a starkly sympathetic portrait of its sideshow characters rather than an exploitative one, with Andrew Sarris declaring Freaks one of the "most compassionate" films ever made. Nonetheless, critics have continued to take note of the film's horror elements; in 2009, Joe Morgenstern proclaimed that Freaks contains some of the most terrifying scenes in film history. Film scholars have interpreted the film as a metaphor for class conflict, reflecting the Great Depression, and it has been studied for its portrayal of people with disabilities, with theorists arguing that it presents an anti-eugenics message. The film has been highly influential, has become a cult classic, and, in 1994, was selected for preservation by the United States National Film Registry, which seeks to preserve films that are "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Plot A beautiful and conniving trapeze artist named Cleopatra seduces a carnival sideshow little person named Hans after learning of his large inheritance, much to the chagrin of Frieda, his fiancée, also a little person. Cleopatra also conspires with circus strongman Hercules to kill Hans and inherit his wealth. Meanwhile, other romances flourish among the sideshow performers: the Bearded Lady, who is in love with the Human Skeleton, gives birth to their daughter. The news is spread among the friends by the Stork Woman. Additionally, Violet, a conjoined twin whose sister Daisy is married to Roscoe, the stuttering circus clown, becomes engaged to the circus's owner. Hans, enamored of Cleopatra, ultimately marries her. At their wedding, Cleopatra begins poisoning Hans's wine but drunkenly kisses Hercules in front of Hans, revealing her affair. Oblivious, the other "freaks" announce that they accept Cleopatra in spite of her being a "normal" outsider; they hold an initiation ceremony in which they pass a loving cup around the table while chanting, "We accept her, one of us. We accept her, one of us. Gooble-gobble, gooble-gobble." However, Cleopatra's mean-spirited amusement at this ceremony soon turns into fear and anger after Hercules jokes that the rest of the entertainers plan to turn her into one of them. She mocks them, tosses the wine in their faces and drives them away before berating Hans and drunkenly parading him around on her shoulders like a child. The humiliated Hans realizes that he has been played for a fool and rejects Cleopatra's attempts to apologize, but then he falls ill from the poison. While bedridden, Hans pretends to apologize to Cleopatra