TCM Archives - The Lon Chaney Collection (The Ace of Hearts / Laugh, Clown, Laugh / London After Midnight / The Unknown)

The Unknown (1927) is one of the final masterpieces of the silent film era. Suspend disbelief and step into the carnival of the absurd. The Unknown is the ebony carousel of the Tod Browning/Lon Chaney oeuvre, the one film in which the artists' obsessions perfectly crystallized. This is a film uniquely of its creators' time, place and psychosis and, therefore, it is an entirely idiosyncratic work of art, which has never been remotely mimicked, nor could it be. That it was made at MGM borders on the miraculous, or the delightfully ridiculous, but then this was an era of exploratory boundaries, even at the big studios (the risk-taking Irving Thalberg produced)."There is a story they tell in old Madrid. The story, they say is true." So opens the tale of "Alonzo, the Armless." Browning spins his yarn like a seasoned barker at the Big Top of a gypsy circus where "the Sensation of Sensations! The Wonder of Wonders!," Alonzo (Lon Chaney), the Armless, throws knives, with his feet, at the object of his secret affection, Nanon (an 18 year old Joan Crawford).Illusions abound. Alonzo is actually a double-thumbed killer on the lam. With the aid of a straight jacket and midget assistant Cojo (John George, who worked with Browning in Outside the Law 1920), Alonzo feigns his handicap and performs the facade of one mutilated.In addition to evading the law and securing employment, Alonzo's act of the armless wonder benefits him greatly. Nanon has a hysterical, obsessive repulsion to the very touch of a man's arms. She calls on the Almighty to take away the accursed hands of all men. Nanon vents histrionic, sexual anxiety to Alonzo every time Malabar the Mighty (Norman Kerry) puts his vile hands upon her. Alonzo, ever the performer, simulates expressed sympathy, although his affection for Nanon is the one thing about Alonzo that is genuine.Alonzo, secretly venting enmity, advises Malabar on how to win Nanon. It is, of course, intentional ill-advice which will eventually karmically rebound and become genuine ill-advice for Alonzo. Malabar's arms are muscled and strong, compared to Alonzo's armless torso, or compared to Alonzo's deformed, hidden double thumb--the very same double thumb which he used to strangle the ringmaster of Browning's perverse milieu: Nanon's sadistic father, Antonio Zanzi (Nick Ruiz, hinted at being the abusive source for Nanon's hatred of a man's touch).After Alonzo swears to care for her, Nanon embraces him, to the alarm of Cojo. The loyal Cojo fears that Nanon will discover Alonzo's secret. But, Alonzo must have, marry, and own Nanon, despite the fact that she hates the hands of all men, and would certainly hate the hands of the double-thumbed murderer.An alluring shot of Crawford, filmed through gauze, gives way to a mesmerizing, humorous scene of Alonzo lighting his cigarette with his feet, long after removal of the binding straight jacket beneath his coat (shades of Freaks-1932- to come). Cojo laughs at the irony. Alonzo is perplexed. "Look, Alonzo, you are forgetting that you have arms!" Aghast, Alonzo looks at the cigarette between his toes and the freed, cursed hands which keep him from possessing Nanon. Repulsed, Alonzo clutches the arms of the chair. The revelation of his dilemma provokes a flow of maddening tears, which evolves into abject horror and gives him the terrifying answer: a a martyrdom of emasculation, all for unrequited love. "Not that, Alonzo!" Chaney's intense concentration obliterates all doubts. If we were not terrified, we would laugh insanely with him.Alonzo goes to see the underworld surgeon. When the doctor inquires into Alonzo's desire, Alonzo pantomimes a slash across his shoulder. This is an amazingly acted, unsettling scene in which Chaney's simple pantomime slash solicits genuine shock and shudder.After a long recuperation, Alonzo goes to see Nanon, who is astonished at his withered appearance, which he explains away as the result of having "lost some flesh." Chaney's meltdown scene has been much written about. Burt Lancaster listed it as the greatest acting scene in all of cinema. Chaney expresses A teary-eyed gleam, wistful yearning, brooding, barely concealed jealousy, tragedy, hysterics, and fatigued collapse from the masochistic futility of his sacrificial mutilation all within a matter of seconds.Forced to perform yet again, Alonzo must mask his true reaction as Nanon kisses hands that she no longer fears. Nanon unwittingly mocks Alonzo's sacrificial maiming. Despite Alonzo's web of lies, his facade, his cruel betrayal of Cojo and maliciously plotting ghastly revenge, Chaney has our unmitigated sympathy. Chaney makes us understand and root for the misunderstood. God bless the freaks. It is only fitting that Chaney, the quintessential performer, climaxes as the performer pathological.And only Tod Browning could have directed this lurid, deliriously surreal pulp melodrama/debauched fairy tale without batting an eyelash once. Browning's sincerity is contagious and spellbinding during the film's brief 50 minute running time, which ends with a startling, ferociously driven, symbolic finale.For many years The Unknown was thought lost. All but 15 minutes of the film have been recovered, which may give a glimmer of hope for those awaiting the discovery of the infamous London After Midnight (1927). This is the most sought after and discussed lost film of the silent era. Whether it actually deserves to be the most sought after has been intensely debated, but the fact