The Blackbird (1926) Lon Chaney (silent) scored version

The Blackbird (1926)

scored version with english intertitles and hard coded spanish subs

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0016655

Two thieves, the Blackbird and West End Bertie, fall in love with the same girl, a French nightclub performer named Fifi. Each man tries to outdo the other to win her heart.

Directed by
Tod Browning

Writing credits
Tod Browning story
Joseph Farnham titles
Waldemar Young writer

Cast
Lon Chaney ... The Blackbird / The Bishop
Owen Moore ... West End Bertie
Renée Adorée ... Fifi Lorraine
Doris Lloyd ... Limehouse Polly
Andy MacLennan ... The Shadow (as Andy Maclennan)
William Weston ... Red
Ernie Adams ... Bertie\'s No. 2 Man (uncredited)
Lionel Belmore ... Nightclub Owner (uncredited)
Peggy Best ... Bit Part (uncredited)
Sidney Bracey ... Bertie\'s No. 1 Man (uncredited)
Louise Emmons ... Old Lady at Mission (uncredited)
Willie Fung ... Chinese Man (uncredited)
Cecil Holland ... Old Man at Mission (uncredited)
Emmett King ... Man saying theres a present for Fifi (uncredited)
Billy Mack ... Bit Part (uncredited)
Eric Mayne ... Sightseer (uncredited)
Polly Moran ... Flower Lady (uncredited)
Frank Norcross ... Music Hall Announcer (uncredited)
Eddie Sturgis ... Bartender (uncredited)

Original Music by
Robert Israel (2005 New Score)

Parents Guide:Add content advisory for parents
Runtime:USA:86 min (TCM print)
Country:USA
Color:Black and White
Aspect Ratio:1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:Silent

Cinematography by
Percy Hilburn

Film Editing by
Errol Taggart

Set Decoration by
Cedric Gibbons (settings)
A. Arnold Gillespie (settings) (as Arnold Gillespie)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
André-ani .... wardrobe designer (as André-Ani)
Kathleen Kay .... wardrobe designer
Maude Marsh .... wardrobe designer

Music Department
Jack Feinberg .... set musician (uncredited)
Sam Feinberg .... set musician (uncredited)

QUOTES
The Blackbird: My boy, you must first return everything you have stolen.
West End Bertie: You have suggested my intensions... precisely!
The Blackbird: When you \'ave done this, then come to me.I will alwys be your friend.

The Blackbird: God... I can’t stand it! The pain! The pain!

User Comments (Comment on this title)
3 out of 3 people found the following comment useful.
A sinister tale of the London underworld, 27 October 2008

Author: LCS from United States

Lon Chaney gets to play his own evil twin in this Tod Browning crime adventure. The \"Blackbird\" is a low-life criminal who falls in love with Fifi, a music hall performer. Unfortunately, someone else loves her too: posh \"West End Bertie,\" who wears a topper and a monocle like Bertie Wooster, but who\'s actually a crook himself, not above robbing his own friends while they\'re out slumming (including watching \"chinkys\" smoking opium).

The Blackbird and Bertie decide to become a team, but tension mounts as the Blackbird realizes that Fifi is falling for Bertie. Mixed in to the plot is the Blackbird\'s ex, who seems on a crusade to reform him, and his brother \'The Bishop\', a helpless cripple known for his work among the poor. Blackbird and Bishop share a room but are never seen together.

The ending is tragic, as could be expected, but not without a trace of \"cornball.\"

Browning\'s direction is excellent. He sets up the Limehouse location at the opening by showing a sequence of faces that evoke the atmosphere more than a mere set could do. He knew how to get the best out of Chaney, but the others in the cast also do a fine job with their facial expressions, all masterfully captured by Browning. The new score by Robert Israel, containing snippets from Chopin and others, fits the period well and never intrudes.

12 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
A great role for Lon Chaney, 31 August 2000

Author: Fg from Soucht, France

Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde in a bad quarter of London : Lon Chaney plays a double role in the film and in the story, a robber (the Raven) and a man who carries about poor people (the Bishop). The way of acting is remarkable because it\'s a silent movie. The great thing is that the Bishop is half-paralyzed so Lon Chaney has to play the contorsionist when he moves from Raven into Bishop. The strange atmosphere is very well described with threatening faces and slumhouses.

