The Mating Call (1928) User Reviews

A film which the production code would never have approved.

[jackdogue · 8/10 · 16 December 2004]

Evelyn Brent's depiction of Rose Henderson truly makes me wonder just how

much better films of the thirties, forties, and fifties to mid sixties would have been had not censorship seized control of Amercan cinematography in the early

1930's. Instead of a scene showing Rose and her wealthy husband Lon each in a twin bed separated by a nightstand, The Mating Call has Rose calling on her

ex-husband, Leslie, who has just returned from WWI to find out his marriage to underage Rose was annulled by her parents when he was serving in France.

Rose has no love for her husband, Lon, as he is having an affair with a much

younger woman, and despite Leslie's not wanting to see her again, Rose

repeatedly attempts to seduce him - finally tricking Leslie into joining her in his bedroom after she has begun to disrobe. If TCM runs it again, check it out. It's nice to know that pre-production code movies actually depicted some of the

interesting realities of life that censors wouldn't allow.

Compelling to the End

[Falcon-51 · 8/10 · 16 December 2004]

Another treasure released from the achieves and shown on TCM. This is a gem and a silent picture that you will not want to miss. Now that it has premiered for the first time on television since its theatrical release in 1928 it will likely been shown many more times, but that of course is up to TCM and/or the owners of the film.

Thomas Meighan plays (Leslie Hatton) a farmer who returned from war to find his marriage to (Rose Henderson) played by Evelyn Brent had been annulled by her parents. She however eventually marries another man, but one who is unfaithful to her. In her desperate situation she tries to seduce Leslie to have an affair with her, but he has lost all interest in her and her lack of moral character.

He eventually decides to find an immigrant wife by going to Ellis Island and finds a young woman who agrees to marry him in exchange for taking her and her parents into the country under his care and responsibility. Problems arise however when Rose's persistence puts Leslie in a bad situation with a black mask group known as "The Order" who think they are the judge, jury and punishers of moral issues in their town.

While having a "trashy" plot, it IS truly original and unique!

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 20 November 2006]

This is one of the stranger silent films I have ever watched. Now this isn't to say it's bad--it certainly is super-entertaining. It's more just a bit odd in regard to story elements--things I just didn't expect to see in this film.

The movie is about a WWI vet that comes home to find that the woman he married just before shipping overseas has had the marriage annulled and is married to another man! To make things worse, she STILL is interested in her first husband and tries to get him to have an affair. It seems this skanky lady hates her second husband and wants to use the returning soldier to hurt her current husband (who has been cheating on her)! This, it seems, is a VERY dangerous thing, as the second husband has a temper AND he's a member of a KKK-like organization that is anxious to punish the soldier for any improprieties! So, oddly, to divert suspicion and try to get his first wife to leave him alone, he runs off to Ellis Island and picks a person to marry who would have otherwise been deported!! Now that's an interesting way to find a wife!! What happens next, you'll just have to find out for yourself, but it includes whippings, murder and a brief but graphic nude scene!! As you can guess, this movie is amazing for all the bizarre and salacious plot elements it includes--but this does keep this movie entertaining and fast-paced!!

A final note about the KKK-like group called the "The Order". This black-hooded group features prominently in the film and the way they are dealt with is awfully judgment-neutral. The problem, it seems with The Order is NOT that they punish people for evil (some of their punishments are real "civic-minded"--such as threatening a man who is a ne'er-do-well who lets his mother starve and whipping a man who is unrepentant about spousal abuse), but that they made a mistake in accidentally punishing an innocent man! In fact, at the end, The Order fixes everything up right for everyone--they seem like such nice guys! As I said, this is a bizarre film!

Renee Adoree

[pickerfromhell · 20 November 2006]

Rennee stole the picture. She was the most photogenic of all the players. The discretion of the censors to allow the swimming scene was a real plumb. I was certainly interested to see the interactions of the supposed "Order" and the principle players. A good amount of tension was generated in the last half of the picture. Helen Foster played a small part. I don't recall seeing her before and she was very photogenic as well. Although some of the scenes were dark, the version I watched on TCM was a remastered copy and the quality was quite good in fact, it was excellent. Very unfortunate that Renee Adoree tragically died so young. She was a real beauty.

Pretty good silent drama

[preppy-3 · 7/10 · 18 January 2008]

Leslie Hatten (Thomas Meighan) goes away to fight WW1. He secretly marries beautiful Rose (Evelyn Brent). He returns 2 years later to find their marriage annulled and she's married to Lon (Alan Roscoe). She still wants to sleep with Leslie but he refuses her. However Lon thinks she IS sleeping with him and is a member of The Order--a Ku Klux Klan-like organization who punish everyone they think isn't "moral" enough.

