Tess of the d'Urbervilles (1924 film)
Tess of the d'Urbervilles | |
---|---|
Directed by | Marshall Neilan |
Written by | Dorothy Farnum |
Produced by | Louis B. Mayer |
Starring | Blanche Sweet Conrad Nagel Stuart Holmes |
Narrated by | Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy |
Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn |
Release date |
|
Running time | 80 minutes |
Country | United States |
Languages | Silent film English intertitles |
Tess of the d'Urbervilles is a 1924 American silent drama film starring Blanche Sweet and Conrad Nagel.[1][2] It was directed by Sweet's husband, Marshall Neilan. The film is the second motion picture adaptation of the 1891 novel by Thomas Hardy, which had been turned into a very successful 1897 play starring Mrs. Fiske.[3] In 1913, Adolph Zukor enticed Mrs. Fiske to reprise her role in a film version which is now considered lost. The 1924 version is also considered lost.[4]
Plot
A young servant girl is seduced and raped by an older middle class man in Victorian England when employed in his household. After moving on with her path, she gets married. All is well until her husband discovers her past. This fact prompts her on a life of wandering, murder, and execution.
Cast
- Blanche Sweet - Teresa "Tess" Durbeyfield
- Conrad Nagel - Angel Clare
- Stuart Holmes - Alexander "Alec" D'Urberville
- George Fawcett - John Durbeyfield
- Victory Bateman - Joan Durbeyfield
- Courtenay Foote - Richard Crick
- Joseph J. Dowling - The Parson
Differences from the novel
After the film was completed, Louis B. Mayer changed the tragic ending to a happy one, much to the annoyance of Neilan and Hardy.[5]
See also
- Blanche Sweet filmography
- Tess of the d'Urbervilles (1913)
- Tess of the D'Urbervilles (2008)
- List of lost films
References
- ^ Variety film review; July 30, 1924, page 24.
- ^ Harrison's Reports review; August 2, 1924; page 123.
- ^ Tess of the d'Urbervilles at the Internet Broadway Database
- ^ Tess of the d'Urbervilles at silentera.com
- ^ Eames, John Douglas (1981). "The MGM Story", p 12
External links
- 1924 films
- 1924 lost films
- Lost drama films
- American films
- American silent feature films
- American black-and-white films
- Films based on works by Thomas Hardy
- Films directed by Marshall Neilan
- Films set in the 19th century
- Films set in England
- Lost American films
- Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films
- 1920s historical drama films
- American historical drama films
- 1924 drama films