AniInterview Sorry, this movie sucks

SunnyHello Nice effects though.

filippaberry84 I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

gavin6942 A naive country girl (Lillian Gish) is tricked into a sham marriage by a wealthy womanizer, then must rebuild her life despite the taint of having borne a child out of wedlock.Although it was Griffith's most expensive film to date, it was also one of his most commercially successful. "Way Down East" is the fourth highest grossing silent film in cinema history, taking in more than $4.5 million at the box office in 1920. That is an astounding number, and to be ranked fourth... it would probably today not be considered Griffith's best, and to think it easily out-performed Chaplin and Keaton...Similar to other Griffith productions, "Way Down East" was subjected to censorship by some American state film censor boards. For example, the Pennsylvania film board required over 60 cuts in the film, removing the mock marriage and honeymoon between Lennox and Anna as well as any hints of her pregnancy, effectively destroying the film's integral conflict. Exactly how the film could make any sense without the core of its plot is beyond me.

kidboots An old stage melodrama, written by Lottie Blair Parker and first performed around 1895, the story was old fashioned even in 1920. D. W. Griffith paid $175,000 for the film rights and a lot of people thought he was mad. As a film for his "muse", Lillian Gish, Griffith knew exactly what he was doing. He made the story seem so fresh and new and the "last minute rescue" on the ice wasn't found in the original play at all."A Simple Story of Plain People" was set in New England and Lillian Gish plays Anna Moore - the first scene she plays only with her expressive eyes and they show her every thought. It was truly wonderful acting. Anna is going to stay at her cousins, the Tremonts, in the hope that they will help her mother financially.She is allowed to dress for the Tremonts ball, although not invited to attend. An eccentric aunt (Florence Short) has other ideas and with a more alluring dress makes Anna the belle of the ball. Anna makes the acquaintance of Lennox Sanderson ( a very dapper Lowell Sherman), a wealthy womanizer, who determines to seduce Anna. He persuades her to agree to a secret marriage performed by a friend that he has paid, to impersonate a clergyman. Lillian Gish is so poignant and moving as Anna - at first so wide eyed and fluttering as an innocent country girl, then as the grieving young mother forced to baptise her own baby before it dies, she gives an spellbinding performance!!!She is forced to leave the lodgings because of gossip and the scene where she is trudging up the road, alone and forlorn, leaves a lump in your throat. She finds work at Squire Bartlett's (Burr McIntosh) residence, where she meets David (Richard Barthelmess). It seems Sanderson lives nearby and warns her to leave. David sees that she is upset and begs her to stay. She soon becomes a beloved member of the family, although the stern puritans know nothing of her past.The land lady from the lodging house visits the local sewing circle group, sees Anna passing and then tells all she knows about her which is quickly passed on to the Squire. He promptly turns Anna out into a raging snow storm and what a storm it was!!! The ice scene looked so real because it was. Clarine Seymour, originally given the role Mary Hay inherited, supposedly died from exposure to the almost artic conditions of the location. Lillian Gish recalls suggesting letting her arm and hair fall over the ice floe for dramatic effect and three weeks later she claimed her arm still felt like an icicle.It didn't originally receive praise from everyone - Alexander Woollcott from "The Screen" seemed to think the ice was papier mache and Robert Benchley from "Life" gave a slightly satirical review. They were both from 1920.I gave it 9 out of 10. I also agree it was slightly too long and there was a bit too much "unfunny" humour as well.Highly Recommended.

mlevans One of D.W. Griffith's last big commercial successes, 'Way Down East' represents much that was good in Griffith's directorial style and much that was wanting in it. Overall, it is a very solid movie and leaves the viewer satisfied in the end. It is certainly not the ideal film to show someone who has never watched a silent feature film, however.Anyone who has studied film history knows about the famous ice flow scene in which Lillian Gish put herself at tremendous risk in real-life blizzard conditions. This is the climax, but it comes only after a long and occasionally dragging journey.The lovely Ms. Gish plays Anna Moore, a naïve small town girl, tricked into a fake marriage by notorious womanizing playboy Lennox Sanderson (Lowell Sherman). Finding out about the sham only after telling Sanderson she is pregnant, she is abandoned and later evicted