The Wind (1928)

A frail young woman from the east moves in with her cousin in the west, where she causes tension within the family and is slowly driven mad.

Director:

Victor Sjöström (as Victor Seastrom)

Writers:

Frances Marion (scenario), Dorothy Scarborough (from the novel by)

Stars:

Lillian Gish, Lars Hanson, Montagu Love

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Lillian Gish	...	Letty
Lars Hanson	...	Lige
Montagu Love	...	Roddy
Dorothy Cumming	...	Cora
Edward Earle	...	Beverly
William Orlamond	...	Sourdough
Carmencita Johnson	...	Cora's Child
Leon Janney	...	Cora's Child (as Laon Ramon)
Billy Kent Schaefer	...	Cora's Child

Storyline

Innocent and naive Letty Mason moves from her Virginia home to Sweet Water on the western prairies to live on the ranch of her cousin Beverly, his wife Cora and their three children. Letty quickly learns how inhospitable the environment in Sweet Water is, the most obvious item being the incessant wind. But equally inhospitable are the unrefined way the people in Sweet Water live to which she is unaccustomed, and Cora, who believes Letty has come to steal Beverly away from her. As such, Cora orders Letty out of her and Bev's house. With no money, Letty is forced to accept one of the marriage proposal she receives, the lesser evil being that from Bev and Cora's ranching neighbor, Lige Hightower, a man who she does not love. Despite a less than harmonious start, Letty, in part due to her isolation as she is more often than not forced to stay inside due to the wind, begins to have affection for Lige, who wants to do right by her, and who promises to send her back to Virginia when he is ...

---

Plot Keywords:

sand | storm | marriage | isolation | buried in sand | 

---

Taglines:

A TORNADO OF HUMAN EMOTIONS.-prevail in this gripping drama of the cyclone-swept Texan Desert- this emotional story of a girl who did not know of hardships and evil men- of stark drama, soul searing sacrifice and breath-catching romance- See LILLIAN GISH in "THE WIND" (Print Ad- Franklin Times, ((Pukekohe, NZ)) 24 July 1929)

---

Genres:

Drama | Romance | Thriller | Western

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film was selected to the National Film Registry, Library of Congress, in 1993.

---

Quotes

Letty Mason: -and for a moment I thought they were serious!
Cora: You're goin' to take one of 'em serious! You don't think I ain't seen through your tricks, Miss Sly Boots! You love Beverly-but you'll never get him away from me-he's mine! What's more-you're gettin' out o' our house-and gettin' out quick! I'd like to kill you!

---

Connections

Referenced in Hollywood: Pioneers (1980)

---

Soundtracks

Good Night, Irene
Written by Leadbelly
Played at the Shindig (1983 version)

User Reviews

It'll blow you away!

Really awesome silent film about a young woman who finds herself at the mercy of people who use and abuse her. With no way to get home, stranded in the mojave desert, Lillian Gish has maybe her best role. The special affects are astounding. The ending is very poor, however. Lillian Gish herself talks about how they insisted a sad ending would ruin her career, even though her films all had sad endings in the past and she was a huge star! She herself, hated the ending they made. Just ignore it and think about how great the whole rest of the film is!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

None English

Release Date:

23 November 1928 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Wind

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

79 min (TCM print)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1