The Film Daily (1919)

Sunday, January 12, 1919 #<ftt AILV 17 Sex Meller Gets Across Despite Antiquated Basic Theme Gladys Brockwell in "THE CALL OF THE SOUL" Fox. DIRECTOR Edward J. LeSaint SCENARIO BY Dennison Clift CAMERAMAN Friend F. Baker AS A WHOLE Doesn't register anything particularly new, but has enough dramatic force to carry it over as a passable offering. STORY Gives Gladys Brockwell the type or emotional work for which she is suited; old theme reasonably well handled. DIRECTION Goes after dramatic climaxes and keeps things moving; delicate situations presented without offense. PHOTOGRAPHY Varies; some good shots. LIGHTINGS Satisfactory although they don't bother much about artistic effects. CAMERA WORK Very fair; mostly straight stuff. STAR Emotes convincingly and arouses sympathy for wronged woman. SUPPORT Charles Clary and William Scott work along conventional "movie" lines; generally efficient cast. • EXTERIORS Beach and water scenes in opening reels do very welL INTERIORS Nothing out of the ordinary. DETAIL Medical treatment which saves life of child shown at unnecessary length. CHARACTER OF STORY Won't offend. LENGTH OF PRODUCTION • • About 4800 ft. For a sex film put together according to a familiar formula this does very well. It has about the usual proportions of villainy, heart appeal, sympathy aroused by the wronged woman and mother love expended on the child whose very existence is the cause of a heap of trouble. Gladys Brockwell is quite at home in this sort of thing. She acts feelingly and generally succeeds in giving interest to emotional scenes that wouldn't have much value save for the appeal of the players interpreting them. The story in the present instance is an old friend whose twists are too well known to fool anybody, but your women folks, in particular, may be expected to welcome it because there is such a lot of »ex stuff. The shero is a trained nurse and a perfectly good girl who becomes the victim of William Scott, portraying a doctor who doesn't bother about playing fair. They get sympathy for Gladys right at the start by making it clear that she is not to blame for the happening which has such far reaching consequences. Never having loved Willun Scott, the father of her illegitimate offspring, who is cared for by a kindly nurse, the unhappy shero, still clinging to the hope of patching up her life, allows herself to fall in love with Charles Clary, an explorer. They are married without the secret of the past being disclosed. Whenever she gets a chance, Gladys visits the child, affording an opportunity for the appealing sort of sentiment between mother and daughter, which is sure-fire stuff with women folk. In due time Willun Scott returns to mess things up rather badly. Because he happens to be a friend of Gladys' hubby, he does, what no sane man would do under the circumstances, accepts an invitation to become their house guest. The author needed some such convenient, if improbable arrangement, in order tr> prepare for the climax. With the three points of the triangle under one root it doesn't take long to kindle an emotional fire. Entering the house inopportunely, as all movie husbands will, Clary overhears his guest making some comment about a chance to redeem his soul. This observation, along with the downcast attitude of Gladys, for whose ears it is intended, leads the explorer to believe that there must be something rather important which h» has not discovered. Then the daughter, still kept under cover, becomes dangerously ill, and the panic stricken mother, accompanied by the father, forgets discretion and hurries to the bedside. By this time Willun Scott is genuinely anxious to redeem his questionable past and it is his medical skill that saves the child's life. They play these scenes for all the heart appeal in them and get full dramatic value out of the inevitable clash between the husband and the betrayer. Everything is satisfactorily settled for all concerned when Scott leaves for another arctic trip and the child becomes a part of the united family. Lydia Yeamans Titus is well cast as the nurse and Nancy Caswell is an attractive child. Go After Folks That Are Looking For Sensational Sob Stuff Box Office Analysis for the Exhibitor. William Fox is staking his cash on a pretty safe bet when he backs the sex film as a good drawing proposition. But don't expect any particularly fine points in this for it isn't superior in a technical way. It's just plain meller with the usual heart interest appeal. As a program offering it is up to the average standard. You may count on the treatment of the illegitimate child theme being careful enough to avoid giving offense, but it would be wise to let your folks know that you are offering a sex picture so that they may be prepared for what they will get. Providing you make this point clear, mothers can't blame you if they take their children to a film which isn't the most healthful sort of thing for young minds. The name of Gladys Brockwell is so definitely asso ciated with vamps and "wronged gel" roles that she may be counted upon to attract patrons that are looking for entertainment of this type. To identify Miss Brockwell clearly, don't fail to call attention to a number of her past releases, some of which you have probably shown. In this instance, I wouldn't be afraid of giving a sensational touch to my advertising, making the most of "The Call of the Soul" as a title likely to attract people on the watch for sob stuff. Pictures showing the mother and daughter together will help to emphasize the mother love theme which plays a large part in the story Try catch lines along this idea: "She loved her husband, but the other man was the father of her child. What did she do? See Gladys Brockwell in 'The Call of the Soul'."