Expiation

Adrienne Renault is a stage performer at the Frivolity Theatre in New York City. She is carrying on with Philip Overman, a married man. Daisy Henderson, a young dancer in the act, is naïve in the ways of romantic affairs, so Adrienne takes her under her wing. Overman's wife confronts Adrienne, and while they are talking, Overman shows up to bring Adrienne flowers. The Overman marriage quickly goes into the dumper. Adrienne now sets her sights on rich Dick Wallace. She marries him, and discovers she actually has fallen for him. She is ready to settle down to a life of wedded bliss. Daisy, now a star at the theatre, begins to carry on with Dick. Adrienne finds out, and then takes a good hard look at her life.

This is a pretty entertaining film. There are so many places where this movie could have devolved into parody, but Glaum really holds this together. Her transformation from vamp to the wronged wife is quite remarkable. She gets to wear some nice outfits (not including her spider-woman outfit in the opening scenes of her act), and is very attractive.

In the closing shot, there is little doubt that the audience feels great sympathy for her. I didn't find Irving Cummings (as Dick Wallace) particularly good-looking, but there was certainly nothing wrong with his acting. (Although IMDb lists the character as "Dave," he is clearly listed as "Dick" on the title cards.) It's a shame I could not see a better print. In addition to some scenes being difficult to see, several of the title cards were almost impossible to read. Many of these title cards had some interesting art work on them, to reflect the "mood" of the dialogue or narration - but the art work was barely visible in some cases.

Even by some of the high standards of the silent era, this movie benefited from some outstanding labor behind the scenes. The sets are gorgeous, the costume design is marvelous (especially women's sartorial arrangements), and the hair and makeup work is splendid. Even the intertitles are graced with lovely, detailed illustrations to add flair. Meanwhile, though the narrative covers some familiar silent territory of a free-spirited woman who plays fast and loose with men's hearts, screenwriter C. Gardner Sullivan fills his screenplay with scenes that frankly exceed what one commonly supposes of early cinema and the rigid censorial standards thereof. We get instances of highly flirtatious interactions between the genders (downright scandalous for the time) well beyond what other pictures dared to get away with, or were allowed to, to say nothing of scenes of otherwise raucous behavior befitting what would become known as "the Roaring Twenties" (the thirty-minute "opening scene" of Damien Chazelle's 'Babylon' comes to mind, though far less extreme). It's to the immense credit of Sullivan, filmmaker Fred Niblo, and his cast and crew that everyone was on board with pushing the envelope of what was commonly deemed acceptable in features at the time - and moreover, that 1920's 'Sex' is such an engaging, entertaining film on its own merits.

Yes, the more provocative elements of the title (including its very name) absolutely help it to stand out among its kin, not least when the essence of the plot boils down to a thrust we've seen time and again. Even setting these aside, however, I think 'Sex' is characterized by terrific work across the board that really leaves its mark. Dialogue as conveyed by intertitles is sharp and biting, with some piercing cleverness. The scene writing at large, even less the most willfully defiant cases, is rich and flavorful - concretely building the tableau piece by piece, but also plainly feeling sufficiently open and undefined to allow the actors and director to explore each moment and make it their own. To be sure, Niblo orchestrates shots and scenes with obvious keen intelligence, sagely capturing some excellent fragments in time - including wonderful, carefully considered close-ups - and to that point, cinematographer Charles J. Stumar is surely to be commended as well. Still, maybe I'm just speculating, but maybe even Niblo's direction is pointedly free and welcoming just like the scene writing; I get a sense that the cast, given an opportunity to let go and truly let the characters and situations take over, revel in the freedom that the production grants.

