Whether intended or not the producers of this him have preached a sermon against oppression that should exert an influence against the methods of those who take advantage of the needy. It is a story of an usurer, emphasized by the contrast of the condition of those to whom he has loaned money and his own attendance at expensive banquets in alternate scenes. Dramatically the situation of the dependents is shown, and it is made clear that it is all for gold. The usurer's doom is made dramatic. A widow, whom he has oppressed, faints and in falling pushes his safe door shut with him inside and he is suffocated before the time lock allows the safe to be opened. The determination to get gold, no matter at what cost, has caused unspeakable misery throughout history. This picture represents a modern manifestation of this greed. Not all usurers are so summarily dealt with, but it is not too much to say that it would be well if they were. - The Moving Picture World, August 27, 1910
Review of The Usurer
