The Port of Missing Girls: A 1928 'Danger' Movie That's Kind of Messy

You should probably only watch this if you are really into late silent-era melodramas or if you have a weird fascination with how movies used to warn girls about the 'big city.' Most people will find it a bit slow, but it is a fascinating time capsule of 1928 paranoia.

It is definitely not for anyone who needs a fast-paced thriller. It lingers on things that do not really matter for way too long.

The movie starts with Ruth King, played by Barbara Bedford. She is rich, but her parents are basically invisible because they care more about their money than her.

She has this boyfriend, Buddie, who is a bootlegger. It is funny how the movie treats being a bootlegger as just a slight personality flaw rather than a major crime.

Ruth gets fed up and decides she wants to be a singer. She joins this 'school for stage and fancy dancing' run by a guy named DeLeon.

DeLeon has the most suspicious mustache I have ever seen on film. You know immediately he is up to no good the second he appears on screen.

The school is basically a trap. He wants the girls to live there so he can put them in 'compromising situations,' which is 1920s code for things the censors wouldn't let them say out loud.

There is a scene where the girls are practicing their dancing, and the camera just sort of hangs there. It feels like the director forgot to yell cut for a few seconds.

I noticed one of the extras in the background of the dance studio looks completely lost. They are just waving their arms around while everyone else is doing a specific routine. 🎥

The plot gets heavy when we find out DeLeon already drove another girl to suicide. That part is actually quite dark for a movie that looks this dusty.

Hedda Hopper is in this! Before she became the famous gossip columnist who everyone in Hollywood feared, she was actually a decent actress.

She plays Mrs. King, the mother. She does this thing with her pearls when she is nervous that feels like a real human habit.

Anyway, Buddie the bootlegger ends up being the one to find Ruth at the school hotel because he’s delivering booze there. Talk about a convenient plot twist.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of The Port of Missing Girls (1928) through its definitive frames.

The way the lawyer, Mr. King, gets involved feels a bit rushed. One minute he is talking about a client, the next he is basically a private eye.

It reminds me a bit of the moral weight found in The Law of Compensation, but with less polish. This film feels a lot more 'street level' and grimy, even when it is showing wealthy houses.

There is a weirdly long shot of a liquor delivery. It is just crates being moved. For like, way too long.

The climax involves a raid on the school. It is not exactly an action movie, so the 'action' is mostly people pointing and walking fast into rooms.

I liked the lighting in the hotel hallways though. It has that high-contrast silent film look where the shadows feel like they are swallowing the characters.

Ruth’s disillusionment with her life is the most relatable part. Even if the 'scary dance school' plot is dated, that feeling of wanting to run away from boring parents is pretty universal.

If you have seen Neat But Not Gaudy, you will recognize that specific 1920s obsession with 'reputation' and how easily it can be ruined.

The ending is very abrupt. They get her home, and it’s basically like, 'Okay, everything is fine now!'

I am not sure I buy that Ruth would just go back to her old life so easily after all that. But movies back then loved a clean wrap-up.

The titles are a bit flowery. Some of the dialogue cards use three sentences when one would have done the job just fine.

It is a strange little movie. It’s not a masterpiece, but it has these weirdly sharp moments of social observation hidden under the melodrama.

One more thing—the way they film the 'fancy dancing' is actually pretty impressive. The costumes have all these tassels that catch the light in a way that modern digital cameras probably couldn't replicate.

Is it better than Through the Valley of Shadows? Probably not. But it’s shorter, which is a plus when you are watching silents late at night.

It’s a rough watch if you aren't used to the style. But for those of us who like digging through the bargain bin of film history, it’s a decent find.