| Love's Whirlpool | |
|---|---|
 Advertisement | |
| Directed by | Bruce M. Mitchell |
| Screenplay by | Martha Lord |
| Produced by | Regal Pictures |
| Starring | James Kirkwood Lila Lee |
| Cinematography | Stephen Norton |
| Edited by | Jack Dennis |
| Distributed by | W. W. Hodkinson Corporation |
Release date |
|
Running time | 60 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
Love's Whirlpool is a 1924 American silent crime drama film directed by Bruce Mitchell and starring James Kirkwood and Lila Lee. [1] [2]
Hardened criminal Jim Reagan (James Kirkwood) tries to persuade his adolescent brother, Larry (Robert Agnew), to abandon their life of crime. Rather than heeding Jim's warning, Larry arrested when he tries to rob a banker named Richard Milton (Edward Martindel). Milton refuses Jim's request for leniency and Larry is thrown in jail. Jim attempts to help his brother escape prison, but the boy is fatally wounded in the process. Jim and his girlfriend, Molly (Lila Lee), resolve to have vengeance.
Jim and Molly kidnap Milton's daughter, Nadine (Madge Bellamy), after rescuing her from a shipwreck. Conveniently suffering from amnesia, Nadine becomes the unwitting foil in the plot against her father. They then open a clairvoyant parlor and tell Milton, who believes Nadine is dead, they can help him contact his daughter's spirit. Milton's initially cynicism is banished when the figure of his daughter appears and speaks to him during a seance. Through the influence of Nadine's "spirit," the mourning father is induced to spend a huge amount of money on charity. Jim and Molly plan to milk Milton for all he's worth before giving him back his daughter—dead.
During one of the many seances, Molly is touched by an unknown and mysterious power. Molly's conscience is awakened by the experience and she returns Nadine to her father. Nadine's memory returns upon seeing Milton, and the banker forgives everything.
Meanwhile, police raid Jim's headquarters. Jim escapes via a daredevil route over several buildings, and returns home to kill Molly for betraying him. Suddenly, he is overwhelmed by the memory of his laughing young brother. When Molly returns, Jim cannot kill her. Their mutual devotion to the dead boy and their love of each other is revived by Larry's memory, and Molly and Jim return to a life of good citizenship. [3] [4]
Publicity for Love's Whirlpool claimed that the film was based on a novel by Martha Lord entitled The Inner Sight, but there is no evidence that such a book was ever published. Director Bruce Mitchell co-wrote the adaptation for Love's Whirlpool with Elliott Clawson. [5]
The film's producers advertised the film as a combination crook melodrama, romance, and treatise on the spirit world. To capitalize on society's wider interest in spiritualism after World War I, W.W. Hodkinson Distribution offer the following advice to theater managers:
Drape a booth in black and set it in your lobby. Just outside have a man with long whiskers, a turban and clothing worn by fortunetellers and "readers" of various kinds. Over the booth have a sign "Gaze into the crystal ball and see yourself as your really are." Inside the booth have an ordinary looking glass. Let the crowds go in and get a look for themselves. When one person sees it is only a trick, he will spread the word around and soon people will be coming to learn about spirits—and of course when they are once in your lobby, they will visit the box office and go in to see the picture. [4]
Love's Whirlpool was also the first film starring James Kirkwood and Lila Lee since their marriage in 1923. [4]
The film released in March 1924 to mixed reviews. The reviewer for the New York Times called Love's Whirlpool "a bad picture which is interesting" and was amused by the director's willingness to abandon any sense of realism:
He [Bruce Mitchell] nonchalantly places his puppets where it meets his convenience, regardless whether the incident or situation is plausible. Through the film he seems to thunder: "There they are on the beach with the girl who was drowning. The camera does not lie! What have you got to say about it?" It was marvelous that a girl could be for any length of time in the water and then turn up in the same gown, around which are three rows of fur, as if it had . . . just come straight from the dressmaker's." [4]
Sidne Silverman (writing under the pseudonym "Skig") of Variety thought the film would find an audience, but was critical of Mitchell's direction—particularly in the use of yet another rooftop chase. "Why directors insist on making fugitives silhouette themselves against a skyline," he wrote, "might constitute a particular point the boys with the megaphones should look into for a change. It's been going on for years and years." [4]
Harrison's Report thought the film was fast-paced, suspenseful, and well-acted, but thought the ending was overly sentimental. Aileen St. John-Brenon of The New York Telegraph thought the hackneyed and melodramatic film was redeemed only by "several ingenious twists." Brenon also thought the film was a poor vehicle for Kirkwood and Lee's obvious onscreen chemistry, while panning Madge Bellamy's portrayal of Nadine. [4]
A complete print of Love's Whirlpool is located in the BFI National Archive. [6]
Madge Bellamy was an American stage and film actress. She was a popular leading lady in the 1920s and early 1930s. Her career declined in the sound era and ended following a romantic scandal in the 1940s.
