AllMovie

Lon Chaney Sr. eschews his trademarked makeup in the MGM crime melodrama While the City Sleeps. The plot is sparked by the misbehavior of heroine Myrtle (Anita Page), who enjoys rubbing shoulders with gangsters like Skeeter (Wheeler Oakman). When she learns too much about Skeeter's set-up, Myrtle is put on the spot by the mob. Crusty veteran police officer Dan (Lon Chaney) takes it upon himself to put Myrtle in "protective custody" in his own apartment. Old Dan falls in love with the girl, but at fadeout time he willingly gives up to likeable reformed gangster Marty (Carroll Nye). The film is a heady combination of standard cops-and-robbers fare and "low" humor, featuring several visual jokes centering around the policeman protagonist's sore feet. Mae Busch, Lon Chaney's leading lady in Unholy Three, shows up in a flashy supporting role.