Retro Review by Miranda Barnewall
My sincere thanks to the folks at Kino for screeners of these Tod Browning films in exchange for a review!
Outside the Law (1920)
When cinephiles think of Tod Browning, they either think of Freaks or his films with Lon Chaney, such as The Unknown. However, Browning also frequently collaborated with Priscilla Dean, the star of Outside the Law and the other two features discussed in this review.
Outside the Law introduces us to Molly Madden (Priscilla Dean), a former criminal who has gone straight, thanks to the guidance of the Confusious philosopher, Chang Lo (E. Alyn Warren). But after her father is wrongfully convicted of a crime, Molly turns back to the life of crime. There to assist her in this pivot back to the dark life is “Black Mike” Sylva (Lon Chaney), who is also out to double-cross Molly. After a jewelry heist, Molly and her accomplice, Bill (Wheeler Oakman), hide out in an apartment and quickly start to feel the effects of being cooped up in one space. Eventually, Bill pleads with her to return the jewels so they can live a life free of the burden and get married.
While the film includes stereotypes not uncommon for the era (i.e. Asian characters played by white men), they are not depicted in a negative light. Rather, the character Chang Lo is the moral center of the film. Further, Lon Chaney’s Ah Wing is the “good guy” of the two roles he plays. This is not to condone the racist practice of employing white performers to play Asian characters or their exaggerated makeup, but at least these characters were not the villains. One highlight, and a sigh of relief, is Anna May Wong’s brief, uncredited role in a very short scene where Chang Lo is talking to a group of young women. The purpose of this brief scene, I will admit, is lost on me, but I will never complain about seeing Anna May Wong on screen.
I was initially drawn to this film because of Lon Chaney, but after watching it, it’s Prisclla Dean that I’m left thinking about. There is a tough quality to Dean that sets her apart from her contemporaries; it’s clear to see why she was frequently cast as the star in these crime thrillers: she’s unapologetic, sarcastic, and blunt. She refuses to let anyone walk over her or double-cross her, nor is she afraid to tick people off in order to get what she wants. You can especially see it in that harsh squint she gives. It’s akin to the squint Myrna Loy gives to William Powell in The Thin Man series, yet Dean’s convey absolutely no affection. The closest person I can compare Prisclla Dean to is the tough, broad performances of Barbara Stanwyck.
Neither does Dean have a soft spot for children: when she and her partner-in-crime are holed up in the apartment, it’s her lover that befriends the little boy across the hall and is the one that wants to start a family. She is initially hardened against the little boy, and it’s only towards the end of their hideout that she breaks down and warms up to the little boy.
The restoration was very well done; the quality was so clear that you could easily distinguish the intricate details on people’s clothing. Decomposition shows up intermittently in the last fifteen minutes or so, however it is not so much that you lose track of the plot. Overall, the restoration done by NBC/Universial was very well done and gets the seal of approval from this lil’ ol’ film archivist.
Included on the Blu-Ray release, there is feature that shows a side-by-side comparison of the 35mm material (the material used for this restoration) and a 16mm print (a 1926 re-release) that exhibits not just the difference in quality, but reveals that the 16mm print consists entirely of alternative shots and a different ending. It’s a great look at how often foreign prints were created with alternative shots and how 16mm re-releases, like Kodascopes, were often shortened for home release.
White Tiger (1923)
In many ways, the plot of White Tiger is similar to Outside the Law. In White Tiger, siblings Roy (Raymond Griffith) and Syliva (Priscilla Dean) are separated after their father’s death, as each sibling believes the other sibling was killed along with their father. Roy lives his next fifteen years on his own whereas Syvlia travels with Hawkes (Wallace Beery), the man who turned on their father that resulted in him being killed. The siblings meet coincidentally fifteen years later at a traveling museum exhibit, yet do not know they are siblings. Roy, Syliva, and Hawkes partner up, devise a con that involves a mechanical chess player, and eventually steal jewels from a wealthy American family. They hide out for a time in a remote cabin until Syvlia’s lover (Matt Moore) convinces the group to turn in the jewels. Along with the plot, White Tiger’s underlying message is fairly similar to Outside the Law: the theft of material things will not bring a life of happiness.
Priscilla Dean shines again in this role, continuing with her stern and resolute demeanor. She refuses to let Roy ruin her chances with her wealthy lover. It’s hinted throughout the film that Roy has feelings for Syvlia, but especially when he expresses his distaste for Syvlia’s lover. Wallace Beery plays the movie’s heavy and the ringmaster in the trio of thieves. He is also the man that both Roy and Slyvia are after to kill, though neither of them know he is the one to blame, in part because he is operating under the alias Count Donelli.
Overall, White Tiger is not as strong as Outside the Law, but it’s still solid and worth watching.
Drifting (1923)
Drifting was my third watch for this review of these films, but it was the first one I had seen: it was my privilege to be a student at The L. Jeffrey Selznick School of Film Preservation when the George Eastman Museum premiered its preservation of Drifting at the Dryden Theater in late 2016. At the time, my focus had been on the restoration work done, particularly in the translation of the intertitles, but now my interest was with the performances of Priscilla Dean and Anna May Wong.
A little more complicated than the previous two features, Drifting finds Priscilla Dean as Cassie Cook, an opium dealer in Shanghai, who is eventually forced to partner with her rival, Jules Repin (Wallace Beery). Cassie attempts to get enough cash to get her and her opium-addicted sister tickets to go back home to America. Her plan is thwarted when she loses all her money at the horse races. As a last resort, she goes to the little town of Hang Chow to smuggle opium out of the town as well as to find out if the engineer attempting to open the abandoned mine in the town, Arthur Jarvis (Matt Moore), is actually a government agent attempting to break up the opium ring.
Anna May Wong has a stronger role here as the daughter of Dr. Li (William V. Wong), Rose Li. Rose Li is clearly smitten with Jarvis and frequently visits the mine just to talk with him. She would do anything for him, and does when she tells him that she saw Cassie, now under the false name Lucille Preston, steal one of Jarvis’ letters. Despite saving Jarvis from being killed, Rose Li loses in the end. In the climactic fight scene, Rose Li dies after shooting Repin in the back just as he is about to stab Jarvis. Anna May Wong gives such a delicate and touching performance, and the contrast between her and Priscilla Dean was quite good.
Unlike the previous two titles, this restoration’s primary source material was a release print. What this means is that this material contains the tinting that was done during its release, thus this film is filled with various tints, including sepia, amber, and red. Further, the image quality is so clear that you can see the details in the shadows and the whites. The only case where detail isn’t quite as noticeable is in the red tints.
After watching these three Tod Browning/Priscilla Dean titles, it’s interesting to see the parallels in plot and themes. Also in this film is yet another little boy who Dean’s character does not easily warm up to. It’s not until the battle when the boy is screaming with his hands around her neck that she finally gives in.
What’s more is that at the end of each film, there is only a suggestion that perhaps Priscilla Dean’s character has accepted traditional values. Drifting’s last intertitle ends with: “Who can say if Cassie Cook’s soul didn’t find cleansing in the flames too?” It’s ambiguous. I think that’s what I like the most about these films with Dean. There is still a chance that the tough, independent Priscilla Dean exists and hasn't given into societal expectations.
I do recommend these three films if you have the chance to pick up the Blu-Rays. I loved watching these three together and being able to see this other side of Browning’s career that I wasn’t quite aware of before. Outside the Law also has a commentary done by Anthony Slide which gives more historical context of the making of the film and Browning’s films with Dean.