classicsoncall Review of Falling Leaves

Falling Leaves (1912)

"When the last leaf falls she will have passed away."

[6/10 · 13 October 2015]

At the risk of sounding morose or unsympathetic, this film would have had much more poignancy if the older sister Winifred had succumbed to her illness. It would have added a significant dimension to the heartbreaking sight of young Trixie attempting to outwit Mother Nature and the family doctor's prediction. I wasn't hoping for that by the way, but it's something I thought about as the doctor spelled out a fatal outcome before Trixie discovered Dr. Headley by chance, and he offered his medical discovery to save Winifred's life. The 'cure', miraculous as it was, didn't quite ring true within the context of the story, and the feel good ending seemed forced. Interestingly, the term 'consumption' was used in the story in place of tuberculosis, as the disease had the effect of consuming a host body from the inside out. I recall it's use as far back as the Fifties when I was a kid, along with a method of treatment known as an 'oxygen tent'. One of the outstanding benefits of these century old film shorts is to take us back to a simpler time and place, providing a unique perspective on the way life used to be.