Thus is Louise Glaum able to embody Adrienne with nuanced foundations of conniving and manipulation, but also stark, outward sex appeal and frivolity, belying more complex emotions to come out in time. Peggy Pearce, in the supporting part of Daisy, is just as delightful in portraying the innocent who Adrienne rather takes under her wing, with predictable results; Pearce is arguably even given an equal chance to shine, given Daisy's dramatic character arc. This is hardly to count out supporting players like William Conklin or Irving Cummings, and given relatively little time on-screen, Myrtle Stedman makes a big impression as beleaguered Mrs. Overman. Not to discount Niblo's expert, delicate guiding hand, but the cast really lean into their roles in the storytelling, and from one to the next all contribute superbly to the weaving of a tale of love, lust, and betrayal. I'd even go so far as to say that the acting is typified by more subtlety and natural comportment than what was often true of the silent era, where exaggerated facial expressions and body language tended to reign supreme (especially in the earliest years).

Despite its most uninhibited dalliances, 'Sex' isn't entirely free of the issues of its contemporaries. The eventual turnabout is absorbing, and a major part of the joy of the narrative as a viewer, but the picture also employs a trope that's as empty and tiresome as they come. Just as fiction generally is obsessed with the idea that a man and a woman appearing in scenes together must necessarily become romantically entangled (sigh), older movies loved to aggravatingly emphasize that love and marriage change a woman (gag me with a spoon), and alter their mindset and priorities (you're kidding me, right?). As much as Sullivan, Niblo, and the ensemble rejoice in resisting cultural strictures in telling their story, in some small measure they nonetheless voluntarily abide by them in a rather sexist way. Unless: might this have been a concession to let the rest of the tale be told as they saw fit? I also think this is imperfect more broadly; the last stretch of the runtime feels slightly overlong, with weaker writing that kind of limply tapers off. For as strong as 'Sex' is for most of its length, it's strikingly meager in its last few minutes - with a finish that's possibly appropriate for the saga, but weirdly heavy-handed, and less than fully convincing as it's sapped of the robust drama that would let it have all due impact.

Yet though the end result may be a tad flawed, such inelegance is quite outweighed by the considerable value the flick has to offer. Some facets are familiar, but any ordinariness and the more deficient aspects of the storytelling are outshone by those ways in which 'Sex' readily grabs one's attention. With vibrant visuals, vivid acting, and vivacious dialogue and scenes front and center more than not, this rises above its less impeccable traits and stands out from similar fare that may possess the same faults, without the same advantages. With all this said, the film still doesn't achieve such heights as to utterly demand viewership; unless you're an avid cinephile and already a devotee of the silent era, you don't need to go out of your way to see this. If you do happen to come across it, however, then I feel it's a cut above many of its brethren, and well worth checking out even with its weaker bits. 'Sex' may not be a revelation, but it's noteworthy, and a fine slice of early cinema.

Louise Glaum (as Adrienne Renault) is a nightclub "Vamp" who enjoys carefree sex with the married men who come to see her dance at New York's gayest midnight frolic club - "The Frivolity". As the film opens, Ms. Glaum is having a satisfying affair with William Conklin (as Philip Overman); he is stepping out on lonely wife Myrtle Stedman (as Mrs. Overman) to see Glaum perform her sensational "Spider Dance". Glaum has taken new "Frivolity" club beauty Peggy Pearce (as Daisy Henderson) under her wing - taking her to parties and sharing her "you only live once" philosophy. Glaum wants Ms. Pearce to avoid "fly-by-nights", and hook up with a wealthy married man. Well - wouldn't you know it, but, very soon, the frivolous Glaum gets that "nest-building" urge! She finds Irving Cummings (as Dick Wallace), and settles down. Men being men, Glaum soon finds herself sitting home alone, while Mr. Cummings steps out to "The Frivolity" and finds a mistress - who can she be?

The luridly titled "Sex" is really an old-fashioned morality story; specifically, it preaches, "The standards of morality eternally demand that the naked soul of Sex be stripped of its falsehoods - which can only be atoned for through bitter tears." Satan even makes a cameo appearance; laughing at Glaum as she parties with Cummings, the devil knows what is in store for the couple! Note, however, that the film offers hope for redemption, as evidenced in its extended coverage of Mr. and Mrs. Overman's storyline.

