He Who Gets Slapped (1924)

A disgraced scientist (Lon Chaney) robbed of his research and publicly humiliated by an evil Baron (Marc McDermott), has spent the last five years as a circus clown known as He. When a pretty circus rider (Norma Shearer) joins the show, he finds himself attracted to her even though she is in love with another man (John Gilbert). Based on the play by Leonid Andreyev and directed by Victor Sjostrom (THE WIND). A striking operatic tragedy with a stellar performance by Lon Chaney (it might be his career best) in the title role. My only nitpicking is that Sjostrom unnecessarily stretches out the narrative (particularly the ending) which weakens what should have been an emotionally devastating end. I'm not a fan of clowns, I find them genuinely creepy, but I found Chaney's circus jester poignant, a genuine tragic figure. As the female lead, Norma Shearer is lovely and appealing before she became the "great lady" of MGM. With Tully Marshall and Ruth King.