One Exciting Night

Nice goings-on in an old mansion. But several flaws as well. The plot is a bit over-written, and there are numerous warnings on title cards to be very attentive, to be very afraid and so on. One step away from a brainwash really. From the first moments it's difficult to understand who's who - especially if you have a washed out bootleg copy, such as mine. You just don't distinguish the many faces. Plus there are several black-face performances, which is really stupid, as the men who are supposed to be black servants, have especially distinctive paleface features. Needless to say, they also provide the comic relief, and needless to say, it's all about rolling the eyes, waxing stiff, falling down, and running around in terror, yelling "lawdy, lawdy!" or something similar. In other words, not funny. I did like the leading lady and I can't blame Griffith for falling madly in love with her. Fortunately she's not only pretty, but also quite convincing as a 16-year old precious little rich girl, hungry for her mother's love. I immediately went browsing the net and found two more films where she is in, so I'll know a bit more when these arrive. Strangely enough her career totally ended a few years after this film, and I would like to know the reason, why. The leading man was a new face to me as well, even though looking at the list of his films, I realized I have seen several, but from the later period. He looks like he could be 16 himself, whereas in reality he was 32. Very handsome and moving as a young man tortured by love, he left a very good impression on me. There are nice interiors and some very good 1922 fashions displayed. I only wish there were a good, sharp, legitimate copy released. Despite some obvious flaws in the story, the complexity of the plot and the irritating comic subplot, a thoroughly enjoyable dark old house flick.

Like so many D.W. Griffith films, "One Exciting Nigh": has an informative subtitle, so "A Comedy Drama of Mystery" opens in "somber Africa", where the origin of Carol Dempster (as Agnes Harrington) is shown. Moreover, title cards advise viewers to watch the film's beginning scenes with intensity. It's good advice. Indeed, the well-designed plot unfolds in layers; and, the film's characterizations are a great strength. The drama centers on Ms. Dempster, and two suitors - Henry Hull (as John Fairfax) and Morgan Wallace (as J. Wilson Rockmaine). Dempster has accepted a proposal of marriage to Mr. Wallace; not for love, but to save her foster mother from scandal; Wallace witnessed Mrs. Harrington (Margaret Dale) steal a watch, as the Harrington family faced financial ruin. Then, Dempster catches Mr. Hull's eye; and, the two fall desperately in love…

Intricate, imaginative storytelling, and direction from Griffith, who weaves his characters into the standard mysterious "Old Dark House" formula, involving, of course, money and murder. The film's strong performances are tainted by some disturbingly offensive racial stereotypes. For example, the depiction of ambition among black-faced Porter Strong (as Romeo Washington), introduced in his listless "colored" community, is bound to leave you stone-faced. At least Mr. Strong's rolling bug-eyed "darkie" will provide a classic example of a racist character "type", if you're interested. However, such depictions taint an otherwise excellent, near indispensable, Griffith film.

Dempster was not always well-served by mentor Griffith; but, herein, she excels. Her awkwardly beautiful, and naively vulnerable character offered Dempster one of her best roles; and, it is delivered at a time when she had the silent acting prowess necessary for a leading role. Hull is outstanding as her leading man; a thoroughly believable young romantic, he makes their relationship work. Watch for the great courtship scene with Hull, Dempster, and her parasol; it defines their young, innocent love. Wallace is fine as the man who comes between them. Smaller roles, like Charles Mack's turn as an unfortunate houseguest, are likewise expertly played. "One Exciting Night" is perhaps too long; but, Griffith keeps thing moving, and little seems superfluous. The close-to-the-edge and ending scenes could blow you away.

******** One Exciting Night (10/2/22) D.W. Griffith ~ Carol Dempster, Henry Hull, Morgan Wallace, Charles Emmett Mack

ONE EXCITING NIGHT is an odd film directed by D.W. Griffith. It stars Carol Dempster and Henry Hull. The film is unusual for Griffith because it's a comic mystery. Although the film is too long, it's entertaining.

Dempster is an unknowing heiress who is always seeking the love of her mother. But the woman is not her mother. Dempster is being pawned off on an older suitor who is after her estate. At a party she meets and falls for Hull, but then odd happenings begin and there is a murder.

The intricate plot is probably defeated by the long running time, but this film is underrated possibly because it lacks major stars. Yet Henry Hull is an appealing leading man here, and Carol Dempster is a surprise.

A minor actress in the teens, Dempster was elevated to stardom in the 20s by Griffith after she became his mistress. Although Dempster has historically been regarded as a dud, she's quite good here as the awkward heroine, Agnes Harrington. She has an angular beauty that was slightly out of step with the era's ideals, but in the right role, Dempster was a good actress. In Griffith's THE SORROWS OF Satan and ISN'T LIFE WONDFERUL, Dempster turns in excellent performances. She retired from films before talkies came in and never looked back.

