The Rosary

If you know of anyone skeptical about the artistic possibilities of the moving pictures, tell him to see this film. It reprints the familiar song, "The Rosary," verse by verse, and tells a story that will delight observers everywhere. The close is tender and effective, and tears spring to the eyes as the returning soldier finds his sweetheart has become a nun. The scenes are pictured within a rosary and the film tints of blue and orange are very pleasing. Phillips Smalley enacts the leading role. A very desirable offering. - The Moving Picture World, May 10, 1913

Lois Weber and Phillips Smalley are lovers. When the Civil War begins, he must go to battle. Finally, after three years in the field, he is wounded in the field and reported as dead.

It's another very interesting effort by Weber and Smalley. The movie is based on a popular and sentimental song of the day by Ethelbert Nevin. This was by no means the first movie based on a poem; however, by restricting the image to a circle and placing inside a rosary, they clearly intended this as no simple gimmick, but an attempt to contrast the words of titles with the actions shown and illustrate the thoughts behind the poem.

It's a bit of a stretch, but there were occasional attempts to vary the shape of the image by use of mattes back to the 19th century, rather than using set design to construct an interior composition. Smalley and Weber would use a different visual structure in the same year's SUSPENSE.

The sentimentality of the film does not appeal to me, but don't let that stop you. Certainly the critics of the time were fulsome in their praise; even with my own taste I must admit it is a well-thought-out and interestingly produced movie.

An impressively experimental one-reeler, "The Rosary" demonstrates as ever how well director, writer and star Lois Weber was at integrating her Catholic proselytizing into art. Here, the film image is framed within a circular matte made of the titular rosary. It reminds me of the circular shape of magic lantern slides, the shows of which often included poetic or song-based narration--this film, too, being said to be based on a popular song and quite poetic in its flowing juxtaposition of fading images and only four lyrical title cards. The score by Esin Aydingoz and performed by the Berklee Silent Film Orchestra for the Pioneers: First Women Filmmakers presentation helps.

The semicentennial Civil War melodrama, of a love story torn by war and nunnery, isn't of much interest, but the novel way it's presented as a framed memory is appreciated. A lot of writing on Weber's films is spent on the often-controversial content of their messages, but it's also remarkable how conceptually and visually intriguing they could be.