Outside The Law (1920)

When her father (Ralph Lewis) is framed for the killing of a policeman and sent to prison, a bitter young woman (Priscilla Dean) joins forces with a safecracker (Wheeler Oakman) to double cross the thug (Lon Chaney) who set her father up. Directed by Tod Browning. Although Browning's reputation todays rests primarily on his horror films like FREAKS, DRACULA, MARK OF THE VAMPIRE etc., this tough little crime thriller features a strong female lead who sets the plot in motion and remains in control rather than deferring to any of the male characters. In addition to the criminal mastermind, Chaney also plays a Chinese servant. There is a bit of sentiment in the movie when a young child (Stanley Goethals) softens Dean's hardened heart and is the impetus to turn her life around. The transfer I saw had an excellent score by Anton Sanko which contributed immensely to my enjoyment of the film. Browning remade the film in 1930 with Edward G. Robinson. With E. Alyn Warren, Melbourne MacDowell and Anna May Wong.