Also good are Margaret Dale as the "mother," Porter Strong as Romeo, Morgan Wallace as Rockmaine, and Charles Emmett Mack as the "guest."

Filming locations are quite good.

THE BAT by Avery Hopwood opened in August of 1920 and was a smash that ran for more than two years and 867 performances. After wrapping on ORPHANS OF THE STORM, Griffith worked on his next project, which was -- ahem -- inspired by the Broadway hit. It would be a modern dress affair, with contemporary characters and thrills, and humor and all that good stuff. There would be a missing heir, a treasure of half a million dollars to be found, a fiendish, masked murderer running around, reaching from hidden panels in the wall to strangle random house guests, a romance of young people and comic lower-class servants.

There are some issues.

First, there's the technical issue of its length. The IMDb lists it as running 128 minutes. The copy I saw on YouTube, derived from the Killiam Collection, timed at 146 minutes, and crawled. I adjusted the speed so it ran a touch over a hundred minutes. Now it was brisk. Unfortunately, for the first three-quarters of its length, it's a snooze.

The opening certainly took its time, with a long prologue that ran backwards sixteen years from the main events, setting up the ending with little surprise. The prologue was about 45 minutes on the Killiam print, 30 in real life. I would have cut it entirely, and dropped a little of the background into the rest of the picture, for a nice 70-minute feature.

Griffith might have wished to make a small picture, but he could not. He was the Great Director, and his public demanded major pieces from him. He could no more direct a five-reel movie than Fannie Hurst could turn out limericks. Like Cecil Demille in his last decade, every movie had to be an epic with a finale that would top his last epic.

Next there's the matter of casting. I won't even go into the actors in blackface playing comic servants. It might have still played in 1922, barely, but looking at them now, it's just insulting. Worse, Griffith had lost the Gish sisters and Richard Barthelmess, and he was stuck with Carol Dempster. Miss Dempster is fine in the closing sequence of the movie, when she nerves herself up to go out after the villain. She was fine at playing the modern -- for 1922 -- woman. Unfortunately, earlier in the movie, she plays the stereotypical Griffith heroine: sixteen years old, virginal, browbeaten by her mother and hiding in her blankets. She's worse than poor. She's ridiculous in the role.

So we have a slow, sodden beginning played by the wrong actors, leading up to the epic Griffith finish, and that ending is fine. People run around. A hurricane starts up. It rips trees and houses apart, it knocks down the players, it threatens them with death, and it's truly exciting.

Unfortunately, by then, I didn't care. The long prologue told me how it would come out. The dictates of drama told me that boy would get girl. I had the leisure to figure out who the villain was, and why that threatening man who invades the girls' bedroom was no threat. There was no dramatic tension, just the socko finish, like the Little Colonel leading the charge, or Lilian Gish leaping from ice floe to ice floe. Too bad. Too little, too late.

There are two reasons why you'd rent One Exciting Night, an old silent movie nearly 100 years old: Either you love D.W. Griffith's movies, or you love Henry Hull and this is the only silent movie of his you can get your hands on. I watched it for Henry, and it was worth it. He's so cute! With the advent of talkies, and his fame on Broadway for playing the old, crotchety Jeeter in Tobacco Road, he was almost always made up to be an old man and told to use a gruff, gravely voice. You'd never think, watching him in Jesse James or Great Expectations, that he looked like Matt Dillon when he was young! Seriously, folks, if you don't think it's possible that the grizzly old doctor from High Sierra was ever handsome, you've got to rent this silent movie.

This long romance-mystery takes place mostly in a beautiful mansion. Guests get together for a party, but there's a burglary underfoot. While dead bodies pop up and detectives try to figure things out, there's also a love story. The beautiful Carol Dempster feels pressured to marry the older, creepy Morgan Wallace because her mother wants his money, but as soon as she meets Henry Hull, her heart tells her to disobey.

This movie has a running time of 2 ½ hours, and it easily could have been edited down to a flat two hours if all the racism was eliminated. I'll admit it leaves a really bad taste in your mouth and ruins the rest of the movie. The prominent characters of color are white actors in blackface, and while it's not hard to believe black actors wouldn't want to take such insulting roles, it's more likely that the studio preferred to pay white actors.

If you do decide to watch it, with your fast-forward button handy, you'll be treated to another D.W. Griffith epic. This may start out as a simple house party, but you'll get to see where the studio put its money: a huge rainstorm that topples trees threatens to tear the young lovers apart. Henry not only wrestles with the rain, trees, and mud, but he also gets into fistfights with bad guys and gets to woo Carol with a big, sweeping kiss. This movie contains one of two onscreen kisses I've seen him enjoy, so that's pretty exciting. It's a whole different ball game to master silent acting versus talkies, and it's just delightful to see Henry Hull, famous for his gravelly voice, as the young romantic lead with delicate features. Plus, Carol is cute as a button and gets to parade around in some adorable dresses, too!