Blackie's Redemption | |
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Directed by | John Ince |
Written by | Finis Fox |
Based on | the novel, Boston Blackie by Jack Boyle |
Produced by | Maxwell Karger |
Starring | Bert Lytell Alice Lake Henry Kolker |
Cinematography | Robert B. Kurrle |
Production company | |
Release date |
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Running time | 5 reels |
Country | United States |
Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
Blackie's Redemption, also known by its working title Powers That Pray, is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by John Ince. It stars Bert Lytell, Alice Lake, and Henry Kolker, and was released on April 14, 1919.
Boston Blackie is a notorious thief who has a reputation of such ability that he can never get caught. However, he has vowed to give up his life of crime so that he can marry Mary Dawson. The night before his wedding he plans a dinner with his soon to be former associates. One of those associates, Fred the Count, has just robbed a safe. When the police arrive, Fred places a piece of jewelry from the safe into Blackie's pocket to throw suspicion away from himself. The plan works and Blackie is arrested and sent to prison.
During Blackie's first year behind bars, Fred makes a play for Mary, but she rebuffs him. Meanwhile, Blackie develops a plan for breaking out of prison. Realizing that escape will be easier to accomplish from the prison's infirmary, he makes himself through a combination of imbibing small amounts of lye, and reducing his food intake to only bread crusts. He is successful and is sent to the infirmary. While he is there he manages to escape during a violent storm, and makes his way to a hideout near a lumber camp. Unfortunately, the prison warden tracks Blackie to the cabin, but Blackie gets the drop on him. However, Blackie cannot bring himself to harm a defenseless man, so lets the warden go. As a result, the warden realizes that Blackie is a changed man, and allows Blackie to go through with his escape.
Blackie has one last task to accomplish, getting back at Fred the Count. He learns of Fred's plans to rob the safe of the nearby lumber company. He alerts the authorities, and Fred is arrested and sent to prison. Blackie and Mary marry, and sail off to Hawaii.
Blackie's Redemption is based on two Boston Blackie stories by Jack Boyle, "Boston Blackie's Mary" and "Fred, the Count". [2] In March, Bert Lytell was tagged to star in the as yet unnamed film. [3] He had originated the screen role of Boston Blackie earlier in 1919 in the film Boston Blackie's Little Pal . [2] The working title of the play was Powers That Pray. [4] Many of the interior scenes were shot at San Quentin. [5] By early April the film nearing completion. [6] The film was released on April 14, 1919. [7]
Exhibitors Herald gave the film a positive review, especially extolling the performances of Lytell, Kolker, Kilgour, and Currier. They also gave a positive nod to the remainder of the supporting cast. They also complimented Ince's direction, and Metro's production style. [8] Moving Picture World gave the film a positive review, calling it a "specially worthy picture by reason of the excellent acting with which its story, and especially its characters, are made real and understandable." They made particular mention of the excellent acting of Lytell, Kilgour and Adams; as well as complimenting the direction and cinematography. [9] Variety also gave the film a positive review, calling it "a corking crook story that holds the interest from the very first". They extolled Ince's direction, particularly during the storm scene, as well as highlighting the performances of Lytell, Kolker, Kilgour, and Lake. [10]
Boston Blackie is a fictional character created by author Jack Boyle (1881–1928). Blackie, a jewel thief and safecracker in Boyle's stories, became a detective in adaptations for films, radio and television—an "enemy to those who make him an enemy, friend to those who have no friend."
Alice Lake was an American film actress. She began her career during the silent film era and often appeared in comedy shorts opposite Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle.
The Mob is a 1951 American film noir crime-thriller produced by Columbia Pictures, directed by Robert Parrish, and starring Broderick Crawford. The screenplay, which was written by William Bowers, is based on the novel Waterfront by Ferguson Findley.
Bertram Mortimer Lytell was an American actor in theater and film during the silent film era and early talkies. He starred in romantic, melodrama, and adventure films.
