Outside The Law

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Cut out the wacky faux Orientalism, because it has nothing to do with the plot, and you've got an archetype of the classic gangster flicks of the 1930s: danger and double-cross muted by melodrama. Priscilla Dean's charismatic expressiveness (both comic and menacing) carries the film, while Lon Chaney's hammy stereotypical villain nearly derails it.

Online: Internet Archive

Priscilla Dean: Master Of Mugging

Priscilla Dean mugging animation
Priscilla Dean mugging with baby in arms
Priscilla Dean mugging to audience
Mean-mugging: Lon Chaney vs Priscilla Dean
And when it comes to mean-mugging, she tops Lon Chaney, hands down.
Lon Chaney as Frankenstein
But if it's a Frankenstein you're after, Chaney's your man.