Grimerlana Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Ceticultsot Beautiful, moving film.

RipDelight This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

alexanderdavies-99382 Lon Chaney certainly wasn't one for making conventional movies - as his frequent director Tod Browning was the same in his work."The Unholy Three" is one such film. The plot and the characters strongly resemble the bizarre and slightly horrific. Retrospectively, I can understand how Lon Chaney lay the blueprint for what would become the first cycle of the horror film genre in Hollywood.This version is far more effective than the talkie remake. Tod Browning's direction is very good as he sets the tone of the film from the beginning.As the leader of the gang, Lon Chaney is terrific but he is brilliantly supported by Harry Earles and Victor MacLagen. Harry Earles makes for a chilling psychopath in spite of his short statue.Any fan of Lon Chaney will enjoy this classic.

simeon_flake They say silence is golden--and in the case of "The Unholy Three," the silent version is superior to the 1930 all-talking remake. I'm not sure if I can articulate in words why I prefer the silent "Unholy" to its remake--one aspect of the film I thought was much better in 1925 is the 2 romantic leads. Mae Busch and Matt Moore make for a more likable romantic duo.The story itself is fantastic--to say the least--I'm not sure if Tod Browning had much input to the scenario for this film, but it does seem to have some of the elements of the bizarre and fantastic that Browning is known for. And--as many astute film fans can tell you-- the limits of the bizarre and fantastic would really get stretched in 1931 by the release of 2 films titled "Dracula" and "Frankenstein" respectively.Getting back to "Unholy", we have Lon Chaney as the ringleader of a crooked trio consisting of the circus strongman, Hercules and--dare I say--a "midget" played by Harry Earles. Another advantage of this silent feature is the viewer doesn't have to spend much time trying to decipher the words coming out of Harry's mouth--although I will say, there were times when I missed the dialogue from Harry; i.e., the scene where the little guy threatens to put some lilies under Rosie's chin if she squealed.Overall, of all the Browning/Chaney collaborations I have seen, "Unholy" would rank at the top of my list.8.5 stars

Michael_Elliott Unholy Three, The (1925) ** 1/2 (out of 4)A Tod Browning film about a ventriloquist (Lon Chaney), a strongman (Victor McLaglen) and a midget (Harry Earles of Freaks fame) who join forces after leaving the sideshow to become "The Unholy Three". The ventriloquist masquerades as an elderly woman while the midget hides as a baby so the three can steal jewels from the rich. I'm somewhat cheating by including this here but it doesn't contain a few horror elements as well as one of the most suspenseful and brilliantly carried out scenes from the era. Chaney is very good in both his roles but it's Earles who steals the show as the maniac midget. Browning adds a touch of weirdness to the film and we see a brief introduction to the circus world years before Freaks.

rdjeffers Sunday July 16, 5:00pm The Castro, San Francisco"That's all there is to life, friends – a little laughter . . . a little tear . . . "Between 1919 to 1929, Tod Browning and Lon Chaney produced ten films. The most visceral performance of the bunch can be found in Chaney's character, Alonzo the Armless from The Unknown (1927). As a cleverly conceived, perfectly executed, well paced story, fraught with tense moments and frightening circumstances, their third film, The Unholy Three (1925) is the one that made the franchise. Three carnival sideshow performers devise an ingenious front for their burglary ring. The leader, Professor Echo, the ventriloquist (Chaney), masquerades as 'Granny O'Grady' (That is one ugly old lady!), the owner of a bird shop. The carnival dwarf, Tweedledee (Harry Earles) poses as 'Little Willie', O'Grady's infant grandson, a maniacal, cigar smoking, bloodthirsty fiend dressed in baby cloths. The strongman Hercules (Victor McLaglen), a brainless brute is their obvious muscle. In their carnival scam, Rosie (Mae Busch) picks the pockets of unsuspecting onlookers and splits the loot with Echo. She comes along as O'Grady's granddaughter to run the store with Hector (Matt Moore), their clueless clerk. Rich customers buy birds never knowing Echo is actually speaking "Good morning auntie. Pretty Polly. Pretty lady!" When they call to complain, 'Granny' with 'Willie' in a pram go to investigate and case the home of their next victim. When Hercules and Tweedledee pull a job on their own and commit murder, Echo is outraged and spends the rest of the story repairing their damage.Echo is another example of the character Chaney most often played in Browning's films, a sympathetic man who shows his evil side, only to find some degree of redemption in the end. The climactic scene of The Unholy Three is the tense and suspenseful summit of the Browning/Chaney pairing. An investigating detective questions the trio in their cozy livingroom decorated for Christmas while the evidence is hidden in the baby's toy, "Cow! Cow!" Later, Browning employs effective camera trickery to make one ordinary element terrifying. The Unholy Three was also the only film Chaney ever re-made, as his first and only 'talkie', a testament to the films enduring popularity. The delightfully evil Earles, who went on to become a singing munchkin in The Wizard of Oz (1939) also appeared in the updated version.