Film vs Film
Select two cult films to compare side by side.
The Silent Command Synopsis
Benedict Hisston is a foreign agent, part of a conspiracy to destroy the Panama Canal and the US Navy's Atlantic Fleet. He attempts to acquire information about mine placement in the Canal Zone from Captain Richard Decatur but fails. That information is essential to the conspiracy's success and so he then hires vamp Peg Williams to obtain the intelligence through seduction. Decatur is not fooled and obeys the "silent command" of the Chief of Naval Intelligence to play along with the spies without revealing his purpose to friends or family. He is court-martialed, stripped of rank, and dismissed from the Navy after he strikes an admiral. His association with Williams estranges him from his wife but earns him the trust of Hisston and the other spies. When the conspirators are ready to enact their plan, he travels to Panama with them. He thwarts their attempt at sabotage, saving the canal and the fleet. He is then reinstated into the Navy, reunited with his wife, and honored by the nation for his heroism
The Rose of Blood Synopsis
After the death of Princess Arbassoff, Lisza Tapenko, a governess in the household of Prince Arbassoff, fills her place in everything but name. When the prince refuses to marry her because of the difference in their social positions, Lisza's former lover, Vassya, urges her to join the cause of the revolution. Smarting under the prince's refusal, she does so and leaves for Switzerland, the headquarters of the revolutionaries. The prince eventually yields to his son's pleas for Lisza's return and agrees to make her his wife. As Princess Arbassoff, Lisza still continues her activities with the revolutionaries, assassinating government officials and leaving a red rose on each of her victims. Torn between her love for the prince and her love of Russia when the revolutionaries order her to slay her husband, Lisza's devotion to the cause triumphs and she dynamites her house, meeting her death along with the prince's.
"The Silent Command" holds a slight edge in general audience appreciation, but "The Rose of Blood" offers its own unique cult appeal.
Suggested Watch:
The Silent Command