New-York tribune., 1919-08-03

We were too conscious of him standing
little between US and the picture and
pointing out, trifle too emphaticaliv.
its funniness, its pathos, its simplicity.
as though hand were occasionally laid
upon the continuity and we became
aware of a voice saying: Just a min
ute Hold that till they notice how
true this is and how lovely is its home
liness." And we reply: "Its fun. its
simplicity and its pathos are all there.
it is true, and its homeliness is lovely
But we never gulp inarticulately and
begin to snivel. Something moving and
spontaneous is not there; something
studied and insistent challenges rather
than releases our emotion.
If We were asked to lay our own hand
an any element contributive to this over
premeditation we think we could touch
two-the number and explanatory in
sistence of the sub titles, prone to re-
peat the gist of the scenes as though
We could not see for ourselves who was
behaving badly and whose heart was
breaking, and the length of time for
which many of the closeup are held.
We have before now offered prayer and
sacrifice for longer close-ups. Certain
ly there ought to be some middle way
between those which affect US as if
something or other had just swung past
the window and those in which Griffith
appears to be squeezing the last drop
of exquisite simplicity out of Lillian
Glsh's face, so as to be sure that We
have grasped how exquisite and how
simple it is. Certainly the expression
is held before US too long. or. else il is
not really Significant and compelling
enough for the time it is held. Isn't it
possible, then. that another reason for
the pictures lack of spontaneity may
be due to his Belasconian over-direc-
tion of his star?
Directors Will Overrides Actress :
Everything you insist upon an ac-
tress's doing may be admirable and
yet the mere insistence may give her
an air of being stage managed 10 death.
Miss Gish never suggests this in
straight work, but of late Griffith
seems to have determined that she
shall be a character Coincidence. And
always the same character, 1t is as
though he had decided that the sisters
should be at least as near alike as pos
sible; as if, while experimenting in
molds, he had produced one which did
not quite fit Dorothy but which he
liked so much that he determined any
how to cram in Lillian. The result is
a performance, a series of perform
ances, admirably intelligent and ex-
actly accomplished--oh, how far too
exactly For in the end the effect is
merely that of obedience The life
that moves it is visibly not that of the
actresses will, but the directors. and
consequently that movement is only
galvanized; the quaint queer, funny
little figure of Griffith's contrivence is
only an automaton. after all
There is no doubt that in the begin
ming it made a hit; it was so novel,
so unexpected, we were SO glad-in a
world OF lazy specialists see an
evaslve and poetic personality get down
to the hard labor of Characterization,
freshenlng itself away from any dan
ger of sentiments cloying sweetness
and boldly seeking variety But as
repetition follows repetition the thing
ceases to be variety or even novelty.
We see more and more clearly how
little it is revelation and how much it
is stunt; mechanical stunt, obedent
to that vision in Griffith's mind which
IS only "the triumph Of memory over
experience"
Character Created From Imagination
For quaint, queer. funny and pathetic
as the little figure is it is not a reality
OF to-day, any more in rural than in
urban communities; it is something
which Griffith remembers out of his
childhood and even more, perhaps, out
of that world of Dickens which was
once the real childhood world Of all
of US. Done Just once in just such ar
atmosphere she might have remained
q sort CT classic, bat TO surround her
with our own day Is 10 make a con-
trast not in type but in era. The spirit
of Susie is ss real as ever. but her
exterior-clothes, makeup, manners
no longer exists, and to pretend that
1t does is to turn that beautiful reality,
"the story of a plain girl" into tie
story of an eccentricity; a single ard
not representative case.
1t has been our hard fate to celebrate
here the faults of True Heart Susie
instead Of all its wise and lovely yir-
tues; these can still easily be seen for
themselves and are so much worth see
ing as to return upon the memory with
even a more seizing charm than the
first glance made one aware Of.