The Dixie Flyer

I was lucky to catch this film in Los Angeles at CINECON 38, the annual early film festival over Labor Day weekend. Like most silent films, seeing them live, on a big screen, with complimentary musical interpretation and an appreciative audience turned this movie into an moving picture event! Some folks thought to skip this one as it had no major stars or director. But it turned out to be the surprise hit of the festival. A real entertaining romance, action, train thriller with comedy, drama and charming acting. PLOT: Versatile silent-film leading lady Eva Novak goes the "Pearl White" route in Dixie Flyer. She plays a plucky female telegraph operator who falls in love with a handsome railroad worker. The hero risks life and limb for the sake of the heroine - and vice versa. The most exciting scene finds Cullen Landis at the wheel of an out-of-control handcar as its speeds headlong towards an open bridge. The story, which was actually a series of all-but-unrelated incidents, was the handiwork of H. H. Van Loan, a specialist in sports and action yarns of all kinds.

Shown at Capitolfest in Rome,NY yesterday, the curator of the film said that they had found a second print of this film, once considered lost, and the final result was not quite ready. So instead we saw the restored print that has been in circulation for some time, but still is in excellent condition. He also said when he circulated the title to various classic film festivals nobody seemed to want it unless they were running an hour short and needed a filler. I can only assume that this is true because the silent cast is practically anonymous.

The opening scenes had me wondering. It opens in a board room and talks about how the president of a railroad company will lose his position if a new stretch of railroad is not completed on time. At the same time, it is revealed to the audience that a member of the board is conspiring to oust the current president via various back stabbing antics and take over in his place. I sighed. Oh no, not another evil financiers/business intrigue drama! But I couldn't have been further from the truth.

The Dixie Flyer is full of action as the foreman on the job (Cullen Landis as Sunrise Smith) teams up with the railroad president's daughter (Eva Novak as Rose). You see, Rose gets a job on site as telegraph operator using an alias so that nobody - including her father - knows who she is and that she is helping her dad. Together Sunrise and Rose save one action-packed situation after another, since several of the back stabbers and trouble makers are at the work site committing acts of sabotage. Rose isn't your typical 20's heroine, waiting for someone to rescue her. She takes action, jumping from moving railway car to car, helping Sunrise in a fight by jumping from one train to the next to hit the villain on the head with a heavy tool, etc.

The ending is extremely ironic and just and all I can say is I never saw that end coming! Enjoy it if you ever get the chance.

This low-budget film with no big stars is a delightful thriller. Eva Novak and Cullen Landis star in a railroad picture that is pretty much non-stop action, with one great action sequence after another. Novak gets to play a woman with spunk, who matches Landis stunt for stunt, not the usual fainting silent film heroine. I viewed a newly restored print of this film at Cinecon in September 2002 with an enthusiastic audience and great live piano accompaniment. It was the surprise hit of the festival.