There's more but that's the gist. Fast-moving, pretty racy (Brent flashes some nudity), well-acted and directed drama. It brings up multiple themes--WW1, marriage, adultery, suicide, murder, secret organizations punishing people--and mixes them all up and throws them at the viewer in an entertaining way. This doesn't seem to be making any sort of statement (although it does strongly suggest that The Order is wrong) but just gives the viewer a fast-paced entertaining drama. This was thought to be lost for many years but was discovered and lovingly restored. We should all be happy for that. I give it a 7.

Sex, lies, and the Order

[stpetebeach · 6/10 · 15 December 2004]

THE MATING CALL was shown on TCM on Dec. 15, 2004, marking its apparent first screening since 1928. The silent film is something of a morality play, complete with a returning soldier who has lost his wife (to an adulterer); a morals police force, the Order, in dark cloth hoods (except for the leader, who wears satin); one woman drenched by a bucket of water and another caught skinny-dipping; and some provocative eyebrow acting. Evelyn Brent radiates sex as Rose, while Thomas Meighan seems mostly confused as the farmer who needs a replacement woman -- and goes to Ellis Island to get one! THE MATING CALL, directed by James Cruze (I COVER THE WATERFRONT), ably entertains while carrying a rather more serious theme on hypocrisy.

Bizarre and fascinating

[gbill-74877 · 7/10 · 26 October 2019]

What a bizarre and fascinating movie, with quite a bit to think about. I won't bother with the plot, except to say it's melodramatic and has some interesting (and pretty unique) turns in its short 72 minute run time. The things which stood out:

• The KKK reference. It seems to me a critique of organized thugs who operate outside the law, or in this case, essentially are the law, while at the same time, not wanting to be direct about the racism of the real-life Klan. "The Order" in this film is a large group of armed townsfolk who don hoods and robes at night, then burst into homes and haul people off to answer for behavior they deem unacceptable (with one stated goal being to "safeguard the honor of our womenfolk"). Without any real form of trial where one is presumed innocent, allowed to prepare a defense, etc, victims answer questions put to them by the hooded leader. With a bonfire blazing away in the background, if he deems they're guilty, they're strapped to a giant cross and whipped. It doesn't have the racist persecution of real Klan behavior and is therefore far from an ideal depiction, but it's still a scary vision of the degradation of justice in America, and mob rule. They might seem to dispense justice in a couple of cases, but do they really? We have no idea, there is no trial, and the punishment is cruel and unusual. Aside from flogging people, they operate on hearsay, get things wrong, plant evidence, and arbitrarily decide a murder is OK. I think the critique is consistent with the increased criticism of the Klan in the mid to late 1920's, and its associated decrease in power.

• The sex. Producer Howard Hughes apparently wanted to push boundaries, and he and director James Cruze certainly did. Evelyn Brent is quite steamy as she attempts to seduce Thomas Meighan in a couple of scenes. In one she feigns an accident and pours a tub of water over her dress so that she has to change in his bedroom. In another she stands behind him, cheek pressed into his back, and fondling his hand in what seems like a reference to his manhood. Her eyes are so beguiling and she has just one thing on her mind for most of her time on the screen. Later Renée Adorée takes a nude swim, and then pads around in a wet, clinging nightgown. Helen Foster plays a beautiful young girl who is having an affair with a married man (Alan Roscoe), one of many for him, and what sets his wife (Brent) out to "follow his example." The film objectifies women and puts them into the usual buckets (temptress, virtuous, ruined), but it also points out the double standard.

• The transactional view of marriage. When Meighan's character wants to get married ASAP he simply goes out to Ellis Island and makes a bargain with an immigrant family, who won't be let into America otherwise. (This is where Adorée comes in). He simply states that he needs a wife to help work on his farm, and after some heated sidebar discussion, they young woman and her parents agree. The two know nothing about each other. The power imbalance and the idea of essentially a mail-order bride is disturbing to me, but they don't seem upset by it, and it just seems like a business transaction to them. Is it horrifying, or is a part of this more honest than many marriages? Is it a reflection of the times despite being a plot artifice, because of its practicality and the speed with which they get married (just as he was quickly married to Brent's character earlier)? Maybe all of the above. Regardless, she presents herself to him that night, knowing that's part of her 'obligations' (he demurs), makes a big breakfast for him the next morning, and soon we see her on all fours scrubbing the floor. The relationship grows to include some tenderness and signs of affection, including an amusing scene where Adorée pretty expertly scrubs down a pig and he joins her (why the pig needs to be washed, we have no idea). It seems a positive view of what is a strange marriage.

These three things were intriguing to me because they each created conflicting feelings. There are no black/white, purely good or bad aspects, certainly by today's standards. I was surprised over what I was seeing and it took time to process it, both in the context of the period as well as how it affected me. The film is not a masterpiece by any means, but these are the kinds of things which fascinate me about old movies.

