Underrated Tod Browning production has Lon Chaney bringing his arsenal of facial expressions, putting his expressive talents on display yet again. When you often see the team of director Browning and actor Lon Chaney, fireworks happen on screen. Yes, the low budget for 1925 shows. There's a scene between Chaney's ventriloquist Echo and his pickpocket partner Rosie(Mae Busch, who I thought was quite good)supposedly on the outside discussing the fate of a someone set-up for which you can tell is a painted background on a sound stage, or the scenes with the supposed giant primate..but, if one gets into the dastardly story-line then this might drive them away from such trivial matters. Chaney stars as a ventriloquist working the carny scene whose "associate" Rosie picks the pockets of the wealthy supplying them with the extra refinements their true professions do not provide. He concocts a scheme, gaining the partnership of a strongman(John Ford veteran Victor McLaglen)and his pint-sized dwarf friend Tweedledee(Harry Earles, most know him from Browning's controversial film "Freaks"), to thieve the rich by pretending to be a family operating a store. They hire trustworthy, naive "boob" Hector(Matt Moore)as a fall guy if their schemes to swindle run across possible trouble. Rosie is to work Hector over, pretending to fancy him. Things get complicated as Rosie falls in love with her mark as a jealous Echo tries to nip their growing bond in the bud. Meanwhile, Hercules, the strongman, and Tweedledee decide to rob a client who recently purchased a parrot..in the film Echo is so good at voices, he can persuade possible shoppers to purchase parrots he provided the dialogue to..under the disguise of an elderly lady, Mrs. Granny O'Grady as Tweedledee pretends to be a little child..and kill the millionaire putting a damper on the future plans of The Unholy Three. The unholy union was anything but a solid foundation to begin with, but is certainly fractured when Hector is set up by the group for stealing jewels from the dead millionaire, framed for his murder, as Rosie threatens to expose them.
There's just something marvelous about seeing Chaney disguised as a Granny and Earles smoking a fat cigar dressed in a child's clothes. There's a great scene where a detective is asking "Mrs. O'Grady" some questions as Tweedledee places the stolen jewels inside an elephant toy..you know exactly what the detective will eyeball when he sees it on the floor with Chaney's Echo on the verge of having a breakdown. The trial at the end is a bit far-fetched(particularly when Echo tries to put words in Hector's mouth while he's on the witness stand!
There's just something marvelous about seeing Chaney disguised as a Granny and Earles smoking a fat cigar dressed in a child's clothes. There's a great scene where a detective is asking "Mrs. O'Grady" some questions as Tweedledee places the stolen jewels inside an elephant toy..you know exactly what the detective will eyeball when he sees it on the floor with Chaney's Echo on the verge of having a breakdown. The trial at the end is a bit far-fetched(particularly when Echo tries to put words in Hector's mouth while he's on the witness stand!