The Unholy Three

(Tod Browning, US 1925, 79 min., 35mm)

Silent Tuesdays. How cheery would the holidays be without watching cunning ventriloquist Lon Chaney, strongman Victor McLaglen, and vindictive dwarf Harry Earles plot a dastardly crime to take place on Christmas Eve? The Unholy Three is a weird tale indeed, darkly yet humanely directed by macabre master Tod Browning, and has not only one of Chaney’s best portrayals but also a moving performance from the gifted Australian actress Mae Busch, now chiefly remembered for her appearances as a shrewish wife in Laurel and Hardy comedies. Browning exploits every strangeness he can find, and the film was so successful on its original release it was remade just five years later as Chaney’s first (and only) talkie. The original, however, is far more compelling and unsettling.

Live piano by Philip C. Carli.