Review – The Man Who Laughs

Every time I see this, my heart goes out to poor Conrad Veidt. In order to play Gwynplaine, whose face was permanently cut into a hideous grin, the actor had to wear a dental appliance with hooks that held his mouth in the proper position. Fortunately his sacrifice was worth it. No doubt thinking about a previous success, Universal served up another Victor Hugo tale of a physically-deformed-yet-kind-hearted hero. Though the story is more than a little melodramatic, the acting more than makes up for the weak plot. Worth seeing