Filmed in the 1930s -- and finally available on DVD -- the supposedly shocking depiction of revenge running amuck at a traveling freak show that was so abhorrent that it bombed where it wasn't banned could become a cult classic now that the shock value has worn off.
The film that all but ended Browning's directorial career is a lot like one of its stars -- Johnny Eck. It doesn't have any legs. Granted, the script is cheesy as many were back then as talkies were still a new medium over the fading silent movies. The acting is hollow, in part because many of the performers had little -- if any -- theatrical experience. Yet the film's zinger of an ending, in which the carnival's freaks confront the gold digging primadonna and live up to their wedding reception toast, feels more like a flimsy yet inventive Twilight Zone episode.
I won't ruin the ending for you. While the movie provides an intriguing stage to showcase the many performing talents of the freaks -- which include pinheads, limbless, hermaphrodites, bearded ladies and even a pair of Siamese twins -- the real gem of the DVD is the special features documentary that takes a closer look at the carnival freak shows including the movie's human oddities.
And while I won't ruin the ending for you I will leave you with the jingle that the freaks use to toast the newlywed bride before the movie gets sinister. That one standout scene was a refreshing piece of cinema, and I am sure the chant will live to have some cult status (or at the very least be an inside joke here and there). . .
"Google, Gobble, Gooble Gobble,
We accept her, we accept her.
Gooble, Gobble, Gooble, Gobble,
One of us, one of us."
