Of Freaks and Men

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william d Nihilistic and depressing, but also compelling enough to watch to the end. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Russian oddball sat in the early 1900's or so with siamese twin kids, nude photographs of ladies getting spanked, sour cream dipping and a cool little boat with a huge chimney. The twins are sons of a doctor but a mean fella called Johann and his friends manage to capture them. Now known as "the freaks" he is earning money of them. The dirty photographer is among Johann's friends and he's got a crush by a ladie called Leeza - a lovely maid that worked with the doctor and his sons. Naturally she is photographed and filmed too. Whipping, prostitutes, guns, a blind woman, accordions, underage drinking, a passion for cinema as an art form and music are other elements here. Some very cool songs, excellent cinematography and shots, great characters and a twisted story makes it very watchable and a very joyful ride. I dig that last scene - it's very pretty. Other images are swell too. It's shot in a weird sepia color, making it even more unique and one of a kind. I have seen a few other films shot this way - one I can think of was also Russian, but from another director I believe. This director died three years ago, just 54 years of age. Bleak, still haunting film. Always interesting, very strange but it's not a random experimental mess. It got a solid story, and it's actually based on a real story, as least I read it someshere. If so, it's pretty rad. A great, stylish, alternative movie experience that I'm glad I've had. 8.5 out of 10 floes. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review Audience Member balabanov keep going! Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/14/23 Full Review walter m In learning how to be a photographer, Putilov(Vadim Prokhorov) went into deep debt to Johann(Sergey Makovetskiy), a mobster, who even frightens Victor(Viktor Sukhorukov), one of his henchmen. Even though Johann specializes in marketing pornographic films, he has a crush on Liza(Dinara Drukorava), the same as Putilov who Radlov(Igor Shibanov), an engineer and Liza's father, would almost definitely prefer as a potential son-in-law. "Of Freaks and Men" is a simultaneously sad and perverse movie. While partially being about how progress is not always a good thing as seen through the lack of imagination in pornography, lying just beneath the surface of polite society, the movie has even more to say about modern day Russia. That's even though the film mostly resembles a silent movie, not just in its soundless opening sequences, but also later as it is shot in sepia tones with intertitles throughout. All of which is in the service of showing who the freaks really are. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Handling such contrasting subjects with such ease....! Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review Audience Member A Russian movie about vintage spanking porn? What's not to like? Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/07/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Of Freaks and Men

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