“Hands! Men’s Hands! How I Hate Them!”
Considered by many to be the greatest film collaboration between director Tod Browning and the legendary Lon Chaney, 1927’s The Unknown is a twisted silent film that features a love triangle, murder, deception, and heartbreak. It stars Lon Chaney as Alonzo the Armless, Joan Crawford as Nanon, Norman Kerry as Malabar the Mighty, and John George as Cojo.
In the film, Alonzo is an armless circus performer who shoots a rifle and throws knives at his lovely assistant, Nanon, using his feet. Nanon, desired by both Alonzo and the circus’ local strongman, Malabar the Mighty, fears the touch of a man. While it is never openly stated, it is implied that Nanon’s father, or some other, unknown man, sexually assaulted her at a young age, causing her to fear the hands of men. Because of this fear, Nanon only feels comfortable around Alonzo because he is kind to her….and armless…..or is he? When Malabar saves Alonzo from a violent assault from Nanon’s father, he tells Alonzo of his love for Nanon and asks for his help in winning her heart. Hoping to win Nanon’s love for himself, Alonzo tells Malabar to embrace Nanon as much as possible in the hopes that it will actually draw her farther away from him and into the arms of Alonzo instead. What no one at the circus (other than Cojo) knows, is that Alonzo actually has arms and a double thumb on his left hand. Oh, and he’s a violent murderer as well, who went into hiding as an armless circus performer to hide from authorities. He eventually murders Nanon’s father but gets away with it when the police question him because, hey, no arms, and Nanon’s witness statement claims that the assailant had a double thumb. Eventually the circus moves on, but Alonzo and Nanon stay behind. Alonzo tells her that she must stay behind to avoid the horrible memories of the murder but, in actuality, hopes to woo her for his own.
Cojo tells Alonzo that he must never allow Nanon to embrace him since she will discover his secret. Desperate for her love, however, Alonzo seeks out an old “friend” and convinces him to amputate his arms. In his absence, Malabar has managed to win Nanon’s heart and the two plan to marry. Distraught, armless, and spiraling out of control, Alonzo makes one last attempt at eliminating the competition. Who lives? Who dies? Watch The Unknown to find out!
I went into this film knowing nothing about it and was completely blown away! There’s so much going on in this film under the surface that it’s simply amazing. Lon Chaney’s acting is amazing and beautiful in a twisted way. He says more with his eyes in this film that many actors do in extended monologues in other films. Norman Kerry was great as Malabar and John George was a hugely sympathetic character. The entire cast did a great job, but Joan Crawford stole the show. Not only is she simply gorgeous, she was bleeding agony and pain on the screen during her scenes. She was amazing. I can say nothing bad about her or any of the other performers in this film.
I rarely stick my neck out like this when it comes to films, but The Unknown is a must-see piece of art. It’s great. I love it. Need I say more? Watch this movie and let me know what you think about it in the comments section.
Thanks for checking out my post!
Ken's Alternate Universe! 