So let's be frank about this--Freaks, as far as the art of mainstream filmmaking is concerned, plays by all of the rules and yet violates every single one of them. There's a beautiful story of deception, greed, and the power of friendship, yet all of that is very much swept under the rug because of the fact that, yes, damn near every "star" of this movie was an actual sideshow performer; or, as one could pejoratively say, a freak.
And yes, every single review of this movie will, for all eternity, be required to say in big bold capital letters BUT IT DOESN'T MATTER THAT THEY'RE FREAKS!, much like how, say, every review of a Pixar film must be prefaced with YOU KNOW, ANIMATION ISN'T JUST FOR CHILDREN!
But enough of that. Let's just get down to brass tacks here and throw out the fact that Freaks is just ridiculously weird on about as many levels as imaginably possible without even trying to be. This is no art-school surrealist mess with indeterminable meaning put to film; nah, such a feat would be too lofty for Freaks. It's weird, it's got poor production quality, and the story is somewhat hampered by the lack of acting ability from any of the major players.
But you know what? Freaks has heart, son. It may not be Academy Award material, but at the very least it has the guts to say that freaky people are people too (and, in truth, sometimes the normal people are the ones we should be afraid of). It never comes across as exploitative or cheap, but maintains a feel as though it were made by the very freaks it documents; it may have been a horror film in its own time, but today it comes across as very loving and tender. It's a strange, strange film, but treats its denizens with respect and dignity--as well as the audience.
My parting words: where else are you gonna see 'The Human Torso' light his own cigarette?
