Wid's Filmdom (1921)

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SY Re 2 & J * DAILY Sunday, July 3, 1921 , Splendid Presentation of Home Life and Mother Love Reginald Barker’s Production “THE OLD NEST” Goldwyn DIRECTORS... oe oe eee Reginald Barker AUTHOR (i6eee ee oe so eee Rupert Hughes SCENARIO GRY Fess «ee = eee Rupert Hughes CAMBRAMANS.. --2 . .. =... ee Percy Hilburn AS A WHOLE........ Well directed and ably constructed production with gripping appeal STORY s25003 Adapted from story by Rupert Hughes. Home life theme and characterization rather than plot DIRECTION......Excellent throughout with many original strokes PHOTOGRAPHW 2 35 ae ee Well done LIGHTINGS. 2272-5 Clear and sharp. Sometimes a little hard CAMERA WORK G3] se ets Good PLAYERS:, ..73 All cooperate and act with a good deal of subtlety and restraint. Mary Alden creates a real woman EXTERIORS poe re eee eet slo Good INTERIORS pepe eee Very good DETAIL. |. «0. eee Titles direct and forceful CHARACTER OF STORY. =32.A mother’s unfail ing devotion to her children who grow up and become absorbed in their own interests LENGTH. OF PRODUCTION. 3... fs-c'8,021 feet _ ae « . . At last a mother’s heart has been turned inside out and its © throbs. beats and impulses faithfully registered upon the screen, without exaggeration and without sugar-coated sentiment. Just a plain mother—universal in her love, unfailing in her devotion, and constant in her faith. She is not planted in any particular middle western town or any special locality. She is all over, in every state and in almost every home. Her character is drawn in a series of episodes presented in the order of time sequence and developed in a logical and truthful manner. Not a moment is wasted in getting under way. The numerous sub-titles that usually introduce a picture are all done away with, The story is attacked at once and runs through a greater part of the initial reel before the first title is necessary. This directness is evident throughout the entire production. Sometimes the slices of the mother’s heart are cut with a satirical truthfulness and sometimes with tenderness and sympathy; seldom are they over-sentimental and never cruel. The credit for this is due to the director, who at all times maintained a balance and proportion and did not waiver from his main theme, which was mother love. The scenes build up one upon the other, all tied together by the motker and her children, until in the end the powerful message is brought home. The effect is accumulative. It piles on gently like snow and coon bears down upon you with a terrific weight. A burden composed entirely of little flashes from a mother’s heart. The story, which was written by Rupert Hughes and printed several years ago, deals with an average home. No extraordinary fortunes or misfortunes strike the family. What happens to them happens to the average family. The family is large and the mother has a lot of work. One child is lost in youth. The others grow. up and slowly take their places in the world. Those who Fave virtues and reap fame and fortune have also defects. And those who have social defects, as every mother knows, have also excellent virtues. They marry and leave the old nest. The father bears up better throughout the different trials, but that is only because his nature is a bit more stubborn. The children’s neglect is well presented towards the closing reels and by no means exaggerated. The production ends where one of the sons is appointed Attorney General by the President and all return home for a visit. There is no end to a story of a woman's heart. and this was certainly as good a place to finish as could be chosen. It makes a satisfactory conclusion and .at the same time leaves one with the impression that the mother lives on and on regardless of the last episode presented. There are some excellent bits of photography in this production and some splendid lighting effects that give a depth to the sets and a third dimension to the figures. A few soft focus effects Were employed and a few more might have been used in the scenes that play upon the chords of affection and sympathy. ; Mary Alden in the part of the mother builds up a sympathetic and wholly human character. Her work is excellent and places her in the fore rank of film stars. Dwight Crittenden as the country doctor and husband presents a pleasing and typical father. The children are all true to life. A few good long shots and several nature study exposures add to the pictorial qualities and divert the attention from the home, only to return to it with more force. The success of this production is due entirely to the happy combination of director, author and players. This powerful picture of a mother’s heart was only made possible because Reginald Barker, Rupert Hughes and Mary Alden all pulled together in one direction—toward one goal. Mother Theme Vividly Done Will Appeal to All Box Office Analysis for the Exhibitor This story will strike home and satisfy your audience, no matter where you are located. It will ring true in any state in the country. Its message will carry far and, wide. The last sub-title can be used in advertising it to your public. It reads as follows: “Tf this picture should persuade you either to remember your mother piously, if she is dead; or, if she lives, to send her a long love letter or even a telegram, saying: ‘I am well. I think of you and love you,’ or, above all, to go home and _ see her, then this picture would give more real joy than any other picture ever made.” There is nothing in this entire production that is not wholesome and good entertainment for any sort of audience. Nothing that will offend and much that will appeal.