Editor's Top Picks Sharing the Atmosphere of Joymati: Cult Guide

Dir: André Antoine

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Maurice Elvey

A Royalist and his unknown son seek vengeance on his murdered wife's brothers.

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

Dir: Wallace Worsley

An orphan boy from the Kentucky hills joins the Union Army and rescues his adopted family from Morgan's raiders. He learns his real identity when he returns after the war.

Dir: Franklin B. Coates

Shows James' joining of the Quantrill's raiders, a guerrilla force which fought against union sympathizers during the Civil War. James takes allegiance to the Black Flag, the raiders' banner. After the war he receives kind treatment from a judge concerning his acts of crime and later meets and falls in love with Zee, with whom he wishes to live a peaceful life.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: J. Gordon Edwards

Don Caesar de Bazan, a reckless nobleman, falls for Maritana, a gypsy dancing girl. When Maritana is insulted by a drunk, Don Caesar wins her love by coming to her rescue. The two go to Madrid, where the girl is summoned to dance before the Queen. Maritana also attracts the attention of King Charles. Don Jose, the prime minister, who secretly loves the Queen, plots to get Maritana for the King. To do this, he schemes to have Maritana marry a nobleman so she can enter the King's court. Don Jose chooses Don Caesar, who has been imprisoned and sentenced to death for dueling during Holy Week. Don Caesar agrees to marry the woman selected by Don Jose. After the ceremony, his wife believes he has been pardoned, but Don Caesar is sent to a firing squad. He is saved by a youth who has removed the bullets from the rifles. Eventually, Don Caesar wins the King's approval, and he is made prime minister.

Dir: Franklin B. Coates

Depicts Jesse James' return home to Missouri after the Civil War hoping to live a life of peace, but is falsely accused of robbing a bank. He is forced to take up a life of crime by being branded an outlaw. Crimes are commited and blamed on him, his family is maimed by the Pinkerton Detective Agency, but all the while James is able to perform charitable acts to citizens. James is finally assasinated by Bob Ford. All told in a flashback style by Jesse James Jr. to a eastern baeu asking for his daughters' hand in marrage.

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Jesse James Under the Black Flag perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Dir: Unknown Director

A public procession with the body of the Unknown Soldier, as registered by the operators of the Italian Film Federation and the Cinema Phototechnical Union. A symbolic tribute on the fallen Italian soldiers killed during World WWI who were buried without identification or in unknown places.

Dir: John W. Brunius

Historical drama which features Gösta Ekman as the dashing rogue who steals the heart of the ethereal Mary Johnson.

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

Dir: Hanns Kobe

John, a young man raised by his aunt, is in love with Anna, a servant girl who is going to have his baby. He is willing to marry her but his stern aunt wants him to marry a rich girl. To separate the lovers, she arranges for her nephew to be enrolled at a university in a distant town. She then has Anna sent away to live with Torgus the coffinmaker and his mother where she will be secluded until the birth of the child. Torgus, a golemesque sort of fellow, is immediately charmed by the beautiful girl and takes pity on her. Meanwhile, Anna anxiously awaits John's return . . .

Dir: Rolf Raffé

Short, silent movie only about half a minutes long about the last moment of Empress Elisabeth of Austria (1837 - 1898). It was the first film about Elisabeth, directed by her niece Marie Larisch.