10 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
The Black Bird (1926) - TCM U.K. screening review, 13 June 2004
Author: Mg from Naxxar, Malta

By contrast, I was relatively satisfied with THE BLACK BIRD. The plot is somewhat derivative (particularly of THE PENALTY [1920]), but Chaney is in fine form here. The film goes a long way in simulating the Limehouse atmosphere, even where dialogue is concerned (which comes off as fairly hilarious if quite endearing).

The romantic leads, as played by Owen Moore and Renee\' Adoree\', are above average in this case; in fact, Moore (as a gentleman crook) is more of an anti-hero here and creates an interesting contrast to Chaney, who himself alternates between the villainous \'Black Bird\' and the saintly \'Bishop\' throughout.

For a Browning/Chaney effort, the film is fairly conventional and comes off as somewhat protracted (particularly the overly contrived ending) when compared to THE UNKNOWN (1927). Chaney\'s (deceptive) physical deformity of his \'Bishop\' character is the sole weird element in evidence and, for once, here we get a chance to observe - on camera - the way Chaney accomplishes this amazing feat!

Lightweight plot enlivened by Chaney\'s double performance, 22 January 2007

Author: DPM from Birkenhead, England

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Rather an odd film this. The characters and setting initially promise an intriguing plot but in the end its all rather inconsequential leaving a lot of the film\'s best ideas unexplored.

Set in London\'s seedy Limehouse district, we\'re shown early on that the number one crook operating there, Dan Tate, or \"The Blackbird\" as he is nicknamed (Chaney) is also secretly leading another life as his own brother, a kindly cripple known as The Bishop who runs the local mission and is well-liked within the community. Now to me that scenario opens up all sorts of possibilities so its a bit disappointing to see the film then spend the next hour or more revolving around petty jealousy between Tate and another crook in the area, albeit a more gentlemanly one, over the affections of French stage performer Fifi.

I was left wondering which of the film\'s characters I was supposed to be feeling sympathetic towards. Both Tate and his rival, Bertie, are crooks, a fact Fifi is aware of but seems unconvincingly untroubled by. And just to add another plot twist, Dan Tate\'s ex-wife turns up also, yet her involvement in the plot is surprisingly minimal. The fact she wasn\'t aware of the double life Tate has been leading does ask more questions about their marriage than we ever get answers to. She makes a comment that she still loves Tate for the good side to his character that he himself probably doesn\'t realise he\'s got, which makes you think this will be explored later in the film - sadly it isn\'t.

Too many scenes in the film go on far longer than is necessary to get their point across, while other major incidents take place off-screen, such as the shooting of the Scotland Yard detective, or the tip-off which tells the police that it was Tate who fired the shot. Who betrayed Tate and why? We are never told, even though this could easily have been built up to earlier in the film.

Also a bit silly is the film\'s ending. In his guise as the crippled Bishop, Tate is knocked over by a door as he rushes to open it. From this mishap we are supposed to believe that he breaks his back and subsequently dies! All of which leaves Fifi facing an uncertain future with Bertie and leaves us, the audience, wondering really what the point of the film was when the main character has come and gone with us learning nothing about his mysterious double life except how he tried to use it to fend off a love rival.

That said, it is always fascinating to see Lon Chaney\'s creation of different characters and with two (of sorts) on display here, the film is worth watching for him alone.

2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
An Underrated Movie, 3 November 2008

Author: fM from Orange County, CA.

I agree with most of the previous posters that this is one of Lon Chaney\'s better films. Although I\'ve always been a Chaney fan, many of his pictures are simply repeats of the same plot (although I never tire of watching them), or have Chaney almost too caricature-ish. This movie reminds me of \"Tell It to the Marines,\" which is another great piece due to the fact that Chaney plays a regular, down-to-Earth character in a subtle manner that really showcases his talent. When it comes right down to it, I like Chaney better in his lesser-known roles than in his classics.

I also agree that Doris Lloyd should have had a bigger part, as she could act circles around many of the so-called Silent \"greats,\" and proved it by acting in well-known roles until she died.

