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Cult Review
Senior Film Conservator
If you have a spare hour and you really like old silent films where people look very intense while doing basic things, you might like this.
It’s not a masterpiece. But it’s got that weird charm that only 1920s movies have.
Jim Kenney is the main guy. He's a sailor and a boxing champion, which is a pretty cool combo for a movie lead back then.
He meets Betty, who is a village librarian. That sounds like the most peaceful job in the world, doesn't it?
Jim promises to write to her from every port. I wonder if he actually did, or if he just sent a couple of postcards and gave up.
Then he meets Claire. She’s rich, she’s a heiress, and she knows Betty.
The whole plot is basically Jim trying to figure out if he wants the quiet life or the fancy city life. 🏙️
The boxing scenes are actually not bad. You can tell they really put some effort into making the fights look real, even if the camera stays a bit too far away sometimes.
There is a moment where Jim is looking at a photo of Betty and he looks so guilty. It’s one of those silent movie faces that tells you everything without a single word.
It reminded me a bit of the vibe in The Silent Partner, but maybe a bit more athletic.
The rich girl, Claire, wears some incredible hats. Seriously, one of them looks like a small bird is nesting on her head.
I found myself getting a bit bored in the middle when they just talk about feelings through title cards. It’s much better when Jim is actually in the ring.
It doesn't have the weirdness of something like Alraune und der Golem. It's much more grounded, for better or worse.
Douglas Gilmore plays Jim with this sort of stiff energy. He’s like a board of wood that’s very good at punching people.
The librarian, played by Dorothy Sebastian, is mostly there to look sad and wait. I felt bad for her, honestly.
There’s a scene in a gym that feels very authentic. You can almost smell the old leather and sweat through the screen.
If you’ve seen Beau Geste, you know how these 1920s heroes are supposed to act. Jim tries his best to be honorable, but he’s pretty bad at it for a while.
One thing that annoyed me was the pacing. Some shots of people just walking into rooms last about ten seconds too long.
I think the director really liked his sets. He wanted to make sure you saw every single chair in the room.
It's a bit like The Turn of a Card in how it handles social class. The rich people always seem a bit too perfect and the poor people are all very earnest.
Is it worth a watch today? Only if you’re a completionist for silent drama.
It’s a fine way to spend an afternoon if you have nothing else to do. 🥊
I liked the ending, even if it was totally predictable. Sometimes you just want the guy to do the right thing, you know?
The print I saw was a bit grainy, but it added to the mood. It felt like watching a ghost story that wasn't actually scary.
IMDb —
1923
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