page_title: Sadie Thompson
section_title: Release and reception
hierarchical_section_title: Sadie Thompson / Release and reception
caption_attribution_description: English: Lobby card
context_page_description: Sadie Thompson is a 1928 American silent drama film that tells the story of a "fallen woman" who comes to Pago Pago on the island of Tutuila to start a new life, but encounters a zealous missionary who wants to force her back to her former life in San Francisco. The film stars Gloria Swanson, Lionel Barrymore, and Raoul Walsh, and is one of Swanson's most successful films.
  Due to the subject matter, the making of the film was extremely controversial. However, it was a financial and critical success for Swanson. The film was based on the 1921 short story "Rain" by W. Somerset Maugham and the 1922 play that was based on the book by John Colton and Clemence Randolph, starring Jeanne Eagels.
context_section_description: Upon its release, Sadie Thompson was praised by critics as was Swanson's performance. Contemporary film critics have cited Swanson's performance as one of her best.
  The film was a financial and critical success and was the only silent, independent film of Swanson's to do well at the box office. In fact, it was one of her last financially successful films, along with the sound films The Trespasser and Sunset Blvd. It made $1 million in the United States and $7 million internationally. However, at Kennedy's advice, Swanson had sold her distribution rights for the film to Schenck because Kennedy felt it would be a commercial failure. He also did not care for the image Swanson portrayed in the film. By this point, Queen Kelly had been a disaster and Swanson regretted it.
  The film made the top 10 best pictures of the year list as well.
caption: Sadie Thompson Lobby Card 1928
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