Kodascope catalogs highlighted a large number of short documentaries and even a few features suitable for schools. Among the latter was "The Heart of a Hero" (1916) starring Robert Warwick in the days when he was a top matinée idol. He plays Nathan Hale – and does an excellent job too at a time when too many movie stars tended to rant and rave. The other thespians, led by the lovely Gail Kane, are also kept well in hand by Parisian import Emile Chautard. True, the director is inclined to adhere to the prevailing chain-that-camera-to-the-floor mentality, but he does allow a few horizontal pans and even a slight vertical tilt to relieve the composition tedium. Actually the 5-reel cutdown moves with admirable celerity. A lot of money was obviously spent staging the production. The screen often literally overflows with costumed extras. The sets are eye-catching and photography is nothing short of amazing. Because the film was buried in Kodak's catalog, it was hardly ever borrowed and now survives in a magnificently all-tinted version on a Grapevine DVD.
