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1920. D.W.
Griffith. Released by United Artists. 7 reels.
"THE LOVE FLOWER" Copyright 1920 by D.W. Griffith. Personally directed by D.W. GRIFFITH. From story by Ralph Stock Published in Collier's Weekly. Photography by G.W. Bitzer. Anyone advertising a picture as a Griffith production without the name "GRIFFITH" and the trademark "DG" on each and every film is guilty of fraudulent advertising. UNITED ARTISTS CORPORATION. |
D.W. Griffith needed two quick productions
to meet distribution commitments, and The Love Flower and The
Idol Dancer were produced during a location trip to Florida and the
Bahamas. The Love Flower was Griffith's first release through United
Artists, and it was not the success that Griffith or his UA partners were
hoping for. From today's perspective, if The Love Flower is not
one of Griffith's greatest achievements, at least it makes no pretensions
to be. If the film is not especially well acted, at least the plot doesn't
require it. If the direction were credited to anyone other than Griffith,
The Love Flower might be remembered as a bizarre little treasure,
instead of a lost opportunity. The film has many elements of previous successful
Griffith pictures, but his annoying trademarks are there too, with inserts
that don't match, and blatant continuity errors.
Carol Dempster is the daughter in a strained marriage, and when her father shoots his wife's lover, she joins in his escape, with a detective in pursuit. They escape to a South Sea island, where three story threads meet: roaming rich boy Richard Barthelmess comes ashore, the pursuing detective finds them on the island, while Dempster is willing to go to any end to save her father. The common theme is confused loyalties. It is quite clear that Dempster's loyalty to her father is far greater than her potential love of Barthelmess. The story oddly keeps the romantic leads apart. Barthelmess only meets Dempster well into the film, and then a misunderstanding keeps them estranged for most of the film. Carol Dempster is at her most appealing in The Love Flower. She has never looked better, and in exquisitely photographed sequences we see her amid the waves on the beach, rowing a boat at twilight, etc. She gives it her best, even with two sequences swimming underwater. If she sometimes plays the role like Lillian Gish's stand-in, then that is probably due more Griffith's direction, than her choice. She sets herself apart from Gish by being more athletic, more aggressive, and less introspective. The Love Flower especially benefits from the beautiful atmospheric photography (often during the twilight "magic hour") which gives a nice feeling of unspoiled islands. Griffith takes advantage of the remarkable location filming with many images of location color, and some of the sets are obviously host to hordes of flies. This video release provides a good representation of the beautiful Sartov close-ups of Carol Dempster, and occasional harsh outdoor lighting in some scenes. A flash title early in the film that introduces George MacQuarrie should have been extended, and there is some decomposition in the titles, but print quality ranges from good to excellent. The film has not been tinted. The key scene of an attempted drowning was filmed during the day, and the tinting in the original prints would have allowed it to pass for night. The energetic, but uncredited, score by Phil Carli keeps the action moving. The running time is listed as 70 minutes on the video jacket, but the tape actually runs 104 minutes. This Critics' Choice release is a effective presentation of an enjoyable, and sometimes fascinating, film. (Review © 1997 David Pierce) |
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Send additions, suggestions, comments or questions to David Pierce, prizma@onetel.com
© 1997 David Pierce