The Penalty (film)
| The Penalty | |
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Original release poster. The Penalty was originally a sole Goldwyn production in 1920 and was rereleased by MGM in the late 1920s.
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| Directed by | Wallace Worsley |
| Produced by |
Samuel Goldwyn Rex Beach |
| Written by |
Charles Kenyon Philip Lonergan |
| Based on |
The Penalty by Gouverneur Morris |
| Starring | Lon Chaney, Sr. |
| Cinematography | Donovan Short |
| Edited by | Frank E. Hull |
| Distributed by | Goldwyn Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
The Penalty is an American crime film starring Lon Chaney and originally released in 1920. The movie was directed by Wallace Worsley, and written by Philip Lonergan and Charles Kenyon, based upon the pulp novel by Gouverneur Morris. The supporting cast includes Charles Clary, Doris Pawn, Jim Mason, and Claire Adams.
As described in a film magazine, Blizzard (Chaney), a legless cripple whose cunning and criminal mind make him the master of the Barbary Coast underworld, is possessed of two ambitions. One is to get revenge upon Dr. Ferris (Clary), whose blunder during a childhood operation resulted in his legs being mistakenly amputated; the other is to rally the Reds in his organization and loot the city of San Francisco. To accomplish one Blizzard poses for the bust of Satan which is expected to be the masterpiece of Barbara Ferris (Adams), daughter of the doctor, gaining her sympathy and eventually threatening to force her marriage to him. To effect the other, he organizes the dance hall girls to work at the making of hats in a factory room at this house, the hats to be the symbol of the lawbreaking hordes when they are unleashed on the city. Rose (Terry), a detective, obtains entrance to his house as director of the factory. She is brought to love Blizzard for his passion for music. The life of the fiance of Barbara is endangered by Blizzard, who has the idea that the man's legs should be grafted on Blizzard's stumps, a second operation clears Blizzard's brain and he sees with a clear vision his fearful, terrible past, which falls away as if a dream. When happiness comes in his marriage to Rose, his former confederate Frisco Pete (Mason), a drug fiend fearful that Blizzard will reveal the identity of his gang of followers, takes the leader's life. Barbara and her lover are restored to one another.
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Wikipedia