The 1932 MGM film, Freaks, wasn’t received well by audiences and critics upon screening. So much so, that it was removed from theater exhibition and was banned for thirty years, until its introduction to a new generation of prospective viewers across Europe. Since then, it’s been preserved by the National Film Registry and has been more accessible than it ever was. Although, in its wake, it’s left behind a divided viewership that questions this film’s intended purposes as well as those of director Tod Browning.
Being autistic and pursuing a career in media, I’ve been increasingly curious about what sort of representation of individuals with disabilities and other conditions in entertainment exist. This led me to watching Freaks for the first time and subsequently, to learn more about the labeling of the “Other”, and even to a further labeling of the “Other” as “subjects of fear”.
So, Let’s Talk About Freaks, and also speak to the social constructs, then and now, of what it may mean to be Human...
Hi Everyone & Happy 2021! Please remember that no one is ever alone and that you're special the way you are!! Also, a Special Thanks to Critical Android, who I consider a wonderful friend, for helping proofread the script for this video. Definitely go share some support to him and his channel!
Link to Android's Channel: [ Ссылка ]
Time Stamps! :
Introduction - 0:00
Spurs: The Source Material - 1:25
The Film Synopsis - 4:20
Production Background - 9:18
Harry Earles & Tod Browning: Two Worlds Colliding - 10:51
My Overall Thoughts (Pt. 1) - 11:57
Some Context on the Circus - 14:52
My Overall Thoughts (Pt. 2) - 16:48
Wrap-Up - 17:37
Work Cited (*and yes, it's in MLA format lol):
“A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss.” Performance by Mark Gatiss, A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss (Part 1 of 3) Frankenstein Goes to Hollywood, BBC Four, 2 Jan. 2014, www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkZBJd4UTlM.
Browning, Tod, Director. Freaks. Metro-Goldwyn Mayer, 1932.
Faraci, Devin. “The Unseen FREAKS.” Birth.Movies.Death., 13 Dec. 2014, [ Ссылка ].
Garner, Rosemary and Greg Palmer, directors. Vaudeville: An American Masters Special. VAUDEVILLE, PBS, 1999, www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNTbJi8rc1Q.
Michael Gracey, Director. The Greatest Showman. 20th Century Fox, 2017.
National Film Preservation Board. “Brief Descriptions and Expanded Essays of National Film Registry Titles.” The Library of Congress, 1994, www.loc.gov/programs/national-film-preservation-board/film-registry/descriptions-and-essays/.
“Public Reception of Real Disability: The Case of the Film ‘Freaks’” (Beth Haller with Robin Larsen, Cal State-San Bernardino) in Journal of Popular Film and Television, VOl. 29, No. 4. Winter 2002, Retrieved December 2020 from Academia. [ Ссылка ]
Robbins, Tod. “Spurs.” Who Wants A Green Bottle? and Other Uneasy Tales, by Tod Robbins, P. Allan & Co., 1926; Republished by Sailor Martin Publishing, 2005, pg. 1–16.
Skal, David J. Tod Browning's 'Freaks': The Sideshow Cinema (2004). Freaks - Sideshow Cinema., Warner Home Video, 2004, www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYaCbMCPlzA.
Stanton, Greg, director. Some Call Them... Freaks. Some Call Them Freaks (Documentary), HBO, 1981, www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5oc4VSDJBo.
Travsd. “The Mystery and Horror of Lon Chaney and Tod Browning.” (Travalanche), 18 Oct. 2020, travsd.wordpress.com/2015/10/06/the-mystery-and-horror-of-lon-chaney-and-tod-browning/.
“The Circus.” Performance by Michael Murphy, American Experience, PBS, 2018, www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/circus/.
Music Included (*all tracks are via YouTube Audio Library):
~ Allégro by Emmit Fenn
~ Wandering Soul by Asher Fulero
~ Over Time by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. [ Ссылка ]
Artist: [ Ссылка ]
~Jesse’s Carnival Waltz by The Great North Sound Society
~ The Two Seasons by Dan Boded
~ Lifting Dreams by Aakash Gandhi
~ Confliction & Catharsis by Asher Fulero
~ Sad Minuet by Sir Cubworth
#LetsTalkAboutFreaks #Freaks1932 #AlexCarson
