Her Defiance (1916)

Adeline falls in love with Frank, but her brother Theron wants her to marry rich Old Scapin, though she is carrying Frank's baby.

Directors:

Joe King, Cleo Madison

Writer:

Harvey Gates (scenario)

Stars:

Cleo Madison, Taylor N. Duncan, Edward Hearn

Cast

Cast overview:
Cleo Madison	...	Adeline Gabler
Taylor N. Duncan	...	Theron Gabler (as Ted Duncan)
Edward Hearn	...	Frank Warren
Willis Marks	...	Old Scapin
Adele Farrington	...	Mrs. Warren

Storyline

Against the vehement demands of her brother, a farm girl falls in love with a visitor from the city. When he is called away on business, the brother leads her to believe he has abandoned her. Finding herself pregnant, she reluctantly agrees to marry an old man from a nearby farm. Hearing of the marriage sometime later, her beau feels betrayed, yet unaware that she has fled the marriage, her elderly husband having died in the pursuit. A year later, the true lovers meet again in the city.

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Plot Keywords:

title directed by female | 

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Genres:

Short | Drama

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Did You Know?

Trivia

A print of this film has been preserved by the Library of Congress.

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Quotes

Adeline Gabler: You coward! You ran away when you knew the truth! Your son will never know you if I can help it!

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Connections

Featured in The Silent Feminists: America's First Women Directors (1993)

User Reviews

A Well-Made Potboiler

Her brother wants Cleo Madison to marry old and rich Willis Marks. She loves Edward Hearn, a businessman from the big city. When he is called back home, he writes her a note saying he will return, but it is never delivered. When Miss Madison discovers she is pregnant, she must make some hard choices.

This two-reel drama was co-directed by Miss Madison (one of eighteen she directed from 1914-1918) and Joe King, an actor who directed two movies; I suspect Mr. King handled the scenes in which Miss Madison appeared (most of them), since directing yourself is not easy.

It's a nice potboiler for the popular Universal star.The outdoor settings are good-looking, there's some nice cross-cutting while the lovers are parted, and a lovely shot of Miss Madison staring pensively out a train window. It's by no means an important or key movie, but like all well-made efforts, it's very much worth looking at, for a rare survivor of the many thousands of lost contemporaries.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

None English

Release Date:

14 January 1916 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Rex Motion Picture Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

21 min

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1