About Freaks – Film Screening
This Valentine’s weekend, Leith Kino presents Tod Browning’s Freaks (1932).
Freaks tells the story of circus performer Hans (Harry Earles), who has recently inherited a fortune. He attracts the attention of the beautiful Cleopatra (Olga Baclanova), a trapeze artist working at the circus. Her true intentions are soon discovered by the other performers after it’s revealed that Hans is being poisoned and duped, and the film turns into a tale of revenge.
Known as the “grandfather of disability horror”, this pre-Code film was shrouded in studio censorship and audience revulsion, subsequently damaging Browning’s filmmaking career. Freaks is a complex yet groundbreaking disability narrative, boasting one of the largest ensemble casts of disabled people. Nearly a century since its release, Freaks is now regarded as a cautionary tale of human nature, revealing the true horror of ableism.
Tickets cost £6 and we have allocated handful of free tickets for those not in a position to pay (available here). Please support your local Leith Kino!