Claire Brennen stars as a waitress who leaves the greasy-diner business for the excitement of the carnival. She quickly discovers that she despises freaks and human oddities.Claire Brennen stars as a waitress who leaves the greasy-diner business for the excitement of the carnival. She quickly discovers that she despises freaks and human oddities.Claire Brennen stars as a waitress who leaves the greasy-diner business for the excitement of the carnival. She quickly discovers that she despises freaks and human oddities.
- Directors
- Writers
- Stars
- Greasy
- (as Claude Smith)
- Al Babcock
- (as Van Teen)
- Snake Charmer
- (as Lee)
- Pretty-Boy
- (as Bill Bagdad)
- Carnie
- (uncredited)
- Customer
- (uncredited)
- Carnival Giant
- (uncredited)
- Carnival Barker
- (uncredited)
- Police Officer
- (uncredited)
- Max
- (uncredited)
- Directors
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Featured reviews
What is kind of interesting is the picture of carnival life in the 60s (a period of decline for that art form) it provides. Roustabouts, geeks, carneys, all are presented with some sort of versimilitude.
With a stronger lead actress and a more competent cast/director, this film could at least have been a memorable shock-fest. Instead, it's ultimately forgettable.
One day, Jade wanders into the freak show tent, and, filled with hatred and revulsion, she sets out to treat them with disdain. As Jade's star rises, she winds up in charge of the entire carnival, unaware that the freaks she so despises have had enough of her tyranny.
Sort of a ham-handed "remake" of FREAKS from Director Tod Browning, SHE FREAK lacks every quality that made Browning's film a classic. It's cheapness is no excuse for the overall dullness of the production.
On the upside, if you love carnivals, this movie does use a near-documentary approach to show carnival operations in all their glory...
Doesn't consist much of a plot, but much of the film consists of major carnival set ups with cool old slow Jazz score either from the "Modern Jazz Quartet" or "Dave Brubeck"- take your pick, even when no actual real music artist or group's been credited except some 'nobody' in charge of providing the music, I guess because the budget was so low, they couldn't afford to pay any royalties to anyone else except their own! Anyways, don't let the title of this film fool you for according to some areas, it's labelled as a 'horror film' but in my opinion, it's quite the opposite! Well made as a 30 minute stint, for the real story actually occurs near the beginning of this picture after showcasing much of the carnival, turning to the 'freak show' tent area showcasing peoples faces of total shock and horror( and a crappy job they did as well) after seeing something without showing the audience what it is. Motivating viewers to be curious why that is, showcasing the rest of the film why and how this particular person became a 'she freak' hence the title. And what's interesting is that it attempts to look like a bad dream, but with the low budget look and the the bad acting and unendless barrage of carnival settings, it may just as well be, as a real snoozefest just to listen to the cool jazz score! People who're aware of director Quentin Tarantino should be able to know, these small low budget exploitation films are more suited to entertain people such as him, but to any other movie goers, it's quite forgettable.
The acting is painfully amateurish. The lead actress is all false attitude. It's also not an appealing character. The fake acting is really annoying. It's an amateur low-budget indie and it's pretty bad. The filmmaking is poor. The story is a melodramatic pulpy mess. The most compelling aspect is the real life circus location. I'm more interested in a montage of setting up the rides than the plot. I love the circus paintings in the background. They look gorgeous. Everything else is pretty bad.
Did you know
- TriviaFelix Silla (Shorty) and his leading lady, Claire Brennen, met on the set of this movie. They began a nine-year relationship and managed to keep it secret for all of those years, despite the fact that it produced a son.
- Quotes
[opening lines]
Carnival Barker: Ladies and gentlemen, you're about to behold a sight so strange, so horrifying, so utterly monstrous, that I urge you who are easily frightened or upset, who suffer from nervous disorders, weak hearts, or queasy stomachs, who experience nightmares, and any children under the age of 16, to forgo witnessing this exhibit. There are only two kinds of freaks ladies and gentlemen. Those created by God, and those made by man. The creature in this pit is a living breathing human being that once was... well, that's another story that happened a long time ago, a long way from here. Look if you must.
- Crazy creditsAt the beginning of the film, this disclaimer appears:
"The motion picture you are about to see is wholly fictional, and any resemblance to actual happenings and/or actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
The producers wish to express their gratitude to Mr Bobby Cohn, President, West Coast Shows, Inc., his associates and staff for their co-operation in the making of this film. Mr. Cohn is one of the pioneer leaders of the North American Carnival Industry who found this enterprise in the hands of montebanks and gypsies and transformed it in the realm of big business.
While most of the action of this picture takes place on a large American carnival, and the time is the present, dramatic license has been taken and certain incidents occur in the telling of the story that simply could not happen in this time and setting."
- ConnectionsFeatured in Aweful Movies with Deadly Earnest: She Freak (1974)
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Asylum of the Insane
- Filming locations
- Bakersfield, California, USA(Kern County Fair)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $75,000 (estimated)