Who, we may ask, was Lon Chaney?
The classic Universal biopic Man of a Thousand Faces starring James Cagney tries most nobly to answer that question, but does so with such a press release-approved veneer of old Hollywood that, instead, it’s far easier to view this entertaining flick as more of a fictionalized take rather than a mildly hard-hitting expose on the life of a horror legend.
What’s most surprising about this movie, I think, is how surprisingly pro-deaf it is; apparently, in the first half of the 20th century, people with lack of hearing abilities were treated like monstrous abominations. When people learn that Chaney’s parents were deaf, they typically offer glareful glances and snarled lips; Chaney’s first wife, Cleva (Dorothy Malone), practically turns into an alcoholic shrew when she meets his parents on Christmas Eve, running from the dinner table screaming.
Still, despite this soundless adversity, Chaney’s path to greatness continues on, going from the halcyon days of vaudeville to the latest invention of moving pictures, working steadily as an extra alongside brutal Asian and Indigenous stereotypes. Using his incredible makeup skills, Chaney’s even able to take their meager roles away in various bit parts. Hollywood!
As Chaney works his way up the ladder of success, Cleva drinks a bottle of acid on stage and their son, the unfortunately named Creighton, is put in foster care. Using this as a catalyst, Chaney goes on to become the biggest star in Tinseltown, unafraid to place himself under tons of makeup and prosthetics, earning himself the nickname of the “man of a thousand faces.”
He soon dies of bronchial lung cancer for his troubles.
Directed with a well-earned heavy hand by Joseph Pevney, Man of a Thousand Faces is, like much of Chaney’s work, most enjoyable when Cagney is behind the wonderfully redesigned makeup himself, allowing the actor to emote behind the various masks. Sadly, much of the film — practically an hour and a half — is instead dedicated to Chaney’s war with his wife, which really kind of reeks of cinematic revenge porn.
But, you know, when I say it out loud, “porno revenger” is a role that I’m sure Chaney could have made his own as well. —Louis Fowler