Freak

I bought a copy of this DVD in my local "Poundland". I figured if it was awful then I'd only lost a pound!

I was quite surprised at the fact that there was a relatively decent story. The acting is never gonna win any awards but it didn't hurt the feeling of the film.

After escaping whilst being transferred from one asylum to another, the 'Freak' of the title kidnaps one of two sisters and takes her to his childhood home. As the remaining sister and hospital orderly battle to save the kidnapped girl they begin to learn what Freak is capable of, and more horrifyingly what made him the way he is.

Don't let the low budget and mediocre acting put you off, there are far worse bigger budget horrors out there.

FREAK is a low-low-budget horror film about two sisters on a trip / move to Virginia from Indiana. Along the way, the two bond while enjoying the scenery.

Meanwhile, a murderous maniac escapes his transport van and heads out on a killing spree. Fate and destiny intervene, bringing the sisters and this madman together for the creepy climax.

This is a throwback / homage film that does a pretty good job of mimicking the feel of the early 1970's.

While simple and fairly non-gory (except for the horrific prologue), FREAK manages to sustain an atmosphere of dread throughout its running time. So, if you love the horror movies of the 70's, then this should fill you with nostalgia...

STAR RATING: ***** Unmissable **** Very Good *** Okay ** You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead * Avoid At All Costs

A young boy with a hideously deformed face murders his abusing mother, unbeknownst to the authorities, and spends the majority of his adult life in a catatonic state in a mental institution. However, after a momentary bout of incompetence at the hands of an asylum transport driver, he is free and roaming about, stalking a sister and her younger sibling to his childhood home for a brutal final confrontation.

This cruelly titled little horror flick does seem to bear a slight resemblance to John Carpenter's original horror masterpiece Halloween. But then, arguably so have many others. There are some unique touches to this one that make it slightly above average in comparison to the many other video duds like it. There is an eerily quiet soundtrack to it, as well as a wobbling delivery to the voice-overs provided by Amy Paliganoff in the lead role. I'm not sure if this was meant as a student feature, though it does have that kind of presentation in a way. Plus the 'freak' himself does have a kind of scary, un-nerving presence to him in the few scenes where he shows himself. Not quite a masterpiece, but certainly a lot more pleasing than a lot of other video horrors of it's ilk. ***

Being an aspiring filmmaker, I watch tons of lower budget films to find out what I'm up against (That's really an excuse. I watch them anyway.) When I watched FREAK, it wasn't what I expected, because it turned out to be a rather serious film. It didn't have any exploitive elements like most of the films I've been watching. And thank god, none of the characters spouted off any one-liners-- NOTHING kills a movie faster. I don't set my expectations high for any of the movies that I rent and I was very impressed with this film.

I rented this movie because the cover was cool looking, the first 15 minutes of the movie are okay and somehow interesting, but once the young woman and her little sister go on their trip everything goes to hell and the movie becomes boring.