The Painted Lady

Miss Blanche Sweet's portrayal of a mad girl in this picture seems to reach a higher plane of art than any of her previous characterizations, and she has done good work in many diverse roles. The film presents a psychological study of character dramatically, and gives a fresh criticism of life. The subtlety of it makes it a hard picture to comment on; one hesitates as before jumping into a very deep pool. But very crudely we may say that it draws for us a not very well balanced girl. She is somewhat morbidly conscientious and, consequently, not popular; but the humanity of her heart, as shown by her longing for friends, her longing to be understood, makes us deeply interested in her. Very logical is her reaching out to her new friend, her first sweetheart, and since he is what he is, a tragedy of some sort is imminent. The suddenness with which it comes shatters her mind. It is a picture that most certainly ought to be liked. No mechanically working mind could possibly have conceived it and we commend it as a work of art. A strong offering. - The Moving Picture World, November 9, 1912

While a young lady contemplated the advantages of make-up a man contemplated how he could get access of an old man's business secrets.

In "The Painted Lady" The Older Sister (Blanche Sweet) eschewed make-up while The Younger Sister (Madge Kirby) had all the boys in the yard by virtue of her liberally using her war paint. But not all of the men flocked to The Younger Sister. At least one man, The Stranger (Joseph Graybill), was attracted to The Older Sister. Too bad his aims were criminal in nature. He was using the Older Sister as a means to get access to her father's business secrets.

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I like the subhead to this film: "An Indictment Of Frivolous Femininity." I don't like the idea expressed in the story that a woman has to put on a lot of makeup to attract a man. In fact, in this case, the actress playing the "plain" and often-rejected girl, is pretty without it. She's Blanche Sweet, who starred in a ton of silent movies including many in her teenage years. Although only in her mid-teens when this was made (perhaps even 14), she looked more mature.

In this story, as we see, shyness and a too-strict father are also making a dating life almost nonexistent for poor, makeup-less "the older sister" (Sweet).

What happens in this story is very strange, and you can read various accounts of it here. I guess the lonely girl wasn't too good at figuring out men. Chalk it up to loneliness and inexperience. What happens in her house, though, is too weird and dates the movie quite a bit. But, that's to be expected. After all, the movie isn't far from being 100 years old.

It's nice that these old D.W. Griffith shorts are still available to the public, even if they look a little odd.

Early film directed by D.W. Griffith; with Blanche Sweet giving a noteworthy performance. She is a young woman forbidden, by her father (Charles Hill Mailes), to wear make-up. When she goes to an ice cream social, she attracts little attention, while the Griffith men go for "The Painted Lady". Dejected, she meets a stranger in town (Joseph Graybill); at last! a man shows interest in the unpainted Ms. Sweet. They begin to meet secretly. Sadly, the man is really interested in her father's money - in disguise, he goes to rob Sweet's home; then, our heroine gets a gun to confront the thief…

Sweet is entertaining in the starring role, relaying all the proper emotions with her face and gestures. There is a continuity distraction - note that the man's hat as he lies down seems to pop back on his head inexplicably. "The Painted Lady"'s message doesn't really make too much sense. Why is Sweet is the only woman who suffers the consequences of frivolous femininity?

***** The Painted Lady (10/24/12) D.W. Griffith ~ Blanche Sweet, Charles Hill Mailes, Joseph Graybill

A brave attempt from D. W. Griffith to examine the psychological frailty of a plain girl who mistakenly believes she just might have found love. Blanche Sweet, as the older wallflower sister of the popular 'Painted Lady' of the title, handles a demanding role with skill and sensitivity, but Griffith struggles with the complexity of her character's disintegration, and would have been better off making a longer picture of the subject a few years later.