Man Struggles to Consummate His Marriages Amid Flappers and Klansmen

[Cineanalyst · 6/10 · 30 October 2019]

"The Mating Call" is an interesting oddball late silent film from kazillionaire producer Howard Hughes and director James Cruze (perhaps best known for "The Covered Wagon" (1923)). What seemingly starts out as yet another of many WWI-themed romances of the era, quickly turns into a series of seedy love triangles, anachronistic flappers, vigilante justice consisting of floggings performed by a black-hooded clandestine organization called the "Order" that is similar to the white-hooded Ku Klux Klan, and amidst all of the hullabaloo, there's a pre-Code nude swimming scene to top it off. And most of it takes place on the farm of star Thomas Meighan's character. The main thrust of the story is Meighan's sexual struggles and inability to consummate two marriages. Even when he's finally alone with one his wives when she's naked, those pesky prophylactic-costumed hoods ruin the fun.

One of his marriages is annulled by the girl's (Evelyn Brent) parents while he's away on duty and after all he was able to do was kiss her in a quickie wedding. His ex-wife, then, marries a more urbane type and member of that mysterious Order. She also becomes a sexually-promiscuous flapper in the meantime--allegedly in response to her hubby's own philandering. She throws herself at Meighan, who goes to Ellis Island to pick up a wife for himself to hold off her advances, as well as, perhaps, to protect himself from the Order, whom akin to D.W. Griffith's Klan, minus the blatant racism (everyone in this film is white), see it their business to preserve the purity of their womenfolk. Lucky for him, Meighan happens to pick a lovable, hard-working, ambiguously-European-coded (although, maybe Russian) peasant who obviously also wears a lot of makeup, as portrayed by the French Renée Adorée, along with her also hard-working, if mostly mysteriously absent for most the rest of the picture, parents (that is, at least, in the print of the film we have today). She agrees to the marriage, lest her, mom and dad get deported. It's an unorthodox marriage proposition, to say the least.

This is all sensational stuff, to be sure, and I'm not even spoiling the more lurid turns to set up the climax. It's oft amusing and well paced, acted and photographed, though, albeit nothing exceptional given the excellent quality of late silent cinema, and the subject matter is unusual enough to be of interest, including the nude scene and the Order. The latter reminds me of "The White Caps" (1905), which is an Edison short film about the real-life, titular vigilante group who tar and feather a (white) wife beater. Mary Pickford also rode with Kentucky "night-riders" in a land battle against (white) developers in "Heart o' the Hills" (1919). The KKK is the most notorious of these sort of terrorist and vigilante organizations, but there were quite a few different sects in American history performing similar, if not always, but often or usually were, racially-motivated or otherwise bigoted, criminal acts. Given the resurgence of the Klan during this era, largely due to Griffith's "The Birth of a Nation" (1915), I think it's safe to assume that the "Order" here is based on them. Regardless, "The Mating Call" is a bizarre little picture.

The Mating Call review

[JoeytheBrit · 6/10 · 4 May 2020]

It's title suggests light romantic comedy, but The Mating Call is, for most of its running time, a tale of love turned sour after doughboy Thomas Meighan returns home to find his bride (Evelyn Brent) has annulled their marriage and wed the leader of the local KKK. Things only lighten up when cute little immigrant Renee Adoree shows up and begins bathing piglets. Enjoyable enough, but it feels curiously incomplete.

Intriguing, sensual Howard Hughes film

[overseer-3 · 9/10 · 1 March 2005]

Directed by legendary James Cruze, one of his few surviving silent films, The Mating Call is a rare delight, featuring an attractive cast, a compelling script (or continuity, as it was called in the silent days), and some unforgettable precode moments. Thomas Meighan was aging a bit by 1928 but he was still a handsome hunk of a man, Evelyn Brent was extremely sexy, and Renee Adoree gives a completely marvelous and poignant performance as the immigrant wife. Her nude swimming scene must have shook up the audiences of that era, years before Hedy Lamarr did the same in Ecstasy.

To a certain extent the film has been poorly understood and characterized by other reviewers here. The Order scenes were NOT based on the KKK, there was no racism in the picture. It was a local organization made up of white male citizens of the little town who wanted to make it uncomfortable for other white male immoral types to get away with sin against their families or others. The men who were chastised were adulterers or those who didn't properly take care of their families. Now this kind of thing is best dealt with in the church, and privately, and of course without whippings. Their little town would not have been a very pleasant place to live, given the stress WW One soldiers faced upon their return to the States.

I felt the musical score was passable, but certainly not great. During a key bedroom scene, with Evelyn Brent's character coming on to Thomas Meighan's character, it sounded like carousel or kiddie music in the background, totally inappropriate to the flavor of the scene. The music should have been sexy, since the scene was sexy. Must all of Robert Israel's compiled soundtracks sound like music for Harold Lloyd comedies? This was a drama predominantly, with a few funny moments added for comic relief.