Glaum is great as the "Partying Mistress" turned "Dutiful Wife" - she is very convincing, in a wide ranging role. Watch for the scene where Glaum discovers the identity of her husband's mistress; it's an expertly performed silent scene. The supporting cast is also effective - Pearce (aka Viola Barry) and Cummings (later, a successful director) playing well opposite Glaum. And, Fred Niblo directed "Sex" with a sure touch. Despite its strengths, however, the styles and situations on-screen make the film seem more like a silent relic than a silent classic.

****** Sex (3/29/20) Fred Niblo ~ Louise Glaum, Irving Cummings, Viola Barry

Never had a provocative movie title produced such hysteria as well as a huge payoff at the box office as March 1920's "Sex." Yet what the billboard promised and what Thomas Ince's Studio delivered was a common tame melodrama. Sure, sex was the motivating force behind the actions of the film's characters, but the manipulations of the single women behind the scenes of married men carrying on illicit affairs with a morality-play message was the underlying theme of "Sex." The film by any other name would have been a blip in cinematic history. But its title created such controversy that the buzz behind the marketing before the real details of the movie's plot emerged created long lines at movie theaters. "Sex" was released before a national moral code was introduced by the film industry. The country's strictest state censor board, Pennsylvania, reviewed the movie and didn't see anything wrong with it besides its title. It insisted for the studio change its name to 'Sex Crushed To Earth' before the movie could be shown in that state, which it did.

The film's producer, J. Parker Read, ever the marketeer, defended the motion picture. He wrote in the Los Angeles Times: "Sex has an important part in life either for evil or good, and it is the producers' privilege to show the error of the former and the virtue of the latter. Anybody who would wish to ban sex pictures from the screen, would be simply eliminating a highly important, if not the most important phase of life from the pictures." The trouble with Parker's statement was it was all hype. The plot showcases a married millionaire on the town falling for a stage dancer played by Louise Glaum. The wife finds out about his affair and asks Glaum to stop. She refuses, but by the time the wife files for divorce, the dancer is off onto her next affair with yet another millionaire, whom she marries. Things get sticky when Glaum's friend Daisy, naive about married men before Louise sets her straight on the advantages of such affairs, successfully hones in on Glaum's new husband. Naturally, the irony of Glaum's situation when Daisy refuses to stop with the affair when asked boomerangs on the previous vamp Louise.

The actress Glaum had an interesting life as her movie career ended after acting in a handful of films post-"Sex." She returned to the stage, and with the marriage to a movie theater owner, eventually opened or bought several stage venues in the L. A. area--all which were successful operations.

Shortly after its premiere, in New Jersey, this film was shown in Pennsylvania, where the State Board of Censors changed the title for screenings around that state to SEX CRUSHED TO EARTH, which is comprehensible for the time, but the work is after being a morality play, with the lead character, Adrienne Renault(Louise Glaum) realizing what the wages of her superficial existence are to be. Adrienne, star of the Frivolity Theatre in New York, enjoys stealing husbands with her major acquisition being Phillip Overman (William Conklin) whose wife she scorns when Mrs. Overman begs for his return; a chorine, Daisy (Peggy Pearce) is impressed by Adrienne's victorious self-absorption, and when the latter disposes of Overman in favor of a millionaire, Dick Wallace (Irving Cummings), the two performers find themselves in competition for him, which buckles the flooring of Adrienne's harsh philosophy. Although baldly a melodrama, SEX has many good moments and effective scenes, is well directed by Fred Niblo, and is a proper showcase for Glaum, who at the time of filming outdistances Theda Bara in the sweepstakes for America's favorite vamp; the titles offer witty art design, editing is smoothly done and Cummings, as a wealthy man about town, gives an outstanding, nuanced performance as the axle of the story.