1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
Lon Chaney Gets Bent Out of Shape, 30 October 2008

Author: wC from Earth

London\'s Limehouse District, \"with its lust, greed, and love,\" lightly blankets its citizens in a sea of fog. There, ambidextrous Lon Chaney (as Dan Tate) successfully spends his nights thieving as \"The Blackbird\"; and, otherwise, masquerading as his own benevolent, but deformed, brother \"The Bishop\". Mr. Chaney likes to visit the local pub, where he falls for charming French entertainer Renée Adorée (as Fifi Lorraine). But, Ms. Adorée also attracts suave Owen Moore (as Bertram P. Glayde). Mr. Moore is a rival crook, who goes by the name \"West End Bertie\". So, conniving Chaney uses his respectable \"Bishop\" disguise to come between the increasingly more successful Adorée-Moore romance.

This is a formulaic Browning/Chaney film, featuring one of the versatile actor\'s lesser \"disguises\". For his transformation, Cheney twists an arm and a leg out of shape. It\'s more difficult than it looks to walk around in the disjointed position. Of course, Chaney\'s performance is outstanding. In particular, watch his reaction shots, which are incredibly accurate in mirroring whatever he is looking at, or reacting to. Co-stars Moore and Adorée also shine. Adorée had just been seen in \"The Big Parade\", and Moore has one of his meatier 1920s roles. Also enjoyable is Doris Lloyd (as \"Limehouse\" Polly), the ex-wife who loves Chaney.

1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
Fantastic Silent Film, 28 October 2008

Author: whp from United States

Always liked Lon Chaney films and his great acting skills and fantastic make up which many times gave him a great deal of pain while he was acting his many roles. In this film Lon played a double role as The Blackbird/The Bishop where he twisted himself into a pretzel. In this film there is a struggle between an evil brother, Blackbird and a good brother, The Bishop who is beloved by his neighbors and friends. There is also lots of romance between West End Bertie, (Owen Moore) and Renee Adoree, (Fifi) and the Blackbird tries to interfere with their love relationship. There are plenty of ugly looking faces in these British pubs with lots of smoke and plenty of draft beers being rolled around in mugs and glasses and down plenty of people\'s throats. This is a masterpiece of Lon Chaney Films. One of his Best, Enjoy.

1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
A Lon Chaney/Tod Browning collaboration drenched in humanity not the macabre, 27 October 2008

Author: Dv from United States

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

I feel like I could teach Lon Chaney 101 because each of his characters follow a similar archetype and yet each one of his characters couldn\'t be anymore different from the other. Lon Chaney is Dan aka The Blackbird, a seedy criminal in London\'s underground who has a great alibi, he is also his \"twin\" The Bishop a saintly cripple. The Blackbird has his eye set on the beautiful Fifi who is naive and overwhelmed by the dark and shady streets of London. West End Bertie also has his sights set on the beautiful Fifi. Bertie is rich and powerful but is not above common criminality and Dan makes it his obsession to out bid him in the quest for Fifi\'s heart.

Visually the Blackbird is one of Browning\'s finest achievements. Chaney stands out as the Blackbird but so does the world he lives in. For some reason this felt the most authentic of any of the settings Browning ever did. The poor house and the crowds all felt real to me. I don\'t know why it was but it did feel real. I felt I could see this happening in a real world unlike some of the other Chaney films which were too melodramatic to be true.

The Blackbird really stands out in Lon\'s resume, so many expect Tod Browning\'s films to be about elements of honorer but the Blackbird isn\'t and I praise it for this. It is a class struggle story and I can think of no one b better to tackle this challenging role than Lon Chaney. In a way the Bishop side of the character didn\'t need to be so extravagant because there are too sides to every man. The Blackbird poses interesting and relevant questions even for today and it is a highly entertaining picture. In a large way it is Tod Browning\'s take on the moral code we live our life by which was something he really liked to place in his films. Are the poor who mourn the Bishop wrong? It isn\'t a social commentary but it does embody humanity like few other Browning films could do. The pacing and acting are all picture perfect and I believe it is one of the finest aged Chaney films.