Thanks to TCM for broadcasting the film. I am glad I recorded it on DVD-R, since it is unknown at this time when the film might be released by the company that worked on it.

superior acting by Evelyn Brent

[mukava991 · 7/10 · 26 January 2008]

Evelyn Brent was a marvelous and smolderingly beautiful actress of the silent screen who made a staggering number of films from 1915 to the 1940s. This film is worth seeing for her alone. Her performance as a small town vamp holds up completely by 21st century standards and that's not common. James Cruze has a good reputation and it's easy to see why from this film. The action moves briskly, scenes do not linger unnecessarily but only when emphasis is needed. Intimate moments are handled skillfully and believably. Set pieces are convincing. Here is a movie where someone scrubs a floor and really does the kind of work you have to do to scrub a floor, though I was a bit surprised to see Renee Adoree sloshing the entire contents of a water basin directly onto the linoleum during the rinse phase. It really annoyed me that she became distracted and let the puddle (or lake, really) remain and if I had been Thomas Meighan's character I would have been much more upset than he seemed to be. Meighan seems a bit wooden and but I think he was trying to play a simple farming man with a tough exterior.

I am not the only one who noticed that the women's costumes and hair styles (not to mention the automobiles) were way too modern for the time period presented, 1919. Cloche hats did not make their appearance that soon after World War I. Another element that cannot be ignored are the palm trees in this town, which suggest that the action takes place in southern California, but when the Meighan character decides to find an off-the-boat immigrant to marry, he travels to Ellis Island, thousands of miles to the east, even though he is a struggling farmer. Then presto! He's back in Southern California with the newfound bride and her parents who look no worse for wear than if they had been trucked in from a neighboring county. To be fair, these jolting progressions seem to be standard fare in early films and are also used quite a bit in early talkies. But for us sophisticated 21st century viewers they do stretch credulity and get in the way of our serious involvement in the proceedings.

One strand of the plot involves a KKK-like organization called "The Order." But this is not the KKK we're all familiar with – this group of hooded vigilantes rounds up local men who are perceived to be less than honorable to the town's womenfolk and whips them on posts until they repent and agree to behave in a more chivalrous manner! To contemporary audiences this comes across as a very funny joke.

Fantastic Film Restoration

[Draconian_Clown · 10/10 · 15 December 2004]

This movie is a unique glimpse into the culture of the period. One outstanding item is the depiction of a clan-type organization who acts more as a community secret police (seriously flawed in their self-righteous and heavy handed rule) in general than as a specifically racist group. I had always heard about this being their main historic role because in many parts of the country where these groups existed, there were simply not sufficient numbers of minorities around to pick on and by their nature these groups had to pick on someone.

The film's treatment of sexuality seems far more erotic just in the suggestion of nudity and intimate touching than today's practice of "anything goes" sexual contact and the full nudity of multi-millionaire, artificially enhanced actors. I know old-timers and conservatives have been saying this for years but seeing this movie proves the point.

I was so interested in the acting that I really didn't care about the plot. Also, the film is so well restored that it is almost in 3-D.

An interesting curio but not really a good film

[finki · 5/10 · 16 December 2004]

I just watched this film on TCM, on its television premiere, and it was quite a chance to see this rarity. The Rex Beach story, as directed by James Cruze for Howard Hughes, is probably much more interesting that the actual film.

There are a some gaps in the continuity as the ending approaches. The Evelyn Brent character completely vanishes from the film and the murder of the husband is not solved. The way the Klu Klux Klan is presented with a complete display of incompetence: Thomas Meighan's character is brutally and unjustly tortured and in the end they left him go as if nothing has happened...

In the way the Klan is presented here it seems that in that town everybody lives under a tyrannical and authoritarian regime with no complaints!!! Robert Israel's score is good, even when he reuses music cues from other silent films he had previously scored and the restoration efforts were quite good. However, it would be nice that the effort would be place in much better films than this one.

A surprisingly top-notch silent melodrama

[jimjo1216 · 23 July 2012]

A soldier (Thomas Meighan) returns from the war to find that his secret marriage has been annulled and his sweetheart has re-married. That doesn't stop the ex-wife (Evelyn Brent) from directing her attentions toward him while her current husband sees other women. But these associations with a married woman get the soldier in trouble with the local Ku Klux-type Order.

THE MATING CALL (1928) really is a solid silent film. I watched it on a whim and was pleasantly surprised. TCM host Robert Osborne assured viewers that James Cruze was a top-tier director of the silent era, and his direction here is solid. This is one of the rare Howard Hughes- produced silent films that had been considered lost before turning up in Hughes's private collection in recent years. The restoration looks great, the photography crisp and clear.

The lovely Evelyn Brent is terrific as the town belle turned vamp. What a screen presence! I recall seeing her with William Powell in HIGH PRESSURE (1932), but she really makes an impression with this sexy, seductive performance. She has a real charisma on screen. There's also a great scene where a bitter Meighan, unmoved by her advances, forcibly removes Brent from his home as she battles back.

Renée Adorée is very cute as an immigrant girl and reluctant bride. Her sweet and innocent character is in stark contrast to Brent's character and gives the film a love story. There's a scandalous skinny dipping scene, but the distant nudity is innocuous enough.

