Carnival sideshows offer so many possibilities for nasty and unique horror stories. Here’s a great one. Total fucking acting genius Lon Chaney gives an amazing silent film performance here, pulling off a variety of insane and harrowing emotions, as a carnival’s armless wonder. He can shoot guns, throw knives, and even play a friggin’ guitar with his feet. He’s caught up in a love triangle with the carnival’s pretty lady (Joan Crawford) and the strongman (Norman Kerry). She harbors a pathological fear of mens’ hands, which SHOULD work out well for Chaney, but things aren’t exactly what they seem. Former carny Tod Browning directs this with the same offbeat touch as in his equally great 1932 carnival classic, Freaks.
In 1927, MGM promoted the film by claiming that Lon Chaney was so dedicated to his role that he actually learned to use his feet to handle knives, smoke cigarettes, drink from wineglasses, etc. In reality, those tricks were handled by real-life armless sideshow performer Paul Desmuke hiding off-camera.