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By
NICK ZEGARAC
Lon Chaney was perhaps the
greatest cinematic contortionist in the history of
cinema. His gimmick was to use make-up as
camouflage, thereby appearing in each film with a
completely different and unique look; most of them
hideous.
In "The Lon Chaney Collection" we get three of his
classic chameleons in "The Ace of Hearts," "Laugh,
Clown, Laugh" and "The Unknown" -- where Chaney
convincingly plays an armless knife throwing
circus performer opposite a very, very young Joan
Crawford.
Each film is presented in its most complete
surviving version. The b&w and tinted color
elements are remarkably pristine, considering the
vintage. Though age-related artifacts are present
throughout they do not distract and quite often
vanish into the backdrop of each engrossing story.
Shadow and contrast levels are perfectly balanced.
Image flickering and film grain are kept at their
minimal levels, but with film elements that are
nearly 80 years old, they are par for the course.
As these are "silent" movies, we get a newly
remastered 5.1 scoring that is amply presented.
Extras include the wonderfully comprehensive
documentary on Chaney's life, narrated by Kenneth
Branagh, as presented on Turner Classic Movies; a
reconstruction of "London After Midnight," a film
that no longer exists in any form other than still
photographs; and an audio commentary track for
each of the feature films in this box set.
This is an incredibly well done tribute to the
silent cinema's haunted man of immeasurable
mysteries and one that is well worth your time and
your money. |