The masked Order pose a dangerous threat and add a darker drama to the tangled web of small-town romance. The performances and the underlying darkness (including an eerie riverside discovery) raise this movie above other, more soapy melodramas and make THE MATING CALL one to check out.

A silent film with modern themes.

[pontifikator · 8/10 · 12 August 2012]

Producer Howard Hughes, director James Cruze and actors Thomas Meighan, Evelyn Brent, and Renee Adoree made a singularly modern movie in 1928. The titles were written by Herman J. Mankiewicz, who wrote the original screenplay for "Citizen Kane," which got him an Oscar for best original screenplay. (The Mankiewicz family had something in its genes, by the way. They had writers and directors all over the family tree.)

Our introduction to the characters begins in Europe at the end of World War I. Leslie Hatten (played by Meighan) is getting ready to return home to his wife, Rose (Brent). What he doesn't know is that his marriage to her was annulled by her parents (she was a minor when they married without parental permission) and that she has remarried to Lon (played by Alan Roscoe). When Hatten discovers this, he sets about getting over the surprise by running the farm and finding another woman. Hatten gets another wife by finding an immigrant family and marrying their daughter, Catharine (Adoree).

Rose and Lon are not happily married, and Rose attempts to seduce Hatten upon his return; Rose is a very sophisticated teen, if we are to believe the script that she's a minor, but Hatten withstands her considerable charms. We learn that Lon is cheating on Rose with Jessie (Helen Foster). When Lon learns that Rose still is interested in Hatten, Lon calls out the local decency posse and makes threats to Hatten. Since Lon is an adulterer, the hypocrisy is obvious.

"The Mating Call" is a very interesting silent movie on a number of levels. It was made before the movie codes were enforced. Hence, the temptation of Hatten by Rose, his former wife, is very realistic and erotic. We also get a chance to see Catharine bathing nude in a pond. Jessie finds that Lon is unfaithful to her in their affair and kills herself. The issues are very adult and are dealt with frankly and with great care by Cruze.

There are some problems with the movie. Modern viewers are not accustomed to the conventions of silent movies, but the acting here is very natural without the mugging common in many silents (Mack Sennett comedies and Rudolph Valentino come to mind). Although Rose is said to have been under age for her marriage (putting her in her mid to late teens), Evelyn Brent was about 30 when the movie was made, and Meighan was 50 - both were clearly too old for the roles, but the sophistication of Rose matches the actress's actual age, so I overlook the age issue.

Additionally, although set in the late Teens, the costumes are current to the year of the film - Rose is dressed as a flapper with a short skirt and bare arms, instead of in period costumes with floor-length skirts, high collars, and long sleeves. Again, though, using current attire lets Rose be as modern in her approach to men as she is in the movie.

More difficult to overlook is "the Order," the local decency posse resembling the KKK in its menswear. They enforce a code of conduct which prohibits men from not supporting their mothers and from beating their wives, in two of the examples we see.

All in all, I can either dismiss the anachronisms or incorporate them into my understanding of the film. The presentation of the many problems the characters face seems to me entirely modern, even here in the early 21st Century. Although silent, "The Mating Call" transcends its time, one of several silent films still well worth watching.

Anti-Klan melodrama

[Ron in LA · 8/10 · 21 November 2006]

Silent romantic melodrama about a moody WWI vet who returns from war hoping to consummate his marriage, only to find his marriage has been annulled and his ex is married to another. He's then put in a precarious position between the sexually aggressive ex and her new hubby's "Order" of moral vigilantes.

Users who see this as a pro-Klan film are missing the point of the movie, and failing to check their history. There actually were incidents of Klan groups in Alabama in 1927 (the year before release of this film) practicing vigilante punishments, including flogging, of whites who had committed moral transgressions. Far from being "untouchable" in 1928, the daily newspaper in Montgomery, Alabama ran a series of editorials against the Klan, for which it was awarded a Pulitzer Prize. In 1928, a Catholic was elected governor of Alabama, and Klan membership began to fade.

The Mating Call is clearly part of the mainstream backlash against the Klan. The only Klan member is an outright hypocrite, and the Klan vigilantes are shown whipping an innocent man. Where does anyone get favorable treatment from that?

Wet, Wet, Wet

[wes-connors · 5/10 · 8 March 2008]

Thomas Meighan (as Leslie Hatten) returns from servicing his country in the first World War to discover his young bride Evelyn Brent (as Rose)'s parents have had their marriage annulled; to make matters worse, she has married another man, Alan Roscoe (as Lon Henderson). Mr. Meighan is devastated by the loss of his child bride, but rejects her invitation to begin an affair; instead, he goes shopping for another young bride, Renée Adorée (as Catharine). Ms. Brent is obviously not fully satisfied by Mr. Roscoe, who is receiving something extra from Helen Foster (as Jessie), when he's not busy leading "The Order", a local KKK-like organization focusing on, of all things, morality...