The Magician is a 1926 American silent fantasy horror film directed by Rex Ingram about a magician's efforts to acquire the blood of a maiden for his experiments to create life. It was adapted by Ingram from the 1908 novel The Magician by W. Somerset Maugham. It stars Alice Terry, Paul Wegener and Iván Petrovich. Critic Carlos Clarens wrote that it was "perhaps the most elusive of lost films." However, since the time Clarens wrote this, various prints of the film have surfaced. Some have screened at independent movie festivals from 1993 onwards, and the film has also been shown on Turner Classic Movies. It remained commercially unavailable until being released on DVD in the Warner Brothers Archive Collection in 2011.
Lila Lee was a prominent screen actress, primarily a leading lady, of the silent film and early sound film eras.
Harvey Harris Gates was an American screenwriter of the silent era. He wrote for more than 200 films between 1913 and 1948. He was born in Hawaii and died in Los Angeles, California.
Bradley Barker was an American actor and film director of the silent era. He also created sound effects for film and radio.
The Foundling is a 1916 silent film directed by John B. O'Brien. The film is a remake of the lost film The Foundling and serves as its replacement, as the 1915 Allan Dwan directed version was destroyed in the nitrate fire at Famous Players September 11, 1915.
Seven Footprints to Satan is a 1929 American mystery film directed by Danish filmmaker Benjamin Christensen. Based on the 1928 story of the same name by Abraham Merritt, it stars Thelma Todd, Creighton Hale, William V. Mong and Sheldon Lewis. It was first released as a silent film and later as a part-talkie.
The Man from Beyond is a 1922 American silent mystery film starring Harry Houdini as a man found frozen in arctic ice who is brought back to life.
Wandering Husbands, also known as Loves and Lies, is a 1924 American silent drama film directed by William Beaudine. It stars James Kirkwood, Lila Lee, and Margaret Livingston.
Wee Lady Betty is a 1917 American silent drama film produced and distributed by the Triangle Film Corporation. It was directed by Charles Miller and stars Bessie Love, Frank Borzage, and Charles K. French. It is considered lost.
Sam Baker, born Samuel D. Baker, was an American actor who usually performed with Rudolph Valentino, Ramon Novarro, Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin.
Harry L. Franklin was a director of silent films in the United States.
The Golden Strain is a 1925 American silent Western film directed by Victor Schertzinger and written by Eve Unsell. The film stars Hobart Bosworth, Kenneth Harlan, Madge Bellamy, Lawford Davidson, Ann Pennington, and Frank Beal. The film was released on December 27, 1925, by Fox Film Corporation.
Arthur Ashley was an actor, writer, and director of silent films and also acted in legitimate theater. He was involved with World Pictures. He directed and acted in several film productions. Later in his career he established his own stock company for theatrical productions.
Dorcas Neville Matthews was an English actress in silent films in the U.S. She had numerous roles as a supporting actress and was well known.
Victor Albert Kremer was a music publisher, film producer and distributor, as well as a real estate developer in the U.S. An immigrant from Germany, Kremer established a music publishing company. He later acquired studio space to produce his own films and acquired film rights from Essanay as it shut operations. His company reissued several Charlie Chaplin films.
The Phantom's Secret is a 1917 American silent mystery film directed by Charles Swickard and starring Hayward Mack, Mignon Anderson and Mark Fenton.
James O. Taylor (1887–1974), generally credited as J.O. Taylor, was an American cinematographer best known for his work on King Kong (1933).
When a Man Loves is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by Chester Bennett and starring Earle Williams, Tom Guise and Margaret Loomis.
James C. McKay (1894–1971) was an American film director and editor. His directorial debut was the 1916 Fox Film release The Ruling Passion shot in Jamaica under the supervision of Herbert Brenon. He directed several silent films for Tiffany Pictures in the mid-1920s. He was hired by MGM to shoot Tarzan Escapes in 1935, but the studio was dissatisfied with his efforts and he was replaced by Richard Thorpe.
