Film vs Film
Select two cult films to compare side by side.
The Supreme Temptation Synopsis
Herbert DuBois, a young medical student in Paris, falls in love with and marries Annette, a grisette. They do not get along well, however, and he later secures a separation from her. He returns to America to find his father greatly worried over impending financial ruin. The blow falls and DuBois Senior kills himself, leaving Herbert to care for his mother and sister Lydia. Some time later he falls in love with Florence, the daughter of the family lawyer, and his friend Milton is fascinated by Lydia. M. Picard, a French milliner, pays Herbert a visit and informs him of Annette's death; he and Florence are then married. A year later, Herbert has been promoted to the head of the medical college and he learns that he is soon to become a father. Annette has moved to America. While DuBois is preparing to perform an autopsy on a young woman who died suddenly, he discovers, to his horror, that it is Annette and she is not dead, but in a cataleptic trance, a disease to which her family was subject. Then the supreme temptation comes to him to kill her with a slight movement of his scalpel and thus remove forever the dark past, but his better nature conquers, and after calling the others' attention to the body, he goes out. Restoratives are quickly applied and Annette comes back to life. Then follows an agony of suspense for Herbert. Will she live and spoil his present happiness, or will she die? After what seems eternity, one of the doctors informs him that Annette has died, and rushing up to his wife's room, he is stopped by the nurse who tells him that a son has been born to them.
A Man's Law Synopsis
Ruth, a young orphan living with her foster father, Jim Vance, a rough mountaineer, who had no idea of life and how it should be lived. Jules La Clerc, also a mountaineer, of whom nature might be generous enough to say, "he was a man." Through a mysterious cry in the night Jules makes the acquaintance of Ruth. After caring for her through her great sorrow, Jules promises to take her to his friend Mackenzie, at the Du Bois Settlement, where her life will be a continuous ray of sunshine. She refuses, saying there is a shadow. At the Du Bois Settlement, the union of Jules and Ruth takes place. Six years elapse, and God has given them his greatest gift, a baby girl. Jim Vance, through his usual bad habits, is ordered out of La Croix Settlement. Now Jules and Mackenzie become partners, in order to enlarge the interests of the trading post. At midnight a sound is heard by Ruth at the cash drawer. As she goes to investigate, she finds it is Jim Vance, who tells her that if she squeals, he will betray her secret. The next morning Mackenzie makes the discovery and blames Jules for stealing the money. A struggle takes place, in which Ruth intercedes, saying that she saw a man leaving the scene of the theft. Jules disbelieves Ruth and goes in search of the man. At the village tavern, Jules finds his man, Jim Vance, and starts a chase. The darkness of the night causes Jules to lose his trail. The following morning Vance, lighting a cigarette, causes a fire in the woods, which puts Jules on his trail again. After a strenuous chase the men meet face to face. Jules, victorious, faces sunshine with his wife and child forever.
"The Supreme Temptation" holds a slight edge in general audience appreciation, but "A Man's Law" offers its own unique cult appeal.
Suggested Watch:
The Supreme Temptation