"The Mating Call" is a titillating Howard Hughes production; probably, it was more satisfying in its day. The three leading ladies are featured in wet clothes, underclothes, or no clothes at all. After about an hour of running time, Ms. Adorée has a "nude" swimming scene; you'd be hard-pressed, however, to determine if the actress is actually naked. Adorée is far sexier after putting on her sheer post-swimming frock. Brent is also very sexy. Both women look particularly good when photographed from behind. Brent's acting performance is also quite satisfying; she offers, perhaps, the film's best characterization. Gardner James is also good, as "Marvin Swallow". Note that Adorée is a careless house cleaner, using far too much water on Meighan's floor! And, only half of the film's murderers are easily understood.

***** The Mating Call (7/21/28) James Cruze ~ Thomas Meighan, Evelyn Brent, Renee Adoree

What happened to the piglet?

[pronker · 8/10 · 24 July 2017]

8/10 because the ending took careful study to find out whodunnit. One simple intertitle would clarify, and a brief glimpse of Evelyn and Lon glaring at each other in unhappy union, or their divorce, would tell what happened after the confrontation.

But, the film impressed me because of its pacing in the initial 9/10s of its running time. The performance were solid, Evelyn's kiss to Thomas' muscled back through his shirt was steamy, and Renee's stoic demeanor during what she thought would be her loveless deflowering rang true. The parents looked French at first glimpse, but it seems they were Russian? Anyway, they served to prove Thomas' decency to allow them to settle in with him and his kissless bride. A brief glimpse of them working hard in the vegetable garden established their presence and work ethic.

I liked the lesser performances, too, such as the friend of Thomas' who wanted to break the end of his first marriage to him gently, and the lovelorn Jessie, who suicided for love.

Yes, the fashions didn't hew to 1919 or so, meh. Evelyn, Thomas and Renee formed the basis of the drama and that was all right. The Citizens' group seemed grotesque and so thoroughly accepted by the entire town it was rather discouraging. Did Thomas join it after he became a Solid Married Citizen and all his troubles faded in memory? I wonder. Maybe not, because his wife was foreign-born; maybe, because he clung to decent behavior and the Organization seemed all for enforcing such. Food for thought.

Great movie

[cathyandrickmac · 12 May 2018]

Fell in love with Renee, just so beautiful, so sad she died so young.

Flawless Film

[davidjanuzbrown · 10/10 · 24 July 2012]

Let me say right off the bat, this is NOT a film that offers a positive view of the KKK, or any similar type of organization. I can say without any doubt, there is nothing about this film that I did not like. I have read comments about the disappearance from the film of Rose Henderson (Evelyn Brent), and the "Unsolved" murder of her husband Lon (Alan Roscoe). Major Spoilers: The murderer of Lon was clearly established as Judge Cosgrove (Luke Pebbles), in response to the suicide of his daughter Jessie (Helen Foster). They even show the judge taking the shells out of his gun, including the spent shell casing. As far as Rose is concerned, I will deal with her fate later. What is most important, is the relationship between Maj. Leslie Hatten (Thomas Meighan)a WWI vet, and his immigrant bride Catharine (Renee Adoree), a Russian girl he marries at Ellis Island. There is a constant theme throughout this film and it is honor. Real honor vs fake honor. Hatten is the genuine article, and you see it implicitly stated, and well as explicitly shown, throughout the film. The first time is when it is established that he is a Major. The only way you can reach that rank is. 1: College Education. 2: Politics. 3: Battlefield Commission. Since it was established he was a poor farmer, who all he wanted to do is get home to Rose (Of course, he has no idea that the marriage was annulled because she was not of age), the only was he could have accomplished this is fighting the enemy on a battlefield. Another time you see this is when he is married to Catharine, and Rose comes onto him again (She did it before, but although he wanted her, stopped himself, and said no), and he literally throws her out of his home. Another time, is when Catharine is deciding if she should marry Leslie in exchange for taking her and her parents in? The deciding factor is when the Ellis Island immigration officer told her "You don't know how lucky you are." The officer did not know Hatton, he had nothing to gain. But as a professional, he dealt with thousands of different people so he could tell that Hatton was a decent person. Still another was when Hatton allowed Catharine to sit at the table with him (When she did not think it was her place), and when he said "It is your home also." He did not treat her like an indentured servant, he treated her as an equal. Compare that to the "Order" who acted "High & Mighty",whose members were passing judgments on others, without the guts to show their faces, and in a group (Not exactly fighting Germans in trenches), whipped Hatten for causing the suicide of Jessie, not on any kind of evidence he was guilty (Like the guy who admitted beating his wife), but on the word of Lon (Who was actually responsible). A key thing about groups like "The Order" is they believe themselves morally superior to others. But the one thing they do respect is courage. They respected Hatten, because although innocent, he took the beating "Like a Man", and did not scream or beg like a dog. For that reason, as his wife, they will allow Catharine and her parents to stay as well. Keep in mind, groups like these hate foreign-born (Like Catharine and her parents), as well as minorities and others who don't "measure up" to their standards, so when a couple of "Order" men stayed with Catharine when they took Hatten away, you can figure out that unless it was proved Hatten is innocent, Catharine must go as well. If anyone has seen a film called "1,000 Pieces of Gold", they will see a scene at the end of the film where a Klan-like group forces all the Chinese out of a small town. However, one Chinese woman named Lalu (Rosalind Chau) is allowed to stay. Why? Because she conducted herself with honor and showed no fear. "The Order" may not like Catharine (Or Hatten for that matter for bringing her), but like the haters in "1,000 Pieces Of Gold" they respect her. As far as Rose, is concerned she is very much the opposite of Catharine. Remember how I mentioned the marriage between her and was annulled? She took the easy way out and married Lon. By comparison, Catharine's parents did not want let to marry Hatten, but she put her hand up, and essentially told them, she will do it. Rose knew she made a mistake, choosing Lon instead of Hatten, so she tried everything possible including deliberately throwing water on herself, and wearing sexy clothes to get Hatten to sleep with her. She finally quit, and shook hands with Hatten, and that was the end of Rose in the film (She essentially knew she lost). One more point, when you see the difference in looks between Renee Adoree, and Evelyn Brent, it is not even close. Renee wins easily (When you see close-ups of the two it is even more pronounced (Like when you see Catharine with the piglet, looking better than Rose in the negligee). Finally, I love the ending of the movie where Hatten and Leslie, embrace, and you see her lips say 'I Love You very much", and she realizes the immigration officer was right, she is lucky. But so is Hatten to have a quality woman in Catharine who loves him, and will give him the happiness he could never find with the likes of Rose. In all, it should be a must see film, and is the Best Silent film I ever saw, and a Top 10 All-Time Film.