that London After Midnight is lost is solely the fault of MGM.MGM head Louis B. Mayer was something akin to the devil incarnate. For Mayer, film was strictly profitable, escapist fare to corn feed and increasingly dumb down audiences. At the opposite end of the spectrum was his in-house studio competitor, producer Irving Thalberg, who nurtured the Tod Brownings and Lon Chaney s of the world. Thalberg was hardly infallible (he sided with Mayer, against Erich von Stroheim's 9-hour version of Greed [1925,] which resulted in the film being excised and led to an actual fistfight between Mayer and Stroheim). However, Thalberg's concern was to make quality films, as he saw quality. Hardly the egoist, Thalberg never took a producer's credit. He could turn out escapist family fare, but he was eclectic in his tastes and had a penchant for edgy, risk taking films with only the side of his eye on the profit meter.Sometimes the devil wins, and when Thalberg died at the age of 37, Old Nick (Mayer) had no one to rein him in. MGM, under Mayer, had a notorious habit of buying out rivals--the original versions of the studio's watered-down remakes--and then would make every attempt to destroy and/or suppress the superior original. For instance, they bought out the 1940 British version of Gaslight and unsuccessfully attempted to destroy all the copies just in time for the debut of their inferior 1944 version, starring Charles Boyer. MGM did destroy many, but not all, copies, and understandably earned the genuine resentment of the British film industry.MGM did the same to Paramount's superb, 1931 Academy Award winning Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to make way for their laughably bad 1941 version. They were successful, or so they thought. For a number of years, it was believed all copies of the 1931 Hyde had been destroyed and it was therefore a lost film, until, may years later, copies resurfaced--much to MGM's chagrin.When Tod Browning wanted to remake his London After Midnight as Mark of the Vampire in 1935, MGM did not have to go on a search-and-destroy mission, since they owned the original. The studio saw no commercial value whatsoever in preserving a silent film, so the original was essentially buried to make way for the new version. Predictably, it fell into neglect until some thirty years later the only remaining known copy was destroyed in a fire. It is entirely possible that MGM intentionally destroyed multiple copies of its own film, simply to make competitive room for the remake. Whether that remake is superior or inferior is pure speculation.In 2003, Rick Schmidlin of Turner Classic Movies arduously produced a photo still reconstruction of London After Midnight. It is probably the only version of the film we, and future generations, will ever see. Even from a stills-only reproduction, it is clear that Midnight is the original American Goth Film. Chaney's vampire, partly inspired by Werner Kruass' Caligari, is a make-up artist's delight, and an actor's hell. Fishing wire looped around his blackened eye sockets, a set of painfully inserted, shark-like teeth producing a hideous grin, a ludicrous wig under a top hat, and white pancake makeup achieved Chaney's kinky look. To add to the effect Chaney developed a misshapen, incongruous walk for the character. To his credit, Chaney's crepuscular rogue looks as loathsome today as it did over eighty years ago (enough so for Henry Selik to pay the character a homage in The Nightmare Before Christmas).The film, taken from Browning's story "The Hypnotist," is essentially a drawing room murder mystery, with a detective hiring actors to play vampires in order to smoke out the guilty party through sheer fright. As with most of Browning films, the plot is painstakingly preposterous, which will alienate contemporary audiences who religiously subscribe to ideas of hyper-realism. It is the spectral ambiance and erratic characterizations which stamp the film with Browning's aberrant panache.Chaney as the vampire and Edna Tichenor as Luna, the Bat Girl are the original creepy and kooky, mysterious and spooky duo. Chaney also plays the second role of the professor Edward C. Burke and in some of the stills he could pass for Ebenezer Scrooge.Robert Bloch (writer, Psycho-1960) saw London After Midnight in his youth and wrote of a Browning oddity in the film; the sight of armadillos scurrying across the dilapidated castle floor. It is an image we do not see in the still restoration, but Browning would repeat this surreal bit in Dracula (1931).The late William K. Everson, a reliable historian, saw both films and claimed that the 1935 remake was considerably superior. Critics of the period disagree with Everson, holding the 1927 film as the better of the two. London After Midnight received mixed reviews upon its release in 1927, but the majority of the reviews were positive. Of all the Browning/Chaney films, Midnight reaped the biggest box office.In its current state, which is a remarkable, commendable effort on producer Schmidlin's part, it still is virtually impossible to compare this with the remake. what is evident is that the earlier film's production design, set in London as opposed to Prague in the remake, is superior; which is saying a quite bit since Vampire's design is, in itself, handsomely mounted.Midnight also has fewer characters, a more minimal murder plot, is silent (an art form both Browning and Chaney were far more comfortable in) and has Lon Chaney starring, which would seem to add up to a better, overall film.* MY REVIEWS ORIGINALLY WERE PUBLISHED AT 366 WEIRD MOVIES

