Essential Cult Cinema Drawn from the Same DNA as Caste: Cult Guide

Dir: Laurence Trimble

Sadie Sullivan leaves Ireland to live with her married sister in New York. Troubled by her worthless brother-in-law, discouraged with her low-paying five-and-dime-store job, Sadie reads a story about a chorus girl who married a millionaire, she decides to join a musical-comedy company. Having befriended mission clergyman Reverend John Page, Sadie reads a Bible backstage and is surprised at the other girls' loose morals. Her "saintly" reputation among the others inspires press agent Jack Mills, looking for a new angle, to devise a routine built around Sadie, now billed as "The Saintly Show Girl." After millionaire Dick Carrington switches his attentions from leading lady Dollie Delmar to Sadie, their subsequent engagement arouses Dollie to attempt to tarnish Sadie's image. Dollie sends Sadie a letter, supposedly from a friend, to meet her at a roadhouse that Dollie knows will be raided, but after Reverend Page explains Sadie's presence there satisfactorily to the police and Dick, Dick marries her.

Dir: Laurence Trimble

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Far from the Madding Crowd perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

A girl farmer weds a faithless sergeant who is killed by her suitor, and realises she loves the bailiff.

Dir: Laurence Trimble

Joe Holland, the superintendent of a gold mine, saves his invalid friend, Weadon Scott, from a pack of wolves. Frank Wilde, an executive engaged to Holland's daughter, Mollie, buys White Fang, a man-eating dog, from an Indian and matches him with a bulldog in a pit fight. Scott rescues the dog and tames him. After Mollie Holland marries Wilde, she discovers that he is robbing the mine. Mollie tells Scott of Wilde's perfidy, but Wilde escapes, blackjacking Scott and killing Holland. Orphaned, Mollie goes to the home of Judson Black, the owner of the mine. Wilde attempts to spirit her away and is killed by White Fang. Scott and Mollie eventually find happiness together.

Dir: Laurence Trimble

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

A rich man pretends his injured son's marriage is illegal and makes his wife marry a drunken wastrel.

Dir: Laurence Trimble

When Flash's master, Clark Moran, goes out of town on business, Flash, who is part wolf, is falsely accused of sheepicide and sentenced to death by local ranchers. Escaping into the mountains, Flash finds a mate but has to leave his new companion to rescue his master's love, Betty, who has been kidnapped by the real sheep killer, Luther Nash.

Dir: Laurence Trimble

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

A doctor cures his wife of brain fever after she stabs her film star lover.

Dir: Laurence Trimble

A crook tries to make a thief of a boss's son and ties a flower girl to the lock gates of a canal.

Dir: Laurence Trimble

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

A selfish actress weds her cousin's lover and dies saving her jewels from a fire.

Dir: Laurence Trimble

David gets into a fight with the owner of Strongheart, a German Shepherd. Believing the has accidentally killed the man, David takes Strongheart and flees to northern Canada. He arrives at a small settlement and gets a job with the local trading post, and falls in love with Sally, the owner's daughter. When it comes time for Strongheart to find a mate he leaves the settlement, and soon returns with "The Fawn". However, during the time he was gone David has come down with pneumonia and is deathly ill. Complications ensue.

Dir: Laurence Trimble

Dr. Laurel Carlisle marries wealthy Clinton Durand so she will have the money to finance her important experiments in bacteriology in order to find a cure for anthrax--even though she doesn't love Durand and is actually in love with her colleague Dr. Leslie. Durand turns out to be a violent brute who mistreats Laurel and her son Donald. Matters come to a head when Donald dies of pneumonia while on a trip with Durand, and Laurel blames him for it. Complications ensue.