Freaks (1932) might just be Tod Browning's weirdest and most original film of all. It meant a return to his favorite milieu: the circus, which he had depicted for several times, in The Unknown (1927), starring Lon Chaney, for instance. The story of Freaks is rather simple and, maybe exactly because of that, very powerful: a beautiful aerialist Cleopatra notices that a midget, called Hans, has grown a strong infatuation for her. After hearing of Hans' vast inheritance, Cleopatra together with her boyfriend Hercules decide to fool Hans in order to get the money. Hans' wife and other sideshow performers of the circus dislike this and make a scheme to put an end to Cleopatra's cruelty once and for all.
Back in the day, the film was not well received at all and was, in fact, banned in several countries. This era, which approximately lasted from the mid-20's to 1933, is actually known as the golden age of Hollywood genre film but also as the pre-code era. During The Great Depression, film production was marginal but nonetheless great and unique films were made and new genres formed, such as musical, gangster film, screwball comedy and, of course, horror. Obviously people had made horror movies earlier as well but it was now when it found its true form: its essential conventions and structural elements. Browning's Dracula (1931) and Whale's Frankenstein (1931) started it all but, to my mind, it was really Freaks that showed what the genre was capable of: to describe agony, terror and violence in an allegorical manner.
On one level, Freaks reflects the American society very well but, what is more, it works best on another level: depicting the gloomy morale of the time. It questions our conception of normality; and even naturalness. It studies the existing ideas of beauty and ugliness in our society; the relation between inner and external features. At its heart, it is all about the abnormality of morality: we are frightened, just as we usually are in horror movies, but in a different way. Just as the audience of the prologue, we are afraid of what we see. However, we don't fear the deformed, but ourselves because, well, couldn't we all be Cleopatra or Hercules? We are frightened by the morale of the people; not by the outward appearance of them, but by their inner; moral monstrousness.
Browning's approach to the 'freaks' is purely empathetic and never demeaning. He lands down to their height and observes them, not as greater human beings, but as a greater society: Browning truly relays a vision of a collective community where, just like the Siamese twins, people share everything; grief and joy; love and pain. The film doesn't only question our conception of normality and abnormality, but our morality. It asks us who are the real freaks. For, in the midst of the "freaks", there is one "normal" animal tamer. In the result of that one comes to the conclusion that it is truly the moral of man which defines his normality or abnormality.
Back in the day, the film was not well received at all and was, in fact, banned in several countries. This era, which approximately lasted from the mid-20's to 1933, is actually known as the golden age of Hollywood genre film but also as the pre-code era. During The Great Depression, film production was marginal but nonetheless great and unique films were made and new genres formed, such as musical, gangster film, screwball comedy and, of course, horror. Obviously people had made horror movies earlier as well but it was now when it found its true form: its essential conventions and structural elements. Browning's Dracula (1931) and Whale's Frankenstein (1931) started it all but, to my mind, it was really Freaks that showed what the genre was capable of: to describe agony, terror and violence in an allegorical manner.
On one level, Freaks reflects the American society very well but, what is more, it works best on another level: depicting the gloomy morale of the time. It questions our conception of normality; and even naturalness. It studies the existing ideas of beauty and ugliness in our society; the relation between inner and external features. At its heart, it is all about the abnormality of morality: we are frightened, just as we usually are in horror movies, but in a different way. Just as the audience of the prologue, we are afraid of what we see. However, we don't fear the deformed, but ourselves because, well, couldn't we all be Cleopatra or Hercules? We are frightened by the morale of the people; not by the outward appearance of them, but by their inner; moral monstrousness.
Browning's approach to the 'freaks' is purely empathetic and never demeaning. He lands down to their height and observes them, not as greater human beings, but as a greater society: Browning truly relays a vision of a collective community where, just like the Siamese twins, people share everything; grief and joy; love and pain. The film doesn't only question our conception of normality and abnormality, but our morality. It asks us who are the real freaks. For, in the midst of the "freaks", there is one "normal" animal tamer. In the result of that one comes to the conclusion that it is truly the moral of man which defines his normality or abnormality.