Lon Chaney’s Scars and a Very Mean Mom in Where East Is East (1929)

If you have about seventy minutes and a weird tolerance for 1920s jungle sets that look like they were built in a parking lot, you should probably watch this. It is definitely for people who like their movies a bit grubby and uncomfortable. If you hate silent films or can't stand the sight of old-school stage makeup, you will probably want to skip it entirely.

Lon Chaney plays "Tiger" Haynes. He is a guy who catches wild animals for a living, and his face is absolutely covered in these deep, jagged scars from tiger claws. It looks like someone took a fork to a piece of clay. He’s got this daughter named Toyo, played by Lupe Velez, and he loves her way too much. Not in a creepy way, but in a "I will kill anyone who looks at you wrong" kind of way.

The plot kicks in when Toyo falls for this guy Bobby. He seems okay, I guess, but he’s a bit of a wet blanket compared to Tiger. Then the mother shows up. Madame de Sylva. She left Tiger years ago and now she is back, looking like a vampire queen in the middle of the humid jungle.

She is played by Estelle Taylor and she is just... mean. There is no other word for it. She doesn't even want Bobby; she just wants to take him away from her daughter because she’s bored and spiteful. It’s the kind of performance where you can almost smell the expensive perfume and the bad intentions through the screen.

The way Chaney moves in this movie is something else. He’s got this heavy, limping gait that makes him feel like a wounded animal himself. You can tell his joints probably hurt just from the way he sits down in those wicker chairs. There is a scene where he is showing Bobby his scars, and the way the light hits his face makes it look like a topographical map of a nightmare.

I noticed this one extra in the background of the port scene who was just staring at the camera for like five seconds. It totally broke the mood, but honestly, it made it feel more real. Like the production was just barely holding it together in the heat. It’s not as polished as something like The Great Divide, which came out the same year.

Then there is the gorilla. A guy named Charles Gemora is in the suit. It is obviously a suit, but he moves so well that you kind of forget after a while. The gorilla lives in a cage in Tiger’s house, which seems like a terrible safety violation. But the gorilla is basically the third act's secret weapon.

The movie gets way better once the mom starts her psychological warfare. She just sits there in the shadows, smoking and looking at everyone like they are insects she wants to pin to a board. The tension between her and Chaney is so thick you could cut it with one of those big hunting knives he carries.

I liked the small moments, like how Toyo keeps touching her father's scarred face. It’s a bit much, maybe, but it shows how they are the only two people who actually care about each other in this whole mess. The fiancé, Bobby, is mostly just there to be confused and easily led by his nose.

There’s a bit where a trap is set for a tiger, and the movie spends a long time just watching the ropes and the cages. It’s almost like a documentary for a second. Then it jumps back into the melodrama. The pacing is a bit jumpy, like the editor was in a hurry to get to the ending.

Speaking of the ending, it’s pretty wild. It involves a tiger, a dark room, and a lot of screaming that you can’t hear because, well, it’s a silent movie. But you can see the terror. Chaney’s reaction in the final moments is weirdly quiet. He doesn't go over the top like you’d expect.

It’s not a masterpiece. It feels a bit like a pulp magazine come to life, with all the sweat and bad attitudes that implies. If you’ve seen The Silent Flyer, you know that these 1920s adventure flicks can be a bit hit or miss. This one hits because of Chaney’s face and Taylor’s pure villainy.

I did find myself wondering why they had so many curtains in a jungle house. Everything is draped in fabric. It seems like a fire hazard or at least a great place for spiders to hide. But it looks cool when the wind blows through the open windows.

One shot of Madame de Sylva looking through a beaded curtain is just perfect. It tells you everything you need to know about her character without a single title card. She is a predator. Plain and simple.

If you want a movie that makes you feel like you need a shower afterward, this is the one. It’s messy and the morals are all over the place. But Lon Chaney makes it worth the time. He always does.

The print I saw was a bit grainy, which actually helped the atmosphere. It made the jungle feel more claustrophobic. It’s a weird little flick, but I’m glad I watched it. Watch it for the gorilla, if nothing else.