Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
Kept locked inside the house by her father, 7-year-old Chloe lives in fear and fascination of the outside world, where Abnormals create a constant threat—or so she believes. When a mysterious stranger offers her a glimpse of what's really happening outside, Chloe soon finds that while the truth isn't so simple, the danger is very real.
Freaks (2019) is a quietly impressive low-budget sci-fi thriller that earns its distinctiveness through an unusually restrained and perspective-driven approach to the superhero/abnormal genre. The plot is genuinely inventive in its slow-burn reveal structure — withholding information alongside its child protagonist — though it occasionally struggles with pacing and tonal shifts in the third act. The acting is a clear standout: Emile Hirsch delivers a committed, layered performance as the paranoid father, and young Lexy Kolker is remarkable, anchoring the entire film with naturalistic intensity. Novelty is high because the film carves out a genuinely singular voice — a kitchen-sink domestic thriller that only gradually reveals its genre identity, told almost entirely through a child's limited perspective. It feels unlike most contemporaries. Cinematography is competent and purposefully claustrophobic but not especially distinguished. The ending resolves adequately but lacks the punch the build-up promises, landing as satisfying but somewhat conventional given how distinctive the setup was.