Mating Call is pretty bad.

[malfieri · 2/10 · 16 December 2004]

I could not believe how bad the movie was, till I realized the story was written by Rex Beach, a very prominent writer from the early 20th Century. The "KKK-type" court who "judged" various people from the town was outrageous. In my view, the film appeared to justify and condone the actions of the real KKK. The plot seemed to completely confuse Tom Meighan. I really looked forward to seeing Meighan perform. He was a major star of the 1920's, friend and companion of Scott Fitzgerald and his long island set, and I assumed this would be a good film. The fact that a 1928 audience was comfortable with this film does not reflect favorably on society at that time.

Who Couldn't Fall in Love With Evelyn Brent!!

[kidboots · 9/10 · 9 October 2018]

Back in the 19teens, early 20s, Thomas Meighan was one of the biggies and ruled the Hollywood roost, even though he didn't turn to movies until he was 36!! His rugged he-man looks combined with a wry sense of humour made him a natural for the Cecil B, DeMille "bedroom" farces with Gloria Swanson and Bebe Daniels. In fact he was such a valued Paramount player that when they decided to close their New York Astoria studios, he was the one star who refused to leave so it was kept open for him. When his career started to decline it was Howard Hughes and his Caddo Company who offered Meighan two of his meatiest assignments, as the steadfast cop in "The Racket" and as the farmer hunted by vigilantes in "The Mating Call".

Leslie Hatten returning a hero to his old home town on a short leave, marries the village belle Rose (Evelyn Brent) but has to return to the front without consummating the union. Two years later returning in glorious anticipation his hopes turn to ashes - her parents have had the marriage annulled and she is now married to Lon Henderson, a philanderer. Leslie now returns to farming but when Rose and Lon return from Europe Rose is now a knowing and wiser woman - she calls on a puzzled Leslie alone and puts all her vamping experience on display. Wow!! Who couldn't fall in love with Evelyn Brent - those looks, those eyes, that inviting mouth!! Leslie is determined to resist but even then is threatened with "The Order"!! "The Order" seems to be a men's club whose aim is to stamp out adultery, hooded, faceless men deliver rough justice to any man caught mistreating women!! Not only Rose but now Jessie, a girl Leslie last saw in pigtails, seem to be throwing themselves at him, so he decides to get a wife - from Ellis Island. He wants a real woman who will be a help mate to work his farm with him - not a doll faced local, so of course he chooses Renee Adoree! Adoree brings a sweetness and earthiness to her role as the grateful peasant who seems to be worth all the flighty girls in town put together!!

Finding a wife doesn't stop the local gossips from jumping to the conclusion that Leslie is the man young Jessie has been seeing clandestinely and when she is found in the river, an obvious suicide the full wrath of "The Order" shows itself against Hatten.

So much happens in just over an hour. Adoree's role is definitely a supporting role but Evelyn Brent has never looked and played to more alluring advantage - it is her movie all the way!! Helen Foster, who played Jessie, did shine for a moment in "Gold Diggers of Broadway" but she became mired in exploitation roles and couldn't really break free!!

