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Recommendations
Senior Film Conservator
If you found yourself captivated by the cinematic excellence of Broke in China (1927), the profound questions raised in 1927 still require cinematic answers today. Experience the United States influence in these recommendations that echo Broke in China.
Broke in China remains a monumental achievement to provide a definitive example of Edward F. Cline's stylistic genius.
Donald Drake, a deep sea gondolier ex soda jerk, arrives at the All Nation Cafe in Shanghai. The proprietor believes he's a penniless ne'er-do-well - which he is - but he unexpectedly comes into a small windfall. So the proprietor orders slightly rough around the edges Maud and Mollie, two of his American good time girls working their way around the world, to get him to spend all his money while there. As Donald ends up telling the two good time girls his life story - most specifically about the blonde he let slip through his fingers, she who was the love of his life - a few revelations and the errant coin he left at the roulette wheel betting table change his life.
Based on the unique cinematic excellence of Broke in China, our vault has identified these titles as the most compelling follow-up experiences for fans of Short cinema:
Dir: Charley Chase
A young married couple volunteer to take charge of several orphans after the asylum has burned down. Of course they find their hands full with their troublesome charges.
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Dir: Henry Edwards
A millionaire bets £25,000 that he can earn his own living for six months.
Dir: Unknown Director
The Judge needs a present for his wife's birthday, so Harry suggests a new corset. They go to the shop, but he's so embarrassed to ask the saleslady he hides in a phone booth.Harry goes in, but finds a GUY wearing one, and runs out.They both dress as women to get back in, but Mrs. Rummy gets there and chases him out.
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Dir: Edward F. Cline
A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.
Dir: Edward F. Cline
It's all there - the deserted mother with her child in her arms, followed all around by a fiendish wicked snow storm, the heroine lashed to the rails by the scoundrelly villain, the young woman fastened to the buzz saw of a lumber mill and about to be reduced to mincemeat. And hist. The wicked villain with a mustache and cigarette - the noble hero and the persecuted heroine. There are two drunks sitting in one of the boxes of the theater, who get so excited that they insist upon helping out the action of the melodrama. In the middle of the play, the head scene shifter gets jealous of his wife, who is the leading woman of the show, and drags her from the stage. Nothing, if not resourceful, Ben rushes down into the audience and kidnaps a beautiful young woman to play the leading woman's role. Then comes a startling climax, when the snow storm is shut down by a queer accident. And an equally tragic catastrophe jazzes up the ocean when a storm and a submarine play at cross purposes.
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Dir: Edward F. Cline
A young couple who live next to each other in tenement apartments do everything they can to be together despite of their feuding families.
Dir: Edward F. Cline
A young golfer is mugged by an escaped convict and finds himself in a prison where he foils a jailbreak.
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Dir: Reggie Morris
A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.
Dir: Edward F. Cline
When a hotel orchestra leader starts to flirt with a girl in the audience, her fiancé is very displeased. Then the orchestra leader finds out that the hotel flower girl is really a rich heiress, and he shifts his attentions to her. Now the flower girl's boyfriend is unhappy, and soon there are even more complications.
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Dir: Edward F. Cline
Two inventive farmhands compete for the hand of the same girl.
View DetailsAnalysis relative to Broke in China
| Film Title | Atmosphere | Complexity | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kids Is Kids | Tense | Layered | 94% Match |
| The Amazing Quest of Mr. Ernest Bliss | Gritty | Linear | 86% Match |
| A Fitting Gift | Surreal | Layered | 96% Match |
| A Schoolhouse Scandal | Gothic | Layered | 85% Match |
| East Lynne with Variations | Tense | High | 92% Match |
This guide was algorithmically generated using the cinematic metadata of Edward F. Cline's archive. Last updated: 6/19/2026.
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