Film vs Film
Select two cult films to compare side by side.
A Circus Romance Synopsis
Circus dancer Babette learns from Zaidee, her fortune-teller mother, that her father is the respected businessman Ezra Butterworth, who had deserted Zaidee years before and then remarried. After Zaidee dies, Babette goes to live with Ezra, but he is so fearful that his second wife, as well as the townspeople, will learn of his less-than-upright past that he takes her in as his ward and forbids her to mention their real relationship. Still, gossip begins, and Ezra is forced to tell the whole story to his wife, who forgives him. Disgusted by the intolerant townspeople, Babette returns to the circus, as well as to her sweetheart Petey. In the end, Ezra publicly acknowledges her as his daughter and presents Babette and Petey with a farm as a wedding present.
A Daughter of the Sea Synopsis
Margot, the motherless daughter of a New England fisherman, reads society magazines and dreams of a better life. She falls in love with a photograph of Jack Rutledge, a wealthy heir residing on the other side of the cove. For rescuing her from a burning launch, Jack's mother takes in Margot, a situation that provokes the jealousy of Jack's sister Adele. Enamored of the guileless Margot, Jack proposes marriage, but Mrs. Rutledge intervenes, forcing her son to court a woman of equal social standing. Dejected, Margot begs to go home, but her father insists that because her mother was of high birth, she is worthy of Jack's attentions. Margot learns of Adele's affair with a married man, Alexander Gibson, and warns her against continuing the romance. Believing Margot to be interested in Gibson herself, Adele flies into a jealous rage, and the lover is accidentally shot in the struggle. Margot is accused of the murder and nobly accepts the guilty verdict, but Adele finally vindicates her and she is able to marry Jack.
"A Circus Romance" holds a slight edge in general audience appreciation, but "A Daughter of the Sea" offers its own unique cult appeal.
Suggested Watch:
A Circus Romance