John Edward Ince, also credited as John E. Ince, was an American actor of stage and motion pictures, and a film director. He was the elder brother of Thomas H. Ince, and Ralph Ince.
Joseph Kilgour was a Canadian actor of the silent film era. He was a well-known veteran stage actor in Broadway theatre before entering silent films. He appeared in more than 50 films between 1909 and 1926.
Torment is a 1924 American silent crime drama film produced and directed by Maurice Tourneur and distributed by Associated First National. This film stars Bessie Love, Owen Moore, and Jean Hersholt. The film is based on a story by William Dudley Pelley with script by Fred Myton and titles by Marion Fairfax. It is a lost film.
A Yankee Princess is a 1919 American silent comedy-drama film produced and distributed by the Vitagraph Company of America. It was directed by David Smith and stars Bessie Love, who also wrote the screenplay. It is a lost film.
Through the Dark is a 1924 American silent mystery crime drama film directed by George W. Hill, and starring Colleen Moore and Forrest Stanley as the popular jewel thief and sometimes detective character Boston Blackie. The film's scenario, written by Frances Marion, is based on the short story "The Daughter of Mother McGinn" by Jack Boyle, which appeared in serial form in Cosmopolitan. The film was produced by William Randolph Hearst's Cosmopolitan Productions and distributed through Goldwyn Pictures.
Robert Kurrle, also known as Robert B. Kurrle, was an American cinematographer during the silent and early talking film eras. Prior to entering the film industry, he was already experimenting with aerial photography. Considered a very prominent cinematographer, even his early work received notice and praise from both critics and other industry professionals. The advent of sound film did not abate his continued rise, and he became the top director of photography at Warner Brothers by 1932.
The Poppy Girl's Husband is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by William S. Hart and Lambert Hillyer and written by Jules Boyle and C. Gardner Sullivan. The film stars William S. Hart, Juanita Hansen, Walter Long, Fred Starr, David Kirby and Georgie Stone. The film was released on March 16, 1919, by Paramount Pictures.
The Valiant is a one-act play from the 1920s by Holworthy Hall and Robert Middlemass. It became a popular play for local theater groups, and is still performed today.
Maxwell Karger (1879–1922) was an important movie producer and motion picture director during the silent film era of the 1910s.
Capital Punishment is a surviving 1925 American silent melodrama film directed by James P. Hogan and starring Clara Bow, Margaret Livingston, Mary Carr, and Elliott Dexter. It was produced by B. P. Schulberg and is now in the public domain. It was written and produced with the intent of challenging the viewing public question the use of capital punishment.
The Face Between is a 1922 American silent melodrama film. Directed by Bayard Veiller, the film stars Bert Lytell, Andrée Tourneur, and Sylvia Breamer. It was released on April 17, 1922.
Boston Blackie's Little Pal is a 1918 American silent drama film, directed by E. Mason Hopper. It stars Bert Lytell, Rhea Mitchell, and Rosemary Theby, and was released on August 26, 1918.
Blind Man's Eyes is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by John Ince and starring Bert Lytell, Frank Currier, and Naomi Childers, based on the 1916 novel The Blind Man's Eyes by Edwin Balmer and William MacHarg. It was released on March 10, 1919.
Easy to Make Money, originally titled It's Easy to Make Money is a 1919 American silent comedy film directed by Edwin Carewe. It stars Bert Lytell, Gertrude Selby, and Frank Currier, and was released on August 4, 1919.
The Intrusion of Isabel is a 1919 American silent comedy film directed by Lloyd Ingraham and starring Mary Miles Minter, J. Parks Jones, Allan Forrest, and Lucretia Harris. As with many of Minter's features, it is thought to be a lost film.
The Boomerang is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by Louis J. Gasnier and starring Anita Stewart, Bert Lytell, and Ned Sparks. It was based on a Broadway play of the same title by Winchell Smith and Victor Mapes, which was later adapted for the 1929 film The Love Doctor.