"Blizzard," a double amputee intent on revenge, ranks among the "Man of a Thousand Faces's" finest performances. Lon Chaney dominates "The Penalty," a 1920 silent film directed by Wallace Worsley. Although nearly a century old, the film is no museum curiosity, but rather a remarkably contemporary movie and an engrossing drama. The print is in good condition, projected at the correct speed, beautifully tinted, and well scored.While laying in his hospital bed, a young boy overhears his doctors admit that the amputation of his legs had been a mistake. Rather than admit their error, the doctors conceal their guilt, and, when the boy tells his parents what he heard, the doctors claim he is hallucinating from the effects of ether. The boy matures into Lon Chaney as "Blizzard," an underworld crime lord, who seeks to take revenge on the doctor, the doctor's daughter, and on the city of San Francisco. As part of his plan, Chaney manipulates his way into being the model for a statue of Satan, sculpted by the doctor's daughter. Meanwhile, the authorities have planted a mole among Blizzard's confidantes to uncover his plot. Although other members of the cast, such as Charles Clary, Doris Pawn, Claire Adams, and Kenneth Harlan are largely forgotten, their acting is naturalistic for the most part, and only a few overplayed flourishes of the "grand style" mar the film. Made well before the Production Code, the film has a flash of nudity and an implied sado-masochistic relationship between "Blizzard" and the woman who manually pushes the piano pedals, while he plays the keyboard.Fine sharp cinematography, an engrossing story, good performances, and a legendary star in a memorable role, "The Penalty" is a must see for silent film aficionados and Lon Chaney fans. For those unfamiliar with either silents or Chaney, the film is an excellent work in which to discover both.

If not the very first to reach a wide audience, Wallace Worsley's The Penalty survives to this day certainly at least as one of the more memorable and enjoyable proto-noir gangster thrillers from the mid-to- late silent era. Featuring engrossingly dark imagery throughout, a wonderfully gritty plot line filled with characters blooming from a pre-code era and a sense of pace in editing and direction so brisk you might have to look twice at its production date; The Penalty has plenty going for it but by far its best feature lies in the magnetic and grotesquely alluring performance of its lead star Lon "the man of one-thousand faces" Chaney.Committing fully to his role as a man wrongly crippled at a young age by inept Dr. Ferris in the late 1890s, Chaney is so convincing in his role that viewers unfamiliar with his more famous works could be forgiven for Googling his name to find out if he really did have legs or not. Apparently the apparatus he wore to achieve the effect (which he had to insist on wearing against the studio's reported resistance) left him with lasting back problems for the remainder of his life. Whether true or not, the result is nevertheless a marvel to watch as his character of Blizzard—a brilliantly creative, megalomaniac-kingpin of sorts—hobbles his way in and out of people's lives, playing their strings all the while grinning sardonically with facial contortions likely to strip paint off walls. When Blizzard begins to enact on a long-dreamt-of plan of retribution against the now-successful Ferris however, it's the inclusion of the doctor's daughter Barbara that allows the audience to see briefly the sadness and morose qualities underneath the surface of the crime- lord's chagrined demeanour. Chaney nails both sides of the coin equally well, despite the film's best and most enjoyable moments resulting from Blizzard's more-often-than-not irritable and ill- tempered outbursts. Then there are the moments where the character switches back and forth like a light switch. During an early scene, Blizzard, while playing a wonderfully sombre and melancholic classical piano piece, begins: "I shall be the master of a city! And for my mangled years the city shall pay me—with the pleasures of a Nero and the power of a Caesar!" The contrast here is palpable, and were it in the hands of a lesser talent, may have come off stilted or jarring for the wrong reasons.On the other hand, the picture is by no means without its flaws. It's sometimes a little too melodramatic for its own good, specifically during the last 10 or so minutes. Furthermore, some plot lines go nowhere interesting, and the overall wrap-up is misguided and rushed to the point where it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth, even though it does boast the best line in the film. As a package however, I would recommend at least one viewing. Much like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde released a few months prior, the performance of its lead star is worth the time invested alone. Unlike said film however, The Penalty still has plenty else going for it outside of Chaney whether it's from the performances of the supporting cast or the brisk direction by Worsley cut with incisive, well-written and paced intertitles. If you do seek out the film, again I would recommend the newly restored blu-ray which has been respectfully scanned and cleaned up by the George Eastman House Motion Picture Department and released by Kino. The disc also features a score composed by Rodney Sauer performed by the Mont Alto Orchestra which bounces off and compliments the film beautifully to the point where they actually bring piano melodies played by Blizzard alive as he muses over his plans to conquer San Francisco by force. It's a nice touch and much like Chaney strapping his legs behind his thighs, brings a level of commitment and dedication that gives an extra spark to already bright and highly enjoyable film.