1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
Chaney Main Attraction In Dual Roles, 27 October 2008

Author: Cc from Las Vegas, Nevada

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Lon Chaney stars as a crook called the \"blackbird\" who tries to set himself up with a nice alibi by masquerading as a crippled character called the \"bishop\". The film is directed by Tod Browning who collaborated with Chaney numerous times to great success. Browning worked in a circus at one point and no doubt played a role in influencing Chaney\'s choices in portraying the \"bishop\". Chaney is contorted to a certain extent as the \"bishop\" and a bit over the top as the \"blackbird\" at times. The \"bishop\" and the \"blackbird\" illustrate the internal conflict Chaney has when faced with the goodness of Fifi, played by Renee Adoree, as the girl who softens the hard-edged Chaney. West End Bertie, played by Owen Moore, is the fellow crook who Chaney\'s character teams up with briefly until Chaney, as the \"blackbird\", notices Bertie getting sweet with Fifi.

The law eventually catches up with Chaney, and a terrible irony befalls the \"bishop\" before the fadeout. Chaney is the main attraction in this film, portraying two aspects of the same character so differently. It\'s a rare chance to see Chaney transform himself into characters on screen, when he is otherwise obscured by makeup. Chaney\'s acting style as the \"blackbird\" seems a bit much at times with his menacing grimacing, but it\'s really not out of the ordinary for the silent era. Instead of delving into the psychology of Chaney\'s character, director Browning unfortunately focuses on Chaney\'s petty jealousy of Owen Moore\'s character: West End Bertie. The film turns into a typical love triangle as a result. The ending is somewhat of a letdown and not too believable. The best reason to watch the film is seeing the marvelous Chaney at work near the end of his career. *** of 4 stars.

Chaney Carries an Average Programmer, 10 June 2009

Author: GMfrom Ramsey, NJ

Caught this one at the Film Forum in NYC recently. I have not seen a great deal of Lon Chaney\'s work outside of \'Phantom\' and \'The Hunchback of Notre Dame\' but I thought he was excellent in his dual role in \'The Blackbird\'. In fact, he carried the picture and the rest of the cast in this fairly routine melodrama set in the Limehouse district of 1920\'s London.

Had not seen Owen Moore before but I felt he was very competent. A veteran of silents, he died prematurely in the late \'30\'s. Renee Adoree was a perky ball of fluff and added her good looks to the proceedings.

I did think the premise of the story was a stretch, especially as he presumably hoodwinked his ex-wife as well as all others with his dual-existence duplicity. The sets and the extras seemed extremely authentic and added immeasurably to the production.

This was worth the price of admission, especially Chaney\'s virtuoso performance. I hope to see others in the future to determine if this was an exception or the norm.

Nice Chaney, 4 May 2009
Author: ME from Louisville, KY

Blackbird, The (1926)

*** (out of 4)

Lon Chaney plays duel roles in this crime melodrama from MGM. The Blackbird, a mastermind criminal and The Bishop, his crippled brother who is loved by everyone in the town. They\'re both the same person and the plan is to keep it that way but soon another criminal (Owen Moore) enters the picture as well as the love for a woman (Renee Adoree). I\'ve know seen every Chaney feature that is currently not lost and I must say my appreciation of him as an actor has never been so high. I\'ve always looked at him as one of the greatest actors in film history but after seeing this film I might go even further to call him the greatest actor in the silent era. It\'s really amazing at how brilliant this guy was and his acting abilities are on full display here. The viewer is the only one who knows that Chaney, playing both Blackbird and Bishop, are the same person yet like the characters in the film we forget because at how wonderful Chaney is. You could call this a Jekyll and Hyde type role as we\'re seeing good and evil and I\'d probably say this is the greatest performance at that type of characters. How evil Chaney can come off and then how nice and holy is just amazing to watch and he really sells these characters perfectly. It\'s also rather amazing watching him play a cripple and deform his own body. Both Moore and Adoree add nice support but it\'s clear who this picture belongs to. Browning also should get a lot of credit because the screenplay here isn\'t too original nor is the love story that breaks out and controls most of the running time. While it\'s not original Browning does bring a lot of style to it and makes the movie flow like a stream. I\'ve never been too fond of his sound features but I think his silents make him one of the most visual directors out there.

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