tod browning be one of the great mystery of film history . his life story be fill with contradiction ( some he create himself ) . no one argue the fact that he be the architect of the classic american horror film dracula ( 1931 ) and with bela lugosi a dracula . his success be one that be ground in his macabre but decidedly non supernatural silent work . beyond that the story get cloudy . the official line be that he go on to make freak ( 1932 ) and the result be so horrific that it virtually destroy his career and make the studio keep a tight rein on his subsequent genre effort . at the top of the list for strangeness be the unknown ( 1927 ) and one of the great silent film of all time . it be also one of the most offbeat psychological drama ever produce by a major studio and especially one such a mgm . the collaboration between director or writer tod browning and himself a one time circus performer and and the intense performance by lon chaney and be a thing of magic . the focus of the story be alonzo ( lon chaney ) be an armless knife thrower in a gypsy circus and know a alonzo and the armless wonder . he really not armless and but have his arm strap to his side to appear limbless since he wish to hide his identity from the cop . he a career criminal on the run who with his cohort cojo ( john george ) and and continue to commit robbery while tour with the circus . cojo be the only one who know his secret and be the only friend he have . alonzo be able to fling the knife with the toe of his foot and and his assistant nano ( joan crawford ) be the target . she the beautiful daughter of the circus owner and ringmaster and zanzi ( nick de ruiz ) . alonzo have become obsess with nano and and would do anything in the world for her love . he would also and he tell cojo and do anything he could to someone who take her away from him . nano have a bit of a psychological problem and she can not stand any man who put their arm around her or who try to touch her . she feel very safe with alonzo and they develop an affectionate bond of friendship and where she feel good hug him . the circus strongman malabar ( kerry ) also compulsively love her and would not take no for an answer and but he keep put his arm around her a she push him away . zanzi doesn not trust alonzo and when he see his daughter alone with him again and his anger build because he feel he be put idea in his daughter head . in a fit of rage he beat alonzo with a whip until malabar put a stop to it and receive the thanks of alonzo . but one evening zanzi again confronts alonzo and this time in the dark shadow nearby nano wagon and he notice that alonzo have arm . this cause alonzo to strangle him to death and but nano could only see that the strangler have two thumb on one hand . realizing that he can not marry her if he have arm and alonzo decides to have them cut off . alonzo blackmail a doctor ( lanning ) into do the procedure . but when he return to see nano and she tell him that she overcome her fear of have a man put her arm around her and will marry malabar . the scene in this film when he realize that he cut off his arm for nothing be one of the most emotional in all of silent film ( perhaps all of film ) and and it consist mostly of a closeup of his face a the horrible irony register . chaney performance and and maybe our instinctive support of the underdog and have the odd effect of make you hope that he win in the end and even though he a murderer and he plot to have malabar arm rip from his body by horse . we get a glimpse of the pain that chaney must have felt with his arm strap to his chest day after day on the set . mirroring that be a scene when he distractedly light a cigarette with his foot and an intricate process that be aid by peter dismuki and a real armless man who serve a a stunt double for many of chaney action . cojo ( john george ) and alonzo dwarf assistant and look on with grow mirth until he burst out and remind alonzo that his arm aren not bind . in the late silent period and filmmaker be advance their art at an astonishing pace . over at fox and f. w. murnau be make the most elegant of all silent film and sunrise represent a song of two human and which seemingly liberate the camera from gravity and demonstrate breathtaking in camera optical effect . browning and cinematographer merritt b. gerstad be not so precocious and but their experiment with filter and camera placement be nearly a intriguing . in a beautifully compose scene and nanon grief over her father death and struggle between her love for the strongman malabar and her fear of his hand while malabar enters the room and confess his undying love for her and his willingness to wait until her fear subsides . the shot be film through a heavy gauze that give the entire composition the look of an oil painting with visible brushwork while it add a softness and an intimacy that similar to the effect later director desire when they use soft focus closeup of smile woman face and but there nothing silly about it use here . with that be say and lon chaney always play wild and scary and intriguing role that garner our pity and our sympathy no matter how horrify they be . part of the reason be because chaney could play the agony of unrequited love like nobody else . his ability to lose the girl and when the movie hero would usually win her and be remarkably heartbreaking . this be just one reason why chaney make an indelible impression on the history of cinema . the other be that he have a creepy presence on screen even when he play the good guy .