Silent screen legend Lon Chaney has a particularly enjoyable role which he plays to the hilt. His expressions and delivery are absolutely delicious; he looks like he is having a terrific time playing this demented antagonist. Experts believe that the pain he must have felt wearing a harness had an impact on his performance and added to his intensity. The other performers are fine but are simply blown off the screen by his flamboyant villainy.The story is a good one. Based on the novel by Gouverneur Morris and scripted by Charles Kenyon & Philip Lonergan, it tells of a man named "Blizzard" (Chaney), who as a child had had his legs unnecessarily amputated by incompetent doctor Ferris (Charles Clary). He grows up to be a crippled, embittered gangster in San Francisco who plots an insidious revenge, intending to get close to Ferris's sculptress daughter Barbara (Claire Adams). She's in a creative slump and has decided to make a portrait of "Satan after the fall", for which Blizzard means to model. While this is going on, an undercover operative named Rose (Ethel Grey Terry) has infiltrated his organization to get the goods on him."The Penalty" is a very diverting melodrama that does have a deliberate pace, but there are many fine moments with Mr. Chaney. In addition to its serious moments, it has some humour as well. It's especially funny when Blizzard asks of his henchmen, "Do I look like Satan?" One of the best lines of dialogue occurs when Blizzard is told that he's mad, and he responds that it's the kind of madness that succeeds. And Blizzard does indeed often look sufficiently mad.As directed by Wallace Worsley, this does have some neat details, such as hidden passageways, always fun to see in films from this period. And the story leads to a rather unexpected and touching resolution that is extremely effective.Must viewing for Chaney fans.Eight out of 10.

Lon Chaney's plays a Barbary Coast criminal mastermind during the early 1900s in director Wallace Worsley's "The Penalty," an outstanding crime thriller that wraps up its 93 minutes with a surprise ending. The premise alone makes this silent epic worth watching. Moreover, Chaney contrived a leather contraption that allowed him impersonate his handicapped villain without relying on hokey camera angles or trick photography. At the turn of the century, a boy in his early teens has a tragic traffic accident and an inexperienced surgeon; Dr. Ferris (Charles Clary of "A Tale of Two Cities") makes the wrong decision and amputates both of the boy's legs from the knees down. An older physician informs the young doctor that amputation was not necessary. Initially, the doctors thought that they could not be overheard, but the child is able to hear them and he tells his parents that the doctors are lying about his medical condition."Dangerous Days" scenarist Charles Kenyon has adapted Gouverneur Morris' 1920 novel and altered the upbeat, optimistic, happy ending. The title "The Penalty" here refers to the debt that the protagonist must pay for being such a heinous individual. Kenyon, Worsley, and Chaney make sure that Blizzard behaves like a cruel man. At one point, he roughs up one of his female employees when he finds her ability to make a hat less than satisfactory and reprimands her in front of her peers. Incredibly, though we are never shown how he acquired his power, the boy grows up to become an evil mastermind named "Blizzard" and he rules the Barbary Coast underworld. The Federal Police want to bust him, but Blizzard is far too sagacious for them. Eventually, the police send in an undercover operative, Rose (Ethel Grey Terry of "Wild Bill Hickok"), to work her way into Blizzard's good graces. The chief of the Federal Police suspects that Blizzard is up to no good, but nobody has been able to gather enough evidence against him to destroy his organization.One way that Blizzard's kept women can improve their chances of survival is to have an ear for music. When the crippled crime boss comes home, he prefers to sit at his piano and make music. Since he lacks the feet to push the pedals, he relies upon his kept women. Rose turns out to be the best kept woman that Blizzard has ever had and she is allowed to come and go as she pleases. Eventually, Rose discovers a concealed compartment in the fireplace. She notices a loose brick in the section of bricks in front of the fireplace and finds a trip wire in the niche. When she pulls the wire, the entire interior part of the fireplace ascends to reveal a vertical passage. A person can climb down a pair of straps connected by buckles to an underground passage that is wired for lighting and contains a surgeon's operating suite.Meanwhile, the evil Blizzard is planning to repay the surgeon for his inexcusable act of medical malpractice for removing his legs. The surgeon's adult daughter, Barbara Ferris (Claire Adams of "The Big Parade") is trying to become an artist, but her boyfriend, Ferris's assistant Dr. Allen (Kenneth Harlan of "Dick Tracy vs. Crime Inc.") has a low opinion of her aspirations. She wants to try her hand at one last project before she capitulates to her fiancé's demands. Allen believes that "true women need love, a home, and children." Barbara prints a newspaper advertisement soliciting a model for her sculpture of Satan after the fall and Blizzard instructs his henchmen to turn away all comers. When he shows, Blizzard makes a believer out of the daughter and she begins to model his likeness in clay. While all this is going on, Blizzard has also orchestrated an audacious plan to loot the city of San Francisco by creating a riot in the suburbs that will draw the authorities away from the city so Blizzard's minions can do their bidding. Blizzard's other scheme—not quite as audacious, but just as malignant is to fool the old surgeon into cutting off the legs of his daughter's fiancé and grafting his legs onto Blizzard's stumps."The Penalty" qualified as Lon Chaney's first major motion picture and a harbinger of pictures to come. This black & white silent opus is quite hypnotic, especially when Chaney is on screen hobbling around on crutches and leather knee guards.