A Operadora da Lonedale

Blanche Sweet stars in this film from 1911 by D. W. Griffith made for Biograph. Considering it was made in 1911, and Griffith's techniques weren't quite as advanced, it is very good. However, only a year later, Griffith remade his movie in a 15 minute short for Biograph, and the remake, I have to say, is more refined in techniques. There is essentially more cutting and the pacing is a lot faster (the beginning to this one starts slow). Griffith was probably looking at this film a year later and thinking, "I could've done better. Say, how about doing a remake of this one? And how about a chase towards the end by locomotive?" Thus "The Girl and Her Trust", the aforementioned remake, was filmed.

Now to the comparison. What makes this film not as advanced? Well, no chasing the tramps when they escape with the money. In fact, in here they don't even escape with the money at all. The shots of the interior of the locomotive look cool, but no tracking shot of the outside of the locomotive. That's another memorable thing in the remake. Plenty of cross-cutting, but the tramps peeking through the window bit is not drawn out as long and there isn't as much of that. Griffith was still learning when he made it, but it is still pretty good, and is certainly worthwhile for any Griffith fan. Even though the director became famous for "Birth of a Nation" and "Intolerance", short features like this show how advanced Griffith was with film editing.

This little movie follows the same structure and tropes of most of D. W. Griffith shorts of this era. These shorts often feel dated and very melodramatic from today's point of view, which is understandable. However, there is something about this particular movie that makes it standout from the rest.

In my opinion, Blanche Sweet does a great job in this role. Given the acting style of the early 1910s, Sweet's performance feels more modern than most. Her performance adds to the pace of the movie, which is nicely achieved.

In my opinion, I would take out the "romance" tag for this movie and add the "action" one. To sum up, a nice 17 minutes watch readily available in YouTube, some uploads incorporate music score which makes the experience much better.

This D. W. Griffith short involves a young woman whose father is the telegraph operator in a relatively remote place. Her boyfriend is a railroad engineer. When she takes over the key (the telegraph key), she becomes responsible for a large payroll shipment. Unfortunately, a couple of no-goods want the money and they are going to break into the telegraph shack and steal it from her. The plots revolves around how long she can forestall these men until her engineer boyfriend can bring the train back and rescue her. There is an interesting twist that is pretty satisfying.

This film, nicely preserved with tints, is part of the "Treasures" 4-disc DVD set from the American Film Archives. It captures DW Griffith in the middle of his stint at American Biograph, and it demonstrates his developing skill with montage. I'm fond of Lonedale because it captures day-to-day life in a bygone era (for example, the secretary operating an early typewriter and the operation of steam locomotives).

The performances are by necessity done in broad strokes. Blanche Sweet, then a very mature-looking 15-year-old plays the story's heroine who bluffs her way out of a sticky situation.

This film is one of the highlights of the Treasures DVD set.

This is a very good drama with a fine performance by Blanche Sweet who, almost unbelievably, was only 15 at the time. If D.W. Griffith had not remade it the following year (as the fine feature "The Girl and Her Trust), then Sweet and "The Lonedale Operator" might be better remembered.

The story is very similar to that in the better-known remake, with Sweet playing the daughter of a telegraph operator, who takes over when her father becomes ill, only to find herself thrust into a highly dangerous situation. The scenario was written by Mack Sennett, which makes it very interesting to imagine Sennett and the somber Griffith working together. It's surprisingly tight, and only a funny bit at the end (which works well) breaks the tension.

If you've seen and enjoyed the remake, this one is also well worth watching. It's less complex, but it's quite good in its own right. Sweet gives the heroine a different nature than does Dorothy Bernard in the remake, and both of them are quite good in the role, with no need at all to choose one or the other as the 'best' of the two performances.