La Cité des monstres

I was part of a test audience for this movie. I thought that the version that they showed us was MUCH better than what was actually released. Unfortunately, they must've changed it based on the comments of the oh-so-intellectual psychology grad students sitting in front of us. I rolled my eyes as they talked about the immaturity of the film and sight gags. Hello? If the movie is titled "Freaked" (or at the time "Hideous Mutant Freaks"), it's not going to be a historical drama. Gimme a break, this movie was full of funky good/bad jokes which had me howling! It's really too bad that this movie wasn't released a few years later, given the success of Dumb & Dumber, et cetera. It is good for what it is, a movie for people with warped senses of humor.

Starring the other half of Bill & Ted Alex Winter alongside William Sadler, Brooke Shields, Randy Quaid, Bobcat Goldthwaite, Mr T & a cameo appearance by Morgan Fairchild this bizarre horror comedy is better than it should have been.

What I mean by that is it's stupid really really stupid.

It tells the story of an actor who sells out and becomes the spokesperson for an evil chemical company. Somewhere along the way he and his friends fall foul of a twisted freakshow owner who doesn't find his freaks, he makes them!

Full of slapstick humour this will appeal to people who like the old Airplane (1980) movies. If you don't like a joke then fear not because another will be along in a matter of seconds.

The humour is purile but it works very well as one of those take your brain out pieces of entertainment.

With "Freaks" like the dog boy, beast boy, the worm, the nose, sock man, and the crazy frogman (Which is a guy in a diving suit) *Badamstish* the creature effects are excellent and deserved the awards they won.

If you're seeking something harmless but stupid this right here is for you.

The Good:

Creature effects

Some jokes really hit the mark

The Bad:

Painfully dumb in places

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

Being half cocked isn't what it's cracked up to be

I can't look at Randy Quaid anymore without seeing him humping his wife while she's wearing a Rupert Murdoch mask

Bobcat Goldthwaite makes everything better

I feel priveleged to have this obscure gem in my collection. A scant cruise through my grocery store video rental some six years ago had me rent two films (both with the Melissa Joan Hart-like Megan Ward, oddly enough): "PCU" and "Freaked". I enjoyed PCU, but was taken aback by the colorful crudeness of Freaked. From the opening ClayMation/Henry Rollins fusion to the numerous B cameos (find me another film with all of Brooke Shields, Morgan Fairchild *AND* Mr. T and I'll find you a kidney transplant), to the laugh-out-loud sight gags, this film is up there with the very best of 'em.

Freaked is without a drop of pretense. It offers no metaphorical politics, it doesn't use heavy music to influence your heartbeat, and unlike the ZAZ and Mel Brooks films, this one doesn't mug for the punchline. Pre-dating Trey Parker and Matt Stone, its knockdown-dragout consistency of it's joke takes you to a very satisfying end. Proud to know it'll never end up on a snobbish "Greatest Films Of All Time" list, I strongly suggest you experience this American Classic for yourself, regardless the toll it might take.

Zygrot Forever!

It's a very punk rock sort of film, not unlike something Alex Cox would cook up. This film is essentially an environmentally-themed comedy along the lines of THE APPLEGATES, only this movie is about toxic chemicals and not deforestation (and there is a nice bit about styrofoam). But watching this film made me a bit sad as well, because I realized that Hollywood isn't going to give people the carte blanche needed to realize unique projects like this again during this age of endless remakes and sequels to films nobody liked in the first place.

The digital effects, although over 11 years old as I write this, still look great, and the make-up, especially close to the end, is very inspired, and resembles a live-action Basil Wolverton cartoon. I am eagerly anticipating the DVD, as well as watching Alex Winter's follow-up film, FEVER.

"Freaked" is pretty abnormal slapstick; an exercise in bad taste and definitely not intended for all audiences to see. Only if you have high tolerance for vulgar pranks, over-the-top performances & effects and really dumb situations, you might end up liking…probably LOVING this junk. This type of "humor", as we'll refer to it, can't really be compared to anything – not even the "Bill & Ted" movies – as it's obscene, mad as hell and extremely offensive. And yet, this is only obvious on the surface, since the screenplay also contains much more effective jokes and occasionally terrific satire towards showbiz and typically American vanity. Alex Winter plays the overly pretentious and greedy movie star Ricky Coogan, who reluctantly accepts a job as spokesman for a giant industrial company. His first mission is to travel to South Africa and promote this dubious company's most recent product – a lethal chemical called Zyglot – but, instead, he and his friends are captured by a grotesque freak-show owner and get turned into circus attractions themselves. Ricky and his partners in misfortune attempt to escape the mutant farm, which leads to all kind of indescribably insane situations. It's downright hilarious to see how major Hollywood stars parody themselves, like Mr. T as the bearded lady or Brooke Shields as the dumb talk show hostess. Several other gags made me laugh so hard I nearly had tears in my eyes! At one point, the freaks try to escape by ALL dressing up like milkmen! Can you imagine what a giant worm or a life-sized sock-puppet look like in a milkman outfit? Some of the grotesque special effects are courtesy of Screaming Mad George, so you can be sure they're impressive. Apparently it was Keanu Reeves underneath the wolf man make-up, yet I only discovered that after looking up the film here on this site. So, YES, the make-up is great! Excellent stuff, but be careful to whom you recommend it!