Cinematic Discoveries Resonating with the Themes of The Road Through the Dark: Cult Guide

Dir: Edmund Mortimer

Jimmy Valentine, a prisoner in Sing Sing for safe-cracking, although guilty, maintains his innocence. When he obtains a pardon, he goes straight, influenced by a beautiful girl named Rose.

Dir: Edmund Mortimer

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

Finding herself accused of a murder she didn't commit, Alice Carroll flees to Tangier, Morocco. District Attorney Henry Holcombe, meanwhile, has discovered that she is actually innocent and sets out to search for her. He finds her in Tanger, but she is under the influence of the shady Wilhelm von Linke, who owns a seedy gambling den. Complications ensue.

Dir: Edmund Mortimer

Paul Bonard an artist, loses his memory when he receives a blow on the head from one of two apaches fighting over Wildcat, a sultry stepper in a cafe. He becomes an apache himself, falls in love with Wildcat and paints her portrait--his masterpiece. Wildcat learns Paul's identity and restores him to his family, though realizing that she will lose him. Surgery restores Paul's memory, but some subconscious force guides him back to the cafe and Wildcat's love.

Dir: Edmund Mortimer

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of A Man's Mate perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

"In the days of the California Gold Rush of '49, Sandy is at odds with his partner, Falloner, over the latter's heavy drinking. Falloner is killed by Lasham, who many years before ran off with Falloner's wife. Sandy brings Falloner's children, Cissy and Jimmy, and their Aunt Betsey to Sacramento from Missouri. He then sets out to find the mother and to avenge his partner's death. Lasham induces Betsey to take the night boat for Sandy Bar with him, under the pretense of finding the children's mother. Sandy rides after them and swims to the steamer, arriving in time to save a frightened Betsey from Lasham. In a fight, Lasham is knocked overboard and drowns. The mother, who under the name Madame Le Blanc has been living with Lasham, helping him with his gambling and other nefarious schemes, becomes a novice in a convent. Sandy and Betsey are wed"--AFI catalog, 1921-1930.

Dir: Edmund Mortimer

Renee wanders Africa. Explorer Jean mistakes her for Queen of Sheba, taking her to Paris to make his ex jealous. Renee goes back to Africa, Jean follows. She reveals herself as Menelek's Prince, reuniting them after bowing to Jean.

Dir: Edmund Mortimer

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

Jean Lawrence (Marian Nixon), unsuccessful as a musical comedy actress, is near starvation when she is rescued by Nan Norton (Trilby Clark), a gangland sweetheart, in a restaurant off Broadway. Jean becomes involved with a counterfeit ring, then falls in love with Stephen Moore (John Gilbert), millionaire and amateur detective disguised as a counterfeiter. Moore rounds up the gang, removes his disguise, and marries Jean.

Dir: Edmund Mortimer

The youngest son of a noble English family turns into a wolf man whenever he partakes in alcohol.

Dir: Edmund Mortimer

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

John Hemingway, while in Paris studying architecture, falls in love with Inez de Pierrefond, an author who believes in marriage free of state and church laws. He brings her to his home in Iowa, where she is scorned by the villagers until she threatens to reveal their own hypocrisy. Ultimately her faith in marriage is restored.

Dir: Edmund Mortimer

After manicurist Katie Malloy rehabilitates Peter Crandall from his life of drinking and gambling, Peter falls in love with her and they marry. When he is dispatched home to New York after he suffers a gunshot wound at the hands of one of Katie's disappointed suitors, Peter's wealthy family hopes to annul the marriage. Katie follows her husband East where her sincerity wins the sympathy of her brother-in-law, Henry Gilsey, who arranges for Katie's social education while Peter is attending to business in the South. Meanwhile, when Katie discovers that Henry's wife Edith is carrying on an affair with another man, she sacrifices her own reputation and happiness to save Edith from the wrath of her husband. However, Peter sees through the deception, and his family, finally recognizing Katie's noble character, welcomes her as a new member.

Dir: Edmund Mortimer

The four grown children of prominent Judge Appleton each spend one hour of meditation at his funeral to honor his last request, which allows them to see their lives unfold before them. None of them achieved his high moral standards in their lives prior to his death, and their meditation allows them realize the importance of following their father's high moral tenets.