TCM have produced a great set of rare Lon Chaney silent films which will appeal to the Chaney fan and anyone interested in the history of the American film. The set consists of 3 films which were "lost" for many years so it is very special they are now available. Michael Blake is the author of 3 books about the star and provides detailed commentaries of each film. He has clearly devoted his life to Chaney's legacy and his commentaries go way beyond what is seen on the screen. Accordingly, they are very interesting but possibly jaundiced about the films' appeal 80 years later.The earliest film, from 1921, is "Ace of Hearts" a static and melodramatic story of a vigilante group who draw cards to select who will commit murder. The print is fairly poor and the film suffers from a snail pace and overacting. The second film is "The Unknown", released in 1927. The film, we are told, is possibly the best of the partnership of the director Tod Browning and Chaney. The story is bizarre, the powerful tale of a circus performer who cuts off his arms to win the girl. Joan Crawford, in a very early role, plays the object of Chaney's love. The film follows the common theme of unrequited love which appeared in many of Chaney's films. As well as observing Chaney's art, there is excellent photography and Crawford displays a rawness which is probably much closer to who she was before she became THE Joan Crawford. The print is good. The final film is "Laugh Clown Laugh", apparently Chaney's own favourite of all his films. Once again, the theme is unrequited love. Chaney plays a clown who makes the public laugh while he is heartbroken inside. This time, the object of his affection is the virginal and teenage Loretta Young who displays the purity of emotion which was in all of her best performances pre 1935. The print is very good.The set also includes a reconstruction of an early version of the vampyr legend, "London after Midnight". This is a much coveted lost film but on the evidence of a few interviewees who saw the original film, the script and the stills, it looks like it might have been extremely melodramatic. While the reconstruction has been lovingly done, the result is static and rather boring, which is to be expected, I suppose.Both "Laugh Clown Laugh" and "The Unknown" are missing scenes but what remains preserves Chaney at the height of his powers. They demonstrate that, in fact, his reputation as a horror star is misleading. He was a character actor who changed his appearance to suit the role in the same way Charles Laughton and Paul Muni did much later. His talent for pathos is outstanding. Of the generous extras included in the set, the best may be the marvellous documentary about the star and the short films about the competitions which TCM ran to locate new scores for the films.The DVD set is excellent value.

