Silent Films Illustrated With Commentaries By:

About Harry Garson's "The Worldly Madonna" (1922)

Guest silent stars: Damen Greta de Goat & Herr Eric Grayson

Damen Greta de Goat wrote: "Gee, despite her fame, Damen Clara Kimball Young shows up so infrequently on this group. I've got a page of reviews on this film: http://www.stanford.edu/~gdegroat/CKY/reviews/wm.htm Unfortunately, i think this one is pretty bad--Herr Garson is not much of a director and there must be at least a couple of reels worth of film edited out aside from the obvious gap that is bridged with a title.. The more interesting character seems to have suffered the most in the editing and the gowns are most unflattering--and through the use of titles the ending is reversed! (Apparently the original ending was deemed offensive to Catholics). I must say, though, that Ben Carre did a remarkable job with the Cubist Cafe on what looks like a really tight budget. "

Herr Graf Ferdinand Von Galitzien replied: "In spite that this German Count has not seen many Damen Kimball films, this aristocrat thinks that as bad as film director Herr Garson is, the same happens with Damen Kimball as an actress: forced and exaggerated performances, old-fashioned ( such as those gowns... ) even for that time. "

Herr Eric Grayson added: "Clara Kimball Young! The only person ever to play a serial killer who used a glove outfitted with dog teeth to do in her victims!
Co-star of that riveting serial Return of Chandu, quite possibly a low point in the careers of everyone who appeared in it.
Oh, yeah, she did a couple of silents, too, like that Trilby thing I guess, but she was young and cute then and hadn't learned to shamelessly overact in B pictures yet."

Damen Greta de Goat reply to both replies: "Clara is a lot more fun when she's playing a bad girl than a good one (for instance, the Chandu and Rogue's Tavern examples you cite--and you must admit that her performance in Rogue's Tavern is entertaining!). She tries to have it both ways in The Worldly Madonna, but since the bad girl disappears once she goes into the convent, most of the interest goes with her. She's fun in Midchannel and Charge It where she has a chance to be bitchy. Actually, i think she handles Eyes of Youth pretty well, except for the drug addict role. I like it better than the Swanson remake. But we're really missing a lot of films that look like they would have been interesting, like My Official Wife, and most of all, Lola--one of my top "wanted" lost films. http://www.stanford.edu/~gdegroat/CKY/reviews/lola.htm "


Published in "alt.movies.silent".