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“What’s the matter? Afraid of the rough stuff? Welcome to showbusiness, morons!” The snarky spirit of Alex Winter’s Freaked continues to entertain nearly a quarter of a century after its release. Jabs at everything from the entertainment industry to corporate overreach to… milkmen? Well, they had it coming especially. It’s a zany manic ride that may just be thee most 90s thing the show has yet to cover. The question is, does this Liquid Television-era MTV inspired film still get many laughs all these years later? Also, is it a horror movie? Was this the role Randy Quaid was born to play? Or, perhaps most importantly… is someone could to wipe Worm’s ass?
Decades of Horror 1990s
Episode 13 – Freaked
Freaked is probably the least horror related production to be covered on this show, but it was especially chosen by our listeners in a poll. Freaked beat out heavy hitters like Interview with a Vampire and Tales from the Hood to get here. How in the hell did that happen? After all, when it was first released in 1993, no one really payed attention to it. The satiric comedy follows sleazy actor Ricky Coogan (Alex Winter) and his buddies being mutated into hideous freaks by a crazed carnival broker/freak show proprietor (Quaid) and a key part in the resistance of freaks he’s imprisoned. Freaked eventually found a following on home video, but then again one can’t be certain that it would have been all that successful even if it had a wide release. With its edgy 90s satire and extensive disturbing creature design, Freaked couldn’t really be made at any other time, before or since.
To join Thomas Mariani is Gruesome Magazine’s own Adam Thomas. Adam considers himself a child of the 90s and Freaked to be right up his alley. The two talk about the insanely eclectic cast, which includes Keanu Reeves as a dog man, William Sadler as the head of the Everything Except Shoes corporation and Academy Award Nominee John Hawkes as a half man/half cow creature. There’s also much talk about the amazing practical effects work throughout, designed by Screaming Mad George, Steve Johnson and The Chiodo Brothers amongst others. It’s probably the most horror driven aspect of Freaked, but that doesn’t stop Thomas and Adam from talking about it. Or, occasionally talking in between fits of laughter.
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We want to hear from you — the coolest, most gruesome fans: leave us a message or leave a comment on the site or email the Decades of Horror 1990s podcast hosts at thomasmariani@decadesofhorror.com or tweet Thomas @NotTheWhosTommy.
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