Perhaps you have passed them in the street. Maybe you've seen them on a daytime talk show. You may have thought of them as "freaks." These are people who have tattooed their entire bodies (sometimes to look like animals), had custom-designed implants for all parts of their bodies, or even hung themselves from a series of body piercings. In the eye-popping documentary Modify, Greg Jacobson and Jason Gary take an in-depth look at the extremities of body modification. Though these practices may seem brutal and masochistic to the average person, the film deconstructs the phenomenon on both the superficial and philosophical levels, comparing these extreme acts to such commonplace forms of body modification as bodybuilding and plastic surgery. Jacobson and Gary delve into the philosophies of those who augment their bodies, be it for vanity or for artistic vision. They also explore the difference between body modification and body mutilation. The subjects interviewed in the film, including the Lizard Man, Stalking Cat, Fakir Musafar, plastic surgeons, drag queens, and bodybuilders, offer fascinating and articulate points of view. Juxtaposed with the interviews are scenes of the processes of the modifications themselves. While often difficult to watch, these graphic images documenting the extremes to which some people are driven to achieve their goals of transforming their own flesh and bone are also hypnotic. At first glance, Modify may seem like an exercise in shock tactics, but beneath the painful imagery lies an incredibly insightful and intriguing look into a world that is often misunderstood and stigmatized.