Broken Blossoms. 1919. USA. Directed by D.W. Griffith. With Lillian Gish, Richard Barthelmess, Wilfred Lucas. Silent, with musical accompaniment. 35mm. 89 min.
Conceived as an “art film,” Griffith patented a “gel-lighting” system for Broken Blossoms designed to project colored lights onto the film when it screened in first run theaters. The Museum’s restoration, based on a print from the 1920’s, achieves these impressionistic effects with tinted shades of amber, pink, blue and yellow. A religious Chinese man arrives in London where he witnesses much cruelty. Meeting Lucy, the child of a ruthless boxer, he takes her in, offering food, shelter, and a peaceful home. Her bigoted father will not permit their friendship, and it takes a near act of violence to remind the young man of his Buddhist teachings. Late MoMA film curator Charles Silver describes Broken Blossoms as Griffith’s “Limehouse Romeo and Juliet.”
The Lonedale Operator. 1911. USA. Directed by D.W. Griffith. With Blanche Sweet, Wilfred Lucas. Silent, with musical accompaniment. 35mm. 17 min.
In this short suspense thriller, a young woman in an isolated railroad telegraph office defends the station against ruthless thieves. In 97 shots, more than he had ever used before, Griffith builds tension through parallel editing. This restoration features the blue tinting of the original prints that is used to convey the semi-darkness that enables the girl to fool the crooks.