GRIFFITH'S GREAT FILM.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17634, 11 December 1922, Page 11

GRIFFITH'S GREAT FILM.

"ORPHANS OF THE STORM" AT LIBERTY ON SATURDAY,

A parallel to conditions existing in some of the impoverished European countries today prevailed in France in the days preceding the French Revolution, which gives authority for certain scenes that apparently exceed, historical truth to the uninformed minds who witness certain ecenes in D. W. Griffith's latest photoplay Benaation, "Orphans of the Storm," baaed on the old stage favourite, "The Two Orphans." This film i» coming to the Liberty Theatre next Saturday. This parallel ia contained in the money oonditiona of the kingdom, when, after nearly half a- century of wild, governmental extravagance, bankruptcy stalked throughout the nation and claimed it for its own: Desperation- seized the various Ministers of Finance during the reign of Louia XVI., and one after another tried various emergencies to stabilise the finances of that ill-fated Government. Then » a desperate resort the printing presses wer« summoned inio use and vast amounts of paper money were issued, which, as in the modern countries above referred to, resulted in ruining the standards of money. Aa a consequence poverty seized the inhabitants, and it is safe to say that never waa absolute beggary so universally existent as among the French- of that day. Veritable armies of •begigaiß paraded the streets, and writers of that period have described' the horrifying i effect of the terrible state of conditions among the impoverished people. Tho physically afflicted were in the minority, but they added impressivenoas to the appearance of the gaunt, starving hundreds of men, women, and children, clothed in tattered garments, who intested every avenue of travel and by every impassioned plea'solicited alms. The arrogance of the titled and wealthy was equally marked as ,the destitution of the poor, thus throwing into, strong contrast the two classes of people. As a? fact, there seemed to be no middle classeß in the oities, and thus the dividing line between the castes of the inhabitants was wide indeed. Such conditions provided a .hotbed of revolution, and it was in that ferment that the seed of -revolution found such instant and intensive growth as to overthrow a Government. Thus it is that Griffith, at his thorough best, pictures hordes of tattered and emaciated beggars confronting the pedestrians in his scenes of Paris of the period in which his drama is situated. Close scrutiny of the oharaoters pictured will give the thinking an idea of what Griffith means as a oreator of productions. " How or where he assembled such a motley army so fitting in physical fundamentals, ea well as in costumingi, is a confounding mystery. Lillian and Dorothy Gish axe seen as the little orphan girls suffering in the horrors of the maddest days in the history of a nation— The French Revolution. Lillian Gish is the central figure of a romance that ib terrirSo in its appeal', and, at times, heartrending. In the scene where she -is thrown into the executioner's cart by the fanatical Jacques Forget-Not, her impression of mute suffering is truly realistic so terrified, so humble, yet so forgiving, It is a moment never to be forgotten. The second tremendous punch arrives when the girl and her lover, Chevalior de Varadey, aire sent to the guillotine. The famous Danton, fiery leader of an outI raged people, intervenes with the Tribunal and' with" the reprieve thus gained, joins ! his comrades on horseback and makes the I dash to the guillotine gates just outside the city. Hera is seen the most gripping episode of the whole picture _ The faintfcw girl is prostrate almost under the cruel knife, while the galloping cavalry, mounting all obstacles, dashing _ over bridges breaking- down gates, tramping on g-epdarmes, on to the rescue til! the heart nearlv bursts with susnense. Th* box plan for the brief season win open at The Bristol Piano Company on Wednesday.