Wednesday, 3 June 2015

Genesis of Freaks?

The Unknown (1927)

Directed by Tod Browning this film stars Lon Chaney, Norman Kerry and Joan Crawford. In a Spanish circus a knife thrower with no arms and a strong man compete for the affections of a woman who hates being touched by men.

It is easy to see this as a precursor to Browning's later Freaks (1932) and while this is not as good as the second film it is decent in it's own right despite some shared elements. The plot has a fairly interesting metaphor for romantic seduction in it and the final set piece provides plenty of tension. Being macabre or dark rather than a full out horror film I would not say this is scary but it is well made.


4/5

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