Top-Tier Alternatives In the Shadow of Back Street: Cult Guide

Dir: John M. Stahl

Faced with deciding between two suitors, James Brunton and Bob Standing, Grace chooses James. Aristocratic Mr. Brunton gives his son James a sumptuous wedding at home, which is interrupted when the father is suddenly shot through a window. Before he dies, Mr. Brunton speaks with James, making him promise not to apprehend the murderer. Later, the marriage is troubled when Grace is led to believe that James is involved with another woman, Helen, and is giving her money. Crushed, Grace leaves home and has a miscarriage after settling in another town. Meanwhile, James believes that she has run off with Bob. One day, James has a car accident and is taken to Grace's house nearby, where she cares for him. The mystery is solved with the arrivals of Helen and Bob, when it is revealed that Helen is actually James's sister, and that Mr. Brunton had abandoned Helen's mother Alice years before. Mr. Brunton knew that it was Alice who had shot him, and he wanted James to try to make up for his neglect of the mother and daughter. Bob then becomes interested in Helen, and James and Grace are reconciled.

Dir: Bruno Ziener

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Eva, wo bist du? perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: John M. Stahl

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Alexander Butler

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The Son of Democracy perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

In Alberta, Canada, a Cornish emigrant unmasks a rustler posing as the girl's "blind" father.

Dir: Charles Horan

While working as a flower girl in Devlin Maddox's nightclub, Nellie Vaughan meets wealthy young Pelton Van Teel and falls in love. Maddox, desirous of using Nellie to blackmail Van Teel, spreads a rumor that she is his mistress. This makes Nellie uncomfortable, and she demands that Van Teel marry her immediately, to which he agrees. Meanwhile, Van Teel has been losing money gambling to Maddox, who threatens to break up the marriage by producing a worthless check that the young husband has written. Venturing to Maddox's apartment for a showdown, Nellie pulls a gun and demands the check, accidentally shooting Maddox when he throws a lamp at her. Maddox plans to charge Nellie with assault, but when the police arrive, his butler, actually a detective employed by the elder Van Teel, exposes Maddox, who is then arrested, clearing the path for the couple's happiness.

Dir: Maurice Elvey

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The Night Riders perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

A lady marries a horse trainer but withholds herself until her crippled brother is cured.

Dir: Harley Knoles

Jim McDonald, the foreman of a shipbuilding plant and head of the labor union, strives to combat the anarchistic propaganda being put forth by Klimoff, the leader of a Bolshevik gang whose goal is to disrupt the country with strikes and anarchy. Despite McDonald's efforts, a strike is called, resulting in chaos. McDonald's child is knocked down by runaway horses abandoned by their striking driver, and dies. Mob scenes take place in America, as well as in Russia. Eventually, the unrest is quelled with an armistice called between Capital and Labor for a year, during which time wages are to be increased to reflect the cost of living, and leaders are to work out a common plan for their mutual advantage. The strikers now realize that they have been pawns of the Bolsheviks and call off the strike, agreeing to the plan.

Dir: Wilfred Lucas

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Man's Plaything perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Brian O'Farrell (Snowy Baker), is an English 'new chum' who takes a job at an Australian cattle station. He is teased by station hands because of his appearance (including spats and a monocle) but he soon impresses them with his skills at riding and boxing. The station manager, John MacDonald (Wilfred Lucas), takes O'Farrell to Sydney to meet his daughter Edith (Kathleen Key) who is working in the slums. Edith is kidnapped by criminals after witnessing a crime but O'Farrell rescues her. It is later revealed he is the owner of the station.

Dir: John M. Stahl

Around 1903, in czarist Russia, William ("Willie") Eckstein is at boarding school when he receives a letter from his mother describing how their prosperous Jewish family has been forced by government edict to pack up their belongings and move to a poor village. Willie joins the Eneckva, a secret Nihilist society that meets on the outskirts of town, and quickly becomes a leader because of his speaking ability. In the meantime, Cossacks kill Willie's father for defending a tavern waitress. At school, a teacher finds one of Willie's pamphlets and turns him in to local authorities, who ransack his room and throw Willie and two friends into jail. Other boys come to their rescue, however, and they escape down a cliff. Willie hurries home to his mother, to tell her he is fleeing Russia, and she gives him a peasant suit that will allow him to travel without being molested. He flees to America, where he claims he will "live free from the law." After reaching the United States, Willie makes his way to Salt Lake City, Utah, where his uncle owns a clothing store. He starts his new life as a newspaper boy, but becomes a hoodlum and ends up in the hands of truant officers. Summoned to the Parental Court of Judge Willis Brown, Willie at first defies the judge, but later realizes that Brown sincerely wishes to help him. Supported by local progressive women who see the need of moral education for wayward children rather than punishment in a reform school, Judge Brown is given an 800-acre farm for the purpose of building a community for juveniles. He chooses eighteen young felons, including Willie, and drives them to the farm to start building "Boy Town," and Willie is soon elected mayor. At Boy Town, the youths practice discipline and self-government, learning how to farm the land, deal with troublemakers, and earn a profitable living. Many of the boys grow into successful, law-abiding adults. Judge Brown sends Willie to an Eastern college, and then to a university in Missouri, where Willie studies agriculture. Finally, Judge Brown makes him the manager of a large private farm, and the young man becomes a U.S. citizen. He also sends his mother one of his regular letters with a money-order enclosed, along with a photograph of himself, and then dreams of her joy in receiving it. The judge comes in, presses Willie's hands, and assures the sleeping youth that his belief in a square game will help him prosper and be an example for other boys.

Dir: Edgar Jones

A mail-order bride arrives at a Maine lumber camp but doesn't like her prospective husband.