I can't believe that this is the same movie that came out on DVD 20 years ago. So much has happened since then regarding the preservation and restoration of silent movies that this Blu-Ray looks like a completely different film. It's the same movie but the picture image is so much sharper and the previous defects (scratches, splices) have been cleaned up considerably. The last reel had suffered such severe nitrate decomposition as to be unwatchable. That's not the case now. The edges are still quite obvious but there is enough image in the center of the frame that you can clearly see what is going on. This is very important as the ending contains one of the most physical knockdown drag-out fights ever captured on film. An alternate ending from a later 16mm print which eliminates all that mayhem is included as a bonus extra.
The main reason OUTSIDE THE LAW is around today is that it marks an early collaboration between director Tod Browning and Lon Chaney but the movie was made as a starring vehicle for Priscilla Dean who was Universal's biggest star in 1921. She was a carryover from the late teens when how a woman acted was more important than how she looked. Priscilla would be considered too heavy by later standards (especially today's) but she was attractive, intelligent, and resourceful. No man was needed to save her as she could more than take care of herself. That was the principal theme in most of her movies as her characters were strong and independent although she usually fell in love at the end and wound up with the leading man.
The story is set in San Francisco's Chinatown and concerns a gangster and his feisty daughter (Dean) who are being reformed by a sympathetic Chinese philosopher who follows the teachings of Confucius. They cross paths with "Black Mike" Sylva (Chaney), a thoroughly despicable hoodlum who frames Dean's father forcing her to go "outside the law" in order to clear his name. They are aided by a young safecracker (Wheeler Oakman, Dean's real life husband) and the philosopher's Chinese servant (also Chaney) as they battle "Black Mike" and his gang leading to the climatic free-for-all. In addition to the performers, the movie is noteworthy today as a prototype for film noir with its dark lighting, interesting camera set-ups and tight editing.
The problem for a modern audience is that, even though they are sympathetic, the main Chinese characters are played by white actors which was standard practice for the day. The philosopher doesn't look Asian at all and Chaney's make-up, though remarkable, is strictly caricature with slant eyes and buck teeth. Personally it doesn't bother me as I always try to view old movies within the context and the time period of when they were made but there are many people today who would find it offensive. If you can get past that then what you have is a crackerjack crime film with a strong heroine, a vile villain, and a powerhouse ending. This is one of two Priscilla Dean Blu-Rays that have just been made available (the other is DRIFTING / WHITE TIGER) from Kino. Thanks to them and to Universal for making this unjustly forgotten star available once again...For more reviews visit The Capsule Critic.
