:
Mary Pickford,
Evelyn Dumo,
Fred C. Thompson,
more...
:
Frances Marion
see all cast/crew...
: Not Rated
: Image Entertainment/Milestone Film & Video
: Drama, Romance, Classic Romance, Silent, Silent Dramas, War, Silent Drama
: 89 min.
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Recently Rented By Ptaines
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A visually stunning if somewhat overblown melodrama, The Love Light was directed by Mary Pickford's close friend and confidante, screenwriter Frances Marion. Pickford is Angela, a young Italian lighthouse keeper who can only watch while both her brothers (Jean De Briac and Eddie Phillips) and a village admirer, Giovanni (Raymond Bloomer), go off to war with Germany. While mourning the news of the older brother's death, Angela rescues a stranger who has washed up on the beach. Dressed in an unfamiliar sailor's uniform, the boy (Fred Thomson) introduces himself as Joseph, an American whose ship had left him behind. Fearing that he may be mistaken for a deserter, Angela agrees to harbor the young man and they quickly fall in love, Angela sending her secret husband signs of love every night from the lighthouse. When Angela discovers that Joseph is a German spy, and that the nightly messages of love may have caused the drowning death of her returning younger brother, she gives him up to the angry villagers. Grieving over her dead brothers and the treachery of the man she loved, Angela finds comfort only in her newborn baby. But Maria (Evelyn Dumo), who has lost both her husband Pietro (Albert Prisco) and their newborn son, convinces the local nuns to hand over Angela's child to her. When Angela realizes what has happened, Maria flees in a boat operated by Tony (George Regas). In the ensuing storm, Angela's baby almost drowns but the little girl is saved in the nick of time by her mother's "love light." Reunited with a blinded Giovanni, Angela and her baby have finally found a safe harbor. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
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| Has its moments but flawed, misjudged
by Gwenhwyvar
September 25, 2006 - 7:33 PM PDT
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2 out of 2 members found this review helpful
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When this film was released in 1921, Mary Pickford was at the height of her popularity with world audiences. She was brilliant at choosing scripts and roles that would please her fans while managing to slide a few more artistic roles into the mix. Mary Pickford means quality silent films and this is why I was so disappointed by "The Love Light".
Mary plays Angela, a naive but plucky young woman who lives by the Italian seaside. Her brothers and suitor are called away to fight in the Great War and she is left alone as keeper of the light house. Love comes enexpectedly when a young man washes up on the shore. He is Joseph, an American soldier who is AWOL. Angela hides him, falls in love with him and marries him. Then she discovers the truth. Joseph is a German spy and the "love signals" she has been sending him from the lighthouse were in fact signals to German U-Boats.
There are several problems with this film. First, Fred Thomson as Joseph simply does not make a convincing villain. He was by all accounts a very nice man and that niceness comes through loud and clear on the screen. Also, he and Mary show so much chemistry that rather than being a clever plot twist, his betrayal comes across as forced and jarring.
Second, Raymond Bloomer as Angela's suitor, Giovanni, is not in the story enough at the beginning for us to be interested in him by the end. In fact, most of the villagers are walking cliches.
This is one of only a handful of films directed by Mary Pickford's close friend (and Fred Thomson's real life wife) Frances Marion. Ironically, there are more problems with the script (which Marion wrote) than with her direction. The story seems to run out of steam 20 minutes before the end and another plotline- seemingly from another movie- is brought in to pad the time. Marion's direction is surprisingly good. She was a little enamoured of silhouetted figures and animal antics but she had a good eye and her shots show good composition.
Interestingly, the film seems to have borrowed heavily from the 1917 Pickord/DeMille collaboration "The Little American" Like "The Love Light", Mary's character (also named Angela) falls in love with a emotionally conflicted German soldier. While certainly propaganda and rather melodramatic to boot, "The Little American" is a much better film and I encourage anyone who sees "The Love Light" to find "The Little American" and compare. Jack Holt, as Mary's German lover, does a very good job as a man torn between love and patriotism.
I would describe "The Love Light" as a historical curiosity, interesting for who worked on it but not an amazing film in itself. It was anachronistic when it came out- no one wanted to be reminded of the War in the early 20s and war films did not do well unless the had something extra, like Valentino's tango, to bring in the box office. War films only revived later in the decade.
The scenery is pretty in "The Love Light", Mary is a delight and the whole DVD is well-presented but there are many other Pickford films that are much more enjoyable. |
| Mary, oh Mary!
by JGiacobbe
June 24, 2005 - 10:56 AM PDT
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1 out of 2 members found this review helpful
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| This is a delightful movie come down from the silent era. It starts Mary Pickford, and truthfully she is the only reason to see the movie. I?m sure there were other actors in it, but I didn?t notice them. The screen lights up when she is on camera, and seems to fade when she isn?t. I won?t do a comprehensive review now, but I can say that if you like Mary Pickford, rent this video! If you don?t know who she is, you should check this one out to see one of silent cinemas greatest stars. America?s Sweetheart, founder of United Artists, and actually a really hot tamale! |
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GreenCine Member Rating
(Average 6.22)
9 Votes
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