Freaked

Clint Eastwood, Robert Redford, Alex Winter. You might be asking yourself what does Bill from Bill And Ted have in common with Dirty Harry and the Sundance Kid? They are all three damn fine directors. Maybe Winter hasn't made an Oscar winner like Million Dollar Baby or Ordinary People, but he did direct one of my favorite flms of hte 90's, 1993's Freaked.

Winter stars as Ricky Coogan, a spoiled Hollywood star. Against the wishes of his friends and fans, Ricky is going to endorse Zygrot 24, a lethal and toxic fertilizer, for a ton of cash. The company that makes the toxin, EES...Everything Except Shoes, sends Ricky and his buddy Ernie, Michael Stoyanov, to Santa Flan, a South American country named after their Patron Saint of Creamy Desserts, to do pr work. Once they land, Ricky tries to pick up a protester of Zygrot named Julie, Megan Ward. They dupe her into thinking they are protesters as well and she hitches a ride with them to the Zygrot plant. She soon finds out who Ricky is, and against her better judgement continues to tag along.

On their journey, they see a sign for a freak show and decide to check it out. They are greeted by the proprietor Elijah C. Skuggs, Randy Quaid, who takes them captive and makes them a part of the act. He uses Zygrot 24 to transform them into freaks. He joins Ernie and Julie to make them Siamese twins and transforms Ricky into a hideous monster. He locks them up with the other creations that include a bearded lady, Mr. T, a man with a sock for a head, Bobcat Goldthwait, and Ortiz, the dog faced boy, Keanu Reeves. The freaks band together to hatch an escape plan, but Skuggs has other ideas.

WInter, who co wrote and directed with Tom Stern, has created one of the funniest, and most bizarre, comedies I have ever seen. Everybody is really good in it, especially Quaid and an unrecognizable Reeves. Everybody dogs on Reeves, parden the pun, but he is so good when it comes to comedy. Winter also recruits another Bill And Ted alum, the Grim Reaper William Sadler, to play the CEO of EES.

This was originally concieved as a vehicle for the Butthole Surfers. When the studios rejected it, Winter and Stern rewrote it into the absurd comedy that it is today. 20th Century Fox loved it and decided to back it. During production, studio heads changed and the new brass wasn't crazy about the flick. The budget was cut and upon released, it was only shown in two theater's. Luckily, the film has gained a small cult following.

This is a truly funny film that you should check out. And if you get the opportunity, seek out Winter and Stern's short film Squeal Of Death. It's hilarious.

It's available on dvd and blu ray.