Freaks

Directed by Tod Browning, Freaks follows a scheming trapeze artist (Olga Baclanova’s Cleopatra) as she and her boyfriend (Henry Victor’s Hercules) plot to murder a wealthy dwarf (Harry Earles’ Hans) within their circus troupe. Filmmaker Browning, armed with a screenplay by Willis Goldbeck and Leon Gordon, delivers an erratic endeavor that grows more and more compelling (and involving) as it unfolds, as the picture suffers from a meandering opening stretch that does little to engender the viewer’s interest and attention – with the episodic bent of this stretch, at least, effectively establishing the narrative’s multitude of characters. It’s clear, then, that Freaks improves significantly as Browning’s focus narrows to the aforementioned conflict between Baclanova and Earles’ respective figures, and there’s little doubt, as well, that the picture benefits substantially from the inclusion of several memorable (and iconic) sequences and set-pieces (eg the dinner party/”one of us” interlude) – which, when coupled with an unexpectedly (and impressively) brutal final stretch, cements the movie’s place as a solid thriller that holds up remarkably well all these years later.

*** out of ****