Roll up roll up roll up' see if you darethe amazing man of a thousand faces- a broken hearted clown, a sinisteranachist, a vampire with shark liketeeth, an armless wonder, thats allLon Chaney the greatest.He's more the an actor he's a magician too, savor each movie likea fine wine. Laugh Clown Laugh -with Loretta Young is my runawayfavorite, watch Chaney do his shadowpuppetry and his daring upsidedown tightrope act its mesmerizing'Chaney's preformance burns intothe memory and makes us laughand breaks are heart with sadness.The Ace Of Hearts. - not a greatpart for Chaney but a good movieand Chaney is very simpathetic asthe well meaning anachist tryingto build utopia.London After Midnight - this isa lost film, the last remaining printwas destroyed in 1960' it's nota great film and only some mouthwatering stills pump up it's reputation but Chaney's vampiremake up is exquisite, the plot wasused again with Lugosi in 1935,The Mark Of The Vampire'.The Unkown - this is a must seemovie and Chaney's perfomanceis spellbinding and this movie isnoteworthy for an early appearancefrom Joan Crawford. A delightfuldvd, miss it at your peril.

glad to finally see something of lon chaney. for a long time , the only films i have seen were "phantom of the opera" and "the hunchback of notre dame." thankfully, that has all changed for the better. thrilled to see a reconstructed version of the lost film "london after midnight" and also "the unknown," both directed by regular chaney collaborator tod browning. the inclusion of "laugh, clown, laugh" is also an added bonus. but the choice "ace of hearts" lets everything down slightly. this could have been a six dvd set of films like "the monster," "the unholy three,"(both versions) "west of zanibar," "tell it to the marines," "HE who gets slapped" etc. the documentary on this collection is one of the best and most detailed i have ever seen: plenty of home footage and clips of chaney's most famous films. it is certainly true that whilst he wasn't a horror actor ,some of his films were rather bizarre and eccentric. i really hope that this release will be the first of many.

Laugh Clown Laugh in my opinion has one of the best performances on screen by any actor/actress in the history of the Motion Picture.I was new to Lon Chaney when I sat down and watched this film, and it blew me away! The story has so much heart and depth, and when you have, maybe, the greatest actor ever performing it, well, it's a blast!!I also liked the other films in this collection. I must mention the music score of The Ace of Hearts. Composed by a young musician, I think it is one of the greatest scores ever written for a film. It fits the story, the timeline and keeps the mood and mystery to perfection.The quality of the films in the dvd are superb, and it's all packaged very well with a lot of thought.More releases like this please Paramount, TCM, Sony....

This DVD set is simply brilliant! I watch it all the time. Lon Chaney is by far the best actor I have ever seen. He just holds you, keeps you there, fascinated by him. I have never seen anyone so amazing on the screen as him and he was mostly a silent screen actor apart from one talking film called "The Unholy Three", which sadly has not yet been released and it is also brilliant! The two best movies on this set are "Laugh Clown Laugh" and "The Unknown". Michael F. Blake's commentary's and documentary are excellent giving us an insight into how the movies were made and a little information about Lon Chaney the man. I also really enjoyed watching the composer's contest winner's documentary. I think they did a remarkable job composing the music for these movies. This is such a treat for any movie enthusiast. I'm so proud to own this and other Lon Chaney films. To me they are priceless.

A lovely collection by a master actor. The commentaries and bonus material make this essential viewing.