Alex Winter may be best known for his role as Bill S. Preston Esq. in the Bill and Ted films, but to fans of absurdist horror comedy, he’s the man who, along with Tom Stern (Saul of the Mole Men), brought us the criminally overlooked classic, Freaked.
Adored in the horror community, as well as fans of the ’90s MTV aesthetic and visual style, the film feels like a perfect live-action companion piece to ’90s cartoons like Ren & Stimpy and Beavis and Butthead. For its 25th anniversary, let’s took a look back at the film that’s “Butt ugly, but funny.”
Hideous Mutant Freekz (as it was originally titled) was originally supposed to be an over-the-top horror film that featured psych-out punk icons, Butthole Surfers. After multiple rewrites, the film was reconceived as a slapstick comedy with horror elements and tons of special FX. The film as we know it was written by Alex Winter, Tom Stern, and Tim Burns, who had previously collaborated on the short-lived MTV sketch comedy, The Idiot Box, and directed by Stern and Winter. Disagreements with 20th Century Fox led to budget cuts and a title change to the simpler Freaked, which Winter and Stern were never quite fond of.
Part of the budget cuts to the film were in the special FX department, but it’s impossible to tell as a viewer. Freaked is packed wall-to-wall with outrageous practical effects. The insane creations were the handiwork of the FX operations of three powerhouse FX artists, Steve Johnson (Ghostbusters, Big Trouble in Little China), Tony Gardner (The Blob 1988, Return of the Living Dead), and the incomparable Screaming Mad George (Society, A Nightmare of Elm Street Part 3 and 4). The film is a delightful onslaught of yucky sight gags and weird FX gags sure to please fans of foregone gross pop culture like Garbage Pail Kids and Madballs.
Reading the cast to the film almost sounds like a joke. How could all of these people appear in one movie? No less, a complete celebration of toilet humor and freakish repulsiveness? Freaked features Michael Stoyanov (TV’s Blossom), Mr. T, Bobcat Goldthwait, William Sadler, Brooke Shields, Randy Quaid, Morgan Fairchild, Gibby Haynes of Butthole Surfers, Deep Roy, as well as Alex Winter’s Bill and Ted counterpart, Keanu Reeves, in a ridiculous uncredited role as Ortiz the Dog Boy!
For those who haven’t seen it, Freaked tells the story of Ricky Coogan (Winter), a washed up child star who travels to South America to promote Zygrot 24, a toxic fertilizer, with his buddy Ernie (Stoyanov). Along the way, they link up (under false pretenses) with environmental activist, Julie (Megan Ward). A stop off at a sideshow attraction ends with the trio being abducted by villainous freak show purveyor Elijah Skuggs (Randy Quaid) and transformed into freaks for the disgusting attraction. Ricky and the rest of the captive mutants must then fight to escape Skuggs’ freak show and reclaim their freedom.
Fans of Freaked have plenty of cool collectibles to track down on the film. US and international theatrical posters, VHS tapes, and the now unfortunately out of print DVD and Blu-ray can be found with a fair amount of patience and persistence. Oddly, Fox released a line of action figures for the film, which can also be found on the World Wide Web. Much to Ricky Coogan lovers’ delight, the film’s soundtrack is getting a deluxe vinyl release from Mondo sometime this fall (the date has yet to be announced, so keep your eyes peeled for that).
Freaked is joyous celebration of gross, an exercise in immaturity, and absolute essential viewing to fans of nasty humor and insane practical monsters and gags. Twenty-five years later, the film feels more important than ever. A time capsule to a time of vibrant visual excess and poor taste. Like the pages of Mad Magazine sprung to life, Freaked is a film that relishes in all those gross things we cracked up at as kids. It never takes itself seriously and, sometimes, we shouldn’t either.
So, whether it’s your first time or your 500th, pour yourself a styrofoam cup of Zygrot 24, sit back, and watch Freaked.
