A Perfect Crime (film)

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A Perfect Crime
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Directed by Allan Dwan
Screenplay byAllan Dwan
Story by Carl Clausen
Based on"The Perfect Crime", short story in The Saturday Evening Post
Produced byAllan Dwan
Mack Sennett
Starring Monte Blue
Jacqueline Logan
Stanton Heck
Hardee Kirkland
Carole Lombard
Cinematography H. Lyman Broening
Production
company
Allan Dwan Productions
Distributed by Associated Producers
Release date
  • March 5, 1921 (1921-03-05)(U.S.)
Running time
5 reels
CountryUnited States
Language Silent (English intertitles)

A Perfect Crime is a 1921 American silent comedy-drama film directed by Allan Dwan and starring Monte Blue, Jacqueline Logan, Stanton Heck, Hardee Kirkland, and Carole Lombard. It was Logan and Lombard's feature film debut. Lombard was credited as Jane Peters at the time. [1] It is not known whether the film survives, which suggests it may be lost. [2] [3]

Contents

Based on a short story published in The Saturday Evening Post on September 25, 1920, by Carl Clausen, the movie concerns the life of bank messenger Wally Griggs and his wastly different alter ego James Brown. [4]

Plot

A mild-mannered bank messenger named Wally Griggs lives a double life as James Brown, a wild and rakish adventurer. He catches the eye of bank president Halliday, curious about his exploits, and of his coworker and only friend Mary, who is romantically interested in him.

Mary lost her fortune after trusting a swindler named "Big Bill" Thaine, who is now a district attorney determined to marry her despite her reluctance. Wally decides to steal money from the bank, leading to his arrest by Thaine. He sues for false imprisonment and in the process manages to win back Mary's money. He then returns the stolen bank bonds while faking amnesia. [note 1]

A publisher, intrigued by Wally's tales about his life as James Brown, offers him a book deal. Making enough money to support himself as an author, Wally quits his job and marries Mary.

Cast

Reception

The movie was positively received in the press. [5] [6]

Notes

  1. In some sources, Wally is said to suffer from aphasia. However, he is able to explain what happened to him, while the main symptom of aphasia is an inability to comprehend or formulate language. Instead, he alleges memory issues indicative of amnesia, which is how his condition is interpreted in other sources.

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References

  1. Gehring 2003, p. 28.
  2. "Silent Era : Progressive Silent Film List". www.silentera.com. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
  3. "A Perfect Crime / Allan Dwan [motion picture]". Library of Congress . January 5, 2017. Archived from the original on March 21, 2023.
  4. "A Perfect Crime (1921)". AFI Catalog of Feature Films . Retrieved November 14, 2024.
  5. Saltzman, Joe. "The Image of the Journalist in Silent Films, 1890 to 1929" (PDF). Appendix 13 (Part Two: 1920 to 1929): 360–367.
  6. "Database | Lingnan Digital Research Collections - A Perfect Crime (1921)". digital.library.ln.edu.hk. Retrieved November 15, 2024.

Bibliography