I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Another disappointment I'd like to discuss is The Ace of Hearts (1921). When Uncle Carl asked Lon Chaney to recommend a director for The Hunchback of Notre Dame, he asked for Frank Borzage. Instead, Laemmle hired Wallace Worsley, who had guided Chaney through four previous pictures, including this little effort about a group of anarchists plotting to blow up an enemy of society when he lunches at a New York restaurant. Although third-billed to the fakey Leatrice Joy and the extremely competent John Bowers, Lon Chaney was allowed to run riot and to absolutely dominate just about all of the slow-moving and thoroughly predictable - indeed heavy-handed - scenes. Occasionally, the movie does present a bit of visual appeal and admittedly it doesn't run too long. And at least the TCM DVD has been produced from a well-worn but first generation 35mm print. That is always welcome!

This very moody and atmospheric thriller about a secret society was directed by Wallace Worsley and written by Gouverneur Morris, who were both responsible for Lon Chaney's chilling movie "The Penalty" (1920). The evocative and eerie music (by Vivek Maddala, so much more appropriate than his score for "The Patsy") gets you into the mood instantly as a secret society meet on a windy, rainy night to plot the murder of "one who has lived too long". Even in the depths of all this seriousness there is a romantic triangle going on as Mr. Forrest (John Bowers) and Mr. Farallone (Lon Chaney) both fall in love with the elusive Lilith (Leatrice Joy) who is wedded to "the Cause"!!!After the gruelling role of "Blizzard" in "The Penalty", this role of the lovelorn Mr. Farallone must have seemed like a walk in the park to Chaney but such is the power of his acting that with a few emotive expressions he was still able to give a gripping performance. When the cards are dealt, the Ace of Hearts, the card of death, goes to Mr. Forrest and he is elated that he has been chosen to eliminate "the Menace" (Raymond Hatton). Lilith then announces that she will marry him if that will inspire him further but after a night of love she is a changed woman and begs Forrest to run away with her. He is supposed to go to his waiters job and leave a timed bomb at the seat where "the Menace" has his breakfast every morning at nine o'clock. But things don't go to plan and when he sees a pair of run away lovers (Cullen Landis is one) sitting at a nearby table he cannot go through with it. That means he, himself, is under sentence of death but meanwhile Lilith has extracted a promise from the lovesick Farallone that if something goes wrong he will help them. In an unexpected twist Farallone (which proves Chaney didn't give up all his intensity) makes Lilith promise that if Forrest doesn't return she will, in turn, marry him. But Farallone has an ace up his sleeve that paves the way for the newly wed's happiness.Chaney's intensity toward the end made me wonder if the movie was meant to be far longer than it's 75 minutes. It originally had a far different ending, much more exciting in my opinion. Lilith and Forrest are finally tracked down to their mountain haven by Morgridge, the Society leader, who, in the original ending had picked the Ace of Hearts as the one to hunt down and kill Forrest. He survives the bomb blast but when he sees the happy family (there is now a baby) he also renounces "the Cause" with a view that love conquers everything. When Samuel Goldwyn saw it, he declared it preposterous and ordered a new ending!!!It was this movie that bought Leatrice Joy (soon to be Mrs. John Gilbert) to the attention of Cecil B. DeMille and the next year she would shoot to fame in "Saturday Night" - he intended to do for her as he had done for Gloria Swanson. John Bowers was married to Marguerite De La Motte and his main claim to fame is that his life and death were the inspiration for the Norman Maine character of "A Star is Born", although neither he nor his wife were as famous as the two depicted in the movie.

On a windy night, a group of eight men introduced only as a "Certain Brotherhood" meet to decide whether or not to murder the latest subject of their investigation. Among the clandestine group's members are sullen artist Lon Chaney (as Farallone) and his good-looking rival John Bowers (as Forrest). We quickly learn both men are in love with the group's absent ninth member, and only female, lovely Leatrice Joy (as Lilith), who has given the group permission to proceed without her.While working undercover as a waiter for three month, Mr. Bowers has had the opportunity to observe the group's latest target. When asked his opinion on the man's worth, Bowers states, "Each day this man grows greater in vainglory and cruelty. He has lived too long!" Mr. Chaney, who has been working on the man's portrait, agrees, "He has lived a thousand times too long! Death!" the group votes unanimously to kill their hated enemy Raymond Hatton (as "The Menace").Their weapon will be a bomb, which can be set to explode in five minutes. The members are aware the job could prove fatal, but consider it an honor to die for "The Cause". To decide who will be responsible for the latest killing, the group employ their regular method. It is explained, "According to our ancient custom, the man who has lived too long will be put to death by that one among us to whom shall be dealt the Ace of Hearts." Expect sacrifice, betrayal, and the unexpected…"The Ace of Hearts" re-teams star Chaney, director Wallace Worsley and writer Gouverneur Morris; the trio who had just unleashed the marvelously grotesque "The Penalty" (1920) on an unsuspecting public. Wisely deciding not to even attempt performing a similar stunt, they went for a lower key. But, while "The Acre of Heats" has everyone looking more like upstanding citizens, the filmmakers dealt "The Ace of Hearts" from the bottom of the deck. Here, sordidness looks sweeter.The three lugubrious and emoting star players are all terrorists, and proudly so; whatever you think of the circumstances involving the bombings within the story, we are told that this group routinely carries out these murders. And, however implausible the events on screen seem, they are certainly captivating. Cinematographer Donovan Short gives it a glow-in-the-dark" look. Also note how effectively "extras" Cullen Landis and Raymond Hatton represent good and evil, in the restaurant scene.********* The Ace of Hearts (9/17/21) Wallace Worsley ~ Lon Chaney, Leatrice Joy, John Bowers, Cullen Landis

I had no idea at all what this movie was about when I sat down to watch it, and that can often benefit some films. This was certainly the case here, as it was suspenseful and mysterious from start to finish, and once again I am thinking I have often been too dismissive of silent movies and the power they have by conveying their emotion through visual gestures over sounds. More often than not it turns out that I am satisfied by most silent pictures and award them at least three of four stars, or else maybe I'm just getting lucky and am spinning only the more notable ones. Either way, I was dying to know what would happen next in ACE OF HEARTS and how the story would play out.Lon Chaney is one of several members of a secretive organization who meet privately to decide which person among them will be the one to murder "the man who has lived too long". We don't know who that marked individual may be or why he has been targeted; all we see is that the method in deciding which man gets to kill is by having each draw a playing card, and whoever turns up the Ace of Hearts is assigned the task. The lone female participant (Leatrice Joy) seems to live strongly for The Cause, and Chaney and fellow member John Bowers both love her and eagerly hope they are chosen. As was the common ingredient in many a Chaney feature, Lon is a victim of unrequited love, and there are some touching moments here of his heartache. Chaney is very strong in the movie, though it doesn't seem to be exclusively his picture alone this time, and there are reasons to enjoy it other than just to watch his performance.The outcome of the story cannot be told, but as I said it gripped me from the beginning. As an added example of how intriguing the film was, my wife had been out and arrived home for the last scene. She asked me the name of the movie and then when I decided to re-watch the entire thing again with the audio commentary by Chaney Historian Michael F. Blake, I was astonished that my wife sat through the entire film with me the second time. This is something she seldom does these days for one of my personal DVDs ... let alone a 1921 silent! ***1/2 out of ****