Must-Watch List in the Vein of Shirvanskaias danashauli: Cult Guide

Dir: Robert N. Bradbury

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: J. Gordon Edwards

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

William Farnum is Drag Harlan, a tough cowboy vigilante. After learning about a gold mine from a dying man, he seeks his daughter (Jackie Saunders) as well as the gold. He falls in love with her, but the same gang that shot the old man is after the gold.

Dir: Maurice Elvey

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

Dir: William F. Adler

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

A travelogue/documentary including explorations of the fauna and people of Siam, New Guinea, and Java, with interpolations of an apparently fictitious encounter between the filmmakers and cannibalistic natives of Frederick Henry Island in the South Pacific.

Dir: Colin Campbell

Although separated at birth, Siamese twins Fabien and Louis de Franchi remain united emotionally. One day, Parisian Emilie de Lesparre arrives in their Corsican village with her father, and both brothers fall in love with her. Louis goes to Paris to study law and sees Emilie often, but Emilie loves Fabien who has remained in Corsica with their mother. While attending a dinner given by another admirer of Emilie's, M. Chateau Renaud, Louis is drawn into a duel with Renaud and killed. Back home, Fabien senses what has happened and journeys to Paris to avenge his brother's death. After he kills Renaud in a duel, Emilie finally confesses her love to Fabien.

Dir: J. Gordon Edwards

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

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: Charles Swickard

A young Egyptian goes to the rescue of his employers, a wealthy European family, when they are menaced by a local strongman and his gang.

Dir: Victor Heerman

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

In the gold fields of the Canadian Northwest, a man is falsely accused of a crime and determines that a lookalike is responsible.

Dir: Joseph A. Golden

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: George Beranger

Writer Frank Theydon goes undercover to research the criminal activity in New York City's Chinatown.