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Recommendations
Senior Film Conservator
The artistic legacy of George B. Seitz was forever changed by The Man Who Stole the Moon, the thematic layers of this 1921 classic invite a wider exploration of the genre. This list serves as a bridge to other Drama experiences that are just as potent.
The vintage appeal of The Man Who Stole the Moon to reinvent the tropes of Drama cinema for a global audience.
George Rockwell is young and adventurous. He meets June, a beautiful young girl on the road and decides she will be his wife. But Professor Elliott, June's father, has him thrown out the door. George does not give up and saves the Professor from his cousin Murdock, who was trying to kill him. On the day of their engagement, George and June are abducted on a plane which takes them to Tibet. Dr. Santro, Murdoch's accomplice is the culprit. He and his wife Tharen leave the two in the hands of angry Tibetans. The two lovers are locked into a box with only a tiny hole in it through which they can see some food that is out of their reach. As if that wasn't enough suffering, one of the abductor decides to shoot them through the box. George miraculously opens the box with a rock he had picked up before. As he tries to capture two horses, June is taken away in the desert by a Tibetan. George follows the traces left by his horse and rescues June in time. They fly back to Professor Elliott's. He is perfecting an invention: a fire ray which Murdock and Santro try to steal, thus setting a fire in the country. After several attacks, the Professor wants to send his daughter safely to New York with George. But Murdock follows them. George protects the building where they are staying but oversees the rooftop, where Santro attacks with a plane. Santro, Murdock et Tharen steal the Professor's plans, fly back to his lab, and destroy his invention. George and a police inspector Tinguett launch a search for the plane. As they find it, they surprise Santro and Murdock having a fight during which Santro pushes Murdock into a tank. When he realizes George and the police are on his tracks, he takes the plans and escapes on his plane. June catches the plane in time, grabs the plans and throws them out the window. Santro takes her to her father's lab but she is once again rescued by George. Santro is arrested but as his wife Tharen appears, he requests to have a talk with her and uses the opportunity to disappear. George and June, aroused by curiosity, board his plane but Santro who was hiding in it, starts the engine. June accidentally triggers a torpedo stuck under the wings. George manages to untie it before it explodes. George and June fall from the plane onto a plantation of trees. Santro disappears in his plane. George and June soon recover from the fall. Upon his return at the lab, George is surprised to find Murdock there who says he is a reformed man. One month after that, Murdock and Elliott have rebuilt the device and the professor invites other scientist for a few experiments. That night June and George announce their marriage. But Santro tries to launch rockets on the lab. Murdock activates the fire ray on the plane which bursts into flames.
Based on the unique nuanced performance of The Man Who Stole the Moon, our vault has identified these titles as the most compelling follow-up experiences for fans of Drama cinema:
Dir: Wilfred Lucas
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.
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Dir: Alexander Butler
In Alberta, Canada, a Cornish emigrant unmasks a rustler posing as the girl's "blind" father.
Dir: George B. Seitz
Episode 1: "The Lost Torpedo" Craig Kennedy's marvelous invention, a super-force torpedo to revolutionize warfare, has been stolen. Kennedy himself has disappeared, although Elaine has a note from him begging her not to grieve whatever happens, for he is safe. And then, one night, on a barren strip of land jutting out into the Atlantic, a fisherman, concealed behind a rock, sees the periscope of a submarine rise; sees a man's head and shoulders rise seemingly out of the sea, and sees a pair of athletic arms strike out bravely for the shore. That night, at a hotel in New York, a distinguished-looking foreigner, much resembling the man who seemed to rise up out of the sea, is shadowed by a fussy old gentleman resembling the fisherman of the coast scenes. The foreigner goes out and the fussy old gentleman goes to his room, where, after a short, sharp struggle with a valet, he searches through all drawers and papers. One paper he pockets with glee, and then departs. Elaine and Jameson are visited by the distinguished-looking foreigner who tells them he is a secret service agent from Washington, and begs to get information with regard to Kennedy and the lost torpedo. Elaine's dog, digging with its forepaws in a pot of palms, unearths the lost torpedo and carries it to the attic, where he drops it behind a trunk. The torpedo's propeller, however, has been left in the palm-pot. where Marcius Del Mar, the foreigner, finds it. Elaine is suspected by him of having concealed the torpedo. The fussy old gentleman, in Del Mar's tracks since he left his rooms, is an interested spectator. He is unaware that Del Mar has spies guarding the house, and is set upon by them. Rushing madly into the conservatory, he faces Del Mar. Both draw their guns, but the fussy old gentleman fires first. His gun is loaded with bullets containing an overpowering gas. Both Del Mar and Elaine fall suffocated to the floor. How the fussy old gentleman escapes is a fitting climax to this episode.
