them stuck as visual side shows in a film that feels like it wants to condemn such portrayals. On the one hand, giving such actors the opportunity to work is undoubtedly a positive (especially in the early days of the Depression), but on the other hand, using them as extra “freaks” feels a bit off. The film also puts itself forward as a horror film, but the only moments that feel like they are supposed to be horrifying revolve around the “freaks” threatening “normal” people, who are the villains of the story, so it’s tough to figure out exactly how the film wants its audiences to look at those it considers “freaks”.
So wait, why should you Watch This Film?
Freaks is commendable for its inclusion of story arcs and character development for characters and actors that most likely would otherwise have been there merely for show. The little person Hans and his similarly sized fiancée Frida feature at the center of the film’s story, as it is Hans’s fortune that the beautiful trapeze artist Cleopatra is after. Harry Earles and Daisy Earles both deliver strong performances as Hans and Frida, showcasing powerful emotionality and bringing humanity to characters that many audiences of the 1930s (and some still today) would have considered to be “sub-human”. The conjoined twins Daisy and Violet are given an actual romantic story arc that explores the complexity of their own relationship as sisters and the ways they have to navigate romantic partnership, far better than any TLC show could have ever dreamed. These stories, while seemingly simple, are innovative in the world of entertainment in the same way that an elderly romance or a female superhero are often viewed in today’s narratives, but the arcs of Freaks are arguably even more progressive and more important for giving a sense of normalcy to these people. When so many see only their differences, Freaks focuses on their similarities to everyone else.
Wallace Ford’s performance as the clown Phroso is also worth mentioning here. His introductory scene when the character is being told off while taking off his make-up and registering no response until the make-up has been entirely removed is remarkable. The way that his face and body are able to register a change in character speaks to his abilities as an actor. Throughout the film, he serves as the audience’s proxy in the film, being accepted among the “freaks” as a normal person by showcasing how we ought to treat people with physical differences – that is, no differently than we treat any other person we encounter. His positive treatment of every character in the film exemplifies what I believe the film wants to communicate and convince its audience of, and it succeeds thanks to Ford’s commitment to the goodness of the character.
Strong performances from Wallace Ford, Harry Earles, and Daisy Earles blend well with authentic stories of the humanity of differently abled people to make Freaks into one of the Greatest Films of All Time. While it sometimes struggles with its own subject matter and in staying true to its condemnation of the idea of freak shows, it succeeds in emphasizing the humanity of everyone, no matter how they act or look, and that everyone is deserving of respect and dignity. It is certainly worth watching for any audience.
