Freaks (1932) DVD9 - Horror [DDR]

2014.01.03


Freaks (1932) DVD9 - Drama [DDR]

Freaks is a 1932 American Pre-Code horror film about sideshow performers, directed and produced by Tod Browning and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, with a cast mostly composed of actual carnival performers. The film was based on Tod Robbins' 1923 short fiction story "Spurs". Director Browning took the exceptional step of casting real people with deformities as the eponymous sideshow "freaks", rather than using costumes and makeup.

Browning had been a member of a traveling circus in his early years, and much of the film was drawn from his personal experiences. In the film, the physically deformed "freaks" are inherently trusting and honorable people, while the real monsters are two of the "normal" members of the circus who conspire to murder one of the performers to obtain his large inheritance.

CAST:-
Wallace Ford as Phroso
Leila Hyams as Venus
Olga Baclanova as Cleopatra
Roscoe Ates as Roscoe
Henry Victor as Hercules
Harry Earles as Hans
Daisy Earles as Frieda
Rose Dione as Madame Tetrallini
Daisy Hilton as Siamese twin
Violet Hilton as Siamese twin
Schlitzie as himself
Josephine Joseph as Half Woman-Half Man
Johnny Eck as Half Boy
Frances O'Connor as Armless girl
Peter Robinson as Human skeleton
Olga Roderick as Bearded lady
Koo Koo as herself
Prince Randian as The Living Torso

Written Produced Directed by Tod Browning

MOVIE REVIEW:- Freaks (1932)
The central story is of conniving trapeze artist Cleopatra, who seduces and marries sideshow midget Hans after learning of his large inheritance. At their wedding reception, the other "freaks" announce that they accept Cleopatra in spite of her being a "normal" outsider; they hold an initiation ceremony in which they pass a massive goblet of wine around the table while chanting, "We accept her! We accept her! One of us! One of us! Gooble-gobble, gooble-gobble!" The ceremony frightens the drunken Cleopatra, who accidentally reveals that she has been having an affair with Hercules, the strong man. She mocks the freaks, tosses the wine in their faces, and drives them away. Despite being humiliated, Hans remains with Cleopatra.

Hans soon becomes ill. Cleopatra had poisoned his wedding wine, and she continues to slip poison into his medicine, planning to inherit his money and run away with Hercules.

Another circus performer, Venus, overhears the conspirator couple discussing the murder plot and tells Hans and the other freaks. In the film's climax, the freaks attack the evil pair during a storm, wielding guns, knives, and other sharp-edged weapons. Hercules is not seen again (although the film's original ending had the freaks castrating him; the audience sees him later singing in falsetto). As for Cleopatra, she has become a grotesque, squawking "human duck." The flesh of her hands has been melted and deformed to look like duck feet and her lower half has been permanently tarred and feathered.

In an ending MGM threw in later for a "happier ending", Hans is living a millionaire's life in a huge house. Venus and her clown boyfriend Phroso visit, bringing Frieda, to whom Hans had been engaged before Cleopatra swooped in. Frieda comforts Hans when he starts to cry, assuring him that she knew he hadn't wanted the revenge to get that severe.

ADDITIONAL FEATURES:-
Spliced throughout the main narrative are a variety of "slice of life" segments detailing the lives of the sideshow performers.
The bearded woman, who loves the human skeleton, gives birth to their daughter. The news is spread among the freak friends by The Stork Woman (Elizabeth Green).
Violet, a conjoined twin whose sister Daisy is married to one of the circus clowns, becomes engaged to the circus' owner. The sisters appear able to experience each other's physical sensations: Daisy appears to react with romantic arousal when Violet's fiance' kisses her, and a closed-eyed Violet knows when Daisy's shoulder has been touched. The sisters were played by real-life conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton.
In the middle of a conversation, The Human Torso (Prince Randian) lights his own cigarette, using only his mouth. In the original scene, he also rolls the cigarette.

PRODUCTION NOTES-
MGM had purchased the rights to Robbins' short story, Spurs, in the 1920s at Browning's urging. In June 1931, MGM production supervisor, Irving Thalberg, offered Browning the opportunity to direct Arsène Lupin with John Barrymore. Browning declined, preferring to develop Freaks, a project he had started as early as 1927. Screenwriters Willis Goldbeck and Elliott Clawson were assigned to the project at Browning's request. Leon Gordon, Edgar Allan Woolf, Al Boasberg and an uncredited Charles MacArthur would also contribute to the script. The script was shaped over five months. Little of the original story was retained beyond the marriage between a midget and an average-sized woman and their wedding feast. Victor McLaglen was considered for the role of Hercules, whilst Myrna Loy was initially slated to star as Cleopatra, with Jean Harlow as Venus. Ultimately, Thalberg decided not to cast any major stars in the picture.

Freaks began filming in October 1931 and was completed in December. Following disastrous test screenings in January 1932 (one woman threatened to sue MGM, claiming the film had caused her to suffer a miscarriage),[5] the studio cut the picture down from its original 90-minute running time to just over an hour. Much of the sequence of the freaks attacking Cleopatra, as she lay under a tree, was removed, as well as a gruesome sequence showing Hercules being castrated, a number of comedy sequences, and most of the film's original epilogue. A new prologue featuring a carnival barker was added, as was the new epilogue featuring the reconciliation of the tiny lovers. This shortened version — now only 64 minutes long — had its premiere at the Fox Criterion in Los Angeles on February 20, 1932.



TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS:-
Video Codec: MPEG-2
Video Bitrate: 4999 kbps
Video Resolution: 720x480
Video Aspect Ratio: 1.333:1
Frames Per Second: 23.976
Audio Codec: AC3
Audio Bitrate: 192kb/s CBR 48000 Hz
Audio Streams: 2
Audio Languages:English, French
RunTime 79 mins
Subtitles: English, Espanol, Francais
Ripped by: Trinidad [DDR]
Duration: 79 mins