Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1917-10-30
''I|||VTOLERANCE"
seen AT MET
rs Greater Spectacle Than
The Birth of a Ma
ton.
lBy Geo. Al. Benson.l

David Ward Grifith's wonderful
spectacle, intolerance" opened q
three-day engagement al the Metro
gpolitaD theater yesterday. The play,
presented with all the advantage that
excellent music we'll played a pro-
vide.,s Pleased two large audiences.
and there is no doubt that 1t Will
please ever greater ones today. for
DIT, pei haps, is the greatest thing the
screen has seen.
What shall one say Of the specta-
cle?' unconsciously asks ones
self after it is all over. After being
tossed about on a sea of emotion for
three hours, III is too overcome 10
pass even snap Judgment. But one
needs must try.
Naturally. one finds ones self COM
pairing the play with Mr.. Grifhth's
first great spectacle. The Birth OF a
advantage in a connected story, the
latter play is far inferior. "lntoler-
ance,' is presented in four simple
stories, with a central theme. repre-
senting "love's struggle
the ages" First we have a modern
story. then a glimpse of Jerusalem III
727 "a. D.; comes. then, a peep INTO
the history Of Catherine de Medici
and last and greatest of all. "a truly
remarkable perturbation of Babylon
sof old. Through it all stalks lntoi-
erance, placing the bony finger of lg-
norance and Seltishness upon all mat
man loves and does. After one al
justs ones self to the method of Wis
ualization. the four currents really
.tmingle in one mighty river OF ex-
preston" and n follows Mr.. Grif,
flth's unfolding of his universal
theme with tense interest.
II 10 such nlayS as "lOtOlefanCo
that answer the critics in their at
tempts to withhold the motion pic
ures from It's place of art. Some say
that the films eventually will rank as
an eighth art in the cultural world
but most of those who write regularly
of the drama would have us believe
that they have no concern with art
at all for. they say, their sole con-
Germ is with life. Just as if art is not
concerned with life. The place OF the
motion picture in art is not fixed. u
such plays as Intolerance are rap
idly fixing it. The only drawback ~
that there are not more d. w. Gflt-
f1th's.
Mr.. Griffith realizes hat the great
outdoors is the mise of the moves.
and, IN those wonderful shifting
scenes OF scenic beauty. he visualizes
all the passions of man that s"eii
and faow into the a and adj
ventures and wars. His is the arr
that takes the detail and makes it the
moving force; the art that leads the
mind inc the infinite mysteries OF IRE.
In Intolerance beginning Win
the cradle that rocks through an the
ages. he carries us back and forth
from the present day to the DAYS
when civilization was a-borning: back
to the days when Belshazzar fought to
save ancient Babylon" the cradle OF
civilizations back to the time when
the Nazarene. greatest enemy of in
tolerance. walked the earth and per
formed His miracles. and hack to the
days when Catherine de Medici
brought about the hecatomb of st.
Bartholomew's day. sThe scenes shift
slowly at first. but as the central
theme becomes more evident. they
shift with the rapidity OF dreams. n
one SEES how Intolerance has been
the protasonist in all the great TRACE
dies OF history.
There are too many noteworthy
things in the play to catalogue them
!, all. But certain scenes stand out be-
u OF their magnitude and the
wonderful manner in which they were
produced.
Chief in this list is the attack upon
Babylon, which undoubtedly is the
greatest INSTALLATION Of ancient wars
! the theater has seen. The attack OF
Cyrus hosts. and the defense Of the
walls beggars description. Griffith
has touched every detail of ancient