Watch The Penalty

The Penalty is a 1920 silent film directed by Wallace Worsley and starring Charles Clary, Doris Pawn, and Jim Mason. The movie tells the story of a young boy named Blizzard who, after a tragic accident, decides to become a criminal in order to get revenge on the doctor who mistakenly amputated his legs instead of his healthy ones. The film opens with Blizzard as a young boy, getting his legs trapped in a railroad crossing gate. The doctor who arrives to help him is drunk and mistakenly amputates his healthy legs instead of the trapped ones. Years later, Blizzard has become a notorious criminal and the leader of a gang of thugs in San Francisco's Chinatown. He's ruthless and feared, but he's also haunted by the trauma of his childhood, and the desire for revenge against the doctor who ruined his life.

His chance for revenge comes when he hears that the doctor is still practicing medicine in San Francisco under a different name. Blizzard schemes to infiltrate a group of wealthy socialites where he believes the doctor is hiding, in order to get close enough to kill him.

But things become complicated when he falls in love with a member of the socialite group, a woman named Barbara. She's unaware of his true identity and thinks he's a reclusive artist, and as they spend more time together, Blizzard begins to question his plans for revenge.

Meanwhile, the police are hot on Blizzard's trail, and his criminal empire is slowly crumbling around him. A rival gang is causing problems, and one of Blizzard's former henchmen has betrayed him to the authorities. As the tensions rise, Blizzard is forced to make a series of increasingly desperate moves in order to keep his plans for revenge on track.

The Penalty is a fascinating early example of the gangster genre, and features a standout performance from Charles Clary as the complex and conflicted Blizzard. His physicality is particularly impressive, as he's forced to perform much of the movie on his knees to simulate the character's amputated legs.

The film is also notable for its depiction of San Francisco's Chinatown, which was a rarely seen setting in early Hollywood cinema. Its portrayal of Chinese characters is unfortunately stereotypical and offensive by modern standards, but it's still an interesting representation of this historic neighborhood.

Overall, The Penalty is a gripping and intense crime drama with a memorable central performance and a fascinating glimpse into old Hollywood's portrayal of a little-seen part of the city.

The Penalty is a 1981 crime movie with a runtime of 1 hour and 30 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.4.