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Dir: Robert N. Bradbury
A simple country girl, brutally mistreated by her stepfather, awakens first the sympathy, then the love, of The Boy. The Spider, who lusts after The Girl, makes a bargain with the stepfather and takes her to the city where, kept prisoner, she is soon broken in health and spirit. Cast out and near death, she is taken in by The Boy. Following the demise of The Spider, The Boy takes her to church, where he prays, and after many hours she is restored to health.
Dir: George B. Seitz
Our hero's fiancée, who has broken off their engagement, agrees to make a trip around the world, starting absolutely naked, without money or help of any sort from others in order to prove his worth to her.
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Dir: George B. Seitz
A beautiful young woman is a daring master thief. She meets the young millionaire Thomas Babbington Norton, while fleeing from the scene of her latest theft.
Dir: Dallas M. Fitzgerald
Confidence artist Flossie Golden attempts to fleece foolish but wealthy James Venable with a breach-of-promise suit. Venable's shrewd attorney, Richard Harding, outwits Flossie by proposing that she marry Venable and live on an allowance of $3,000 per year. Flossie is determined to get even with Harding for ruining her plans. In an attempt to con him, she poses as Innocence Page, but falls in love and marries him instead. Larry, Flossie's former accomplice, endeavors to blackmail her with her errant past, but Harding is already cognizant of the facts and Larry fails.
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Dir: Frank Beal
During a raging Montana snowstorm, Doctor Jim Barnes collapses at Esther Anderson's cabin door. Esther offers Jim refuge, but when he discovers that their food supplies are running dangerously low, he braves the journey into town in order to replenish them. On the way, he is overcome with exhaustion and fails to return. Esther, unaware of Jim's condition and abused by her stepfather, joins a theatrical troop and leaves home. Time passes and Jim finally finds Esther, but a vindictive member of her troupe accuses her of having an affair with the manager and Jim believes the accusation. He leaves and Esther goes to New York City where she becomes engaged to a jealous artist, although she still loves Jim. Sam Tuttle, a long time friend, is aware of Esther's continuing love, and so brings Jim to New York City in time to save Esther from an unhappy marriage.
Dir: Edgar Jones
A mail-order bride arrives at a Maine lumber camp but doesn't like her prospective husband.
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Dir: William Parke
Bruce Wendell, the son of West Virginia coal mine owner James Wendell, graduates from West Point and prepares to lead a fighting unit to the front during World War I. As his father lies dying, however, he convinces Bruce to remain at home and guard the mine. Bruce's fiancée Ann Blair assumes that he is a coward and breaks off their engagement, but her brother Bobbie remains Bruce's loyal friend. Meyer, a German agent, persuades railroad president Parrish to refuse to transport Wendell's coal, but when Bruce adamantly refuses to close the mine, the spy's men decide to blow it up. While Ann is being abducted by Meyer, Bobbie is buried in an explosion at the mine. Bruce rescues Bobbie and then sends a plea to Lieutenant Parrish to rescue Ann. Meyer and his gang are captured and Ann renews her vow of love to Bruce.
View DetailsAnalysis relative to The Man Who Stole the Moon
| Film Title | Atmosphere | Complexity | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Jackeroo of Coolabong | Ethereal | High | 85% Match |
| The Night Riders | Ethereal | High | 96% Match |
| The Romance of Elaine | Surreal | Abstract | 96% Match |
| Into the Light | Gothic | Abstract | 89% Match |
| Bound and Gagged | Gothic | High | 96% Match |
This guide was algorithmically generated using the cinematic metadata of George B. Seitz's archive. Last updated: 6/10/2026.
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