An politically incorrect movie from the late 1920s when the KKK was untouchable

[zardoz-13 · 8/10 · 16 April 2005]

The 1928 black & white silent movie ''The Mating Call" depicts the KKK in a surprisingly positive light. Not surprisingly for 1928 the year that it was released, but surprising in terms of today's society. No African-Americans get lynched, raped, or killed by the KKK in this James Cruze directed movie. Instead, the KKK functions as an extra-legal organization—which is the purpose that it served for those who championed it—disciplining whites only. For example, one white wife beater gets tied to a cross and bull whipped for spousal abuse. The movie concerns a World War I veteran, Major Leslie Hatten (Thomas Meighan of "The Racket") who returns from Europe to his farm (the exact Southern locale is never established) and learns that Rose, the girl that he married, is no longer his wife. Seems that she was underage and the justice system has had their marriage annulled. Meanwhile, a shifty real estate agent, Lon Henderson (Alan Roscoe of "Half-Shot At Sunrise") has since wed the hero's wife and another sweet young thing—Jessie (Helen Foster of "Should A Girl Marry" )--pursues the hero, while she is having adulterous relations on the side with the hypocritical Lon. Eventually, Jessie tires of Lon and wants Hatten, but he doesn't want her or her flirtatious ways. In one scene, she enters his house, goes into the kitchen, and drenches herself with a basin of water so that she can force him to bring in her valise of clothes and use the accident as an excuse to shed her apparel. When the jealous Henderson—a member of the KKK—refuses to have anything to do with Jessie because she shows an interest in Hatten, the villainous real estate dude compels her to commit suicide, but not before she slips some incriminating letters into the coat pocket of another paramour. Our hero discovers Jessie's corpse resting at the bottom of a lake and removes her body. Immediately, Lon convinces the KKK that since Hatten found her deceased remains on his property that Hatten must be the killer. The Klan take the hero and punish him by bull whipping him until the other paramour reveals the real estate dude's perfidy. An interesting portrait of the American South from the early 20th century. Biggest oddity is that the hero owns a farm and never locks his front door. People traipse in and out of the house whenever they want. Eventually, in an effort to run off Jessie, the young girl who teases him, Lon heads off to Ellis Island, New York, and saves a foreign family from deportation on the basis of their pretty young daughter's consent to marry him. At one point, late in the movie, this chick goes for a midnight swim in the nude. This is a restored print from millionaire Howard Hughes lost collection uncovered at the University of Nevada. The chief narrative flaw here is that characters go missing for no apparent reason. The chick that Hatten marries comes home with him and brings her mom and dad, but after they arrive at the farm, we never see them again.

A contemporary look at the clan

[roblanious · 16 September 2008]

Though the "Order" in the film is not referred to as the KKK, it is obvious who it is supposed to represent. The KKK of the 1910s and 1920s was the second generation of the clan which resurfaced in 1915, with the aid of "Birth of a Nation" The organization still held on to its racist roots and expanded to the anti-immigrant, anti-Jew and anti-catholic views. They relaxed their hatred of the "radical Republicans" to reach out to more white people as long as the Republicans who wished to join developed conservative views. This Era of the Klan was founded on concepts of Americanism, meaning Christianity and Patriotism; it was a White male social and fraternal organization organization out to stomp on "Niggers, Catholics, Jews...dope, bootlegging, graft, night clubs and road houses, violation of the Sabbath, unfair business dealings, sex and scandalous behavior." The organization practically ran Southern governments and appealed to small Northern towns as well. Robert Coughlan in "Konklave in Kokomo" stated "Literally half the town belonged to the Klan when I was a boy. At its peak, which was from 1923 through 1925, the Nathan Hale Den had about five thousand members, out of an able-bodied adult population of ten thousand. With this strength the Klan was able to dominate local politics." So, the portrayal of the clan was not too way off. The clan flogged many a white man and woman for "immoral behavior". I found the movie portrayed the clan in a neutral manner, politically correct for its time, but leaning toward the negative side as a bullying organization meddling into the private affairs of others. We all know that was the least of what they did. In fact, within a year or two of the release of this film, the clan quickly deteriorated from public backlash against the criminal behavior that came with their almost absolute power. On a whole other note, I was amazed at the nudity that was allowed in films back then. It was not prevalent but not new either. Of course this was the roaring 20s with mini-skirts, the Charleston and flappers. This was before the depression. Though I did not find the movie all that worth watching for the story line, looking at it to view the contemporary views that were abundant and conflicting makes this an historical gem.

Hubby vs. KKK!!!!

[milkdudz1 · 15 December 2004]

Beware Of the SPOILERS!!!!!!

The Mating Call involve a returning World War I veteran (Thomas Meighan) who has been abandoned by his wife (Evelyn Brent) and struggles to adjust to a new life of farming in Florida with a Russian immigrant bride (Renée Adorée). A womanizing Klansman gets the hots for wife-eee-poo, and the next thing you know, our fair haired hero hubby is taking on the Ku Klux Klan!!!!! Lots of silent film action... Drama... Adventure... Popcorn... Etc....

This is prolly the best film I have ever seen!!! Don't miss it when it comes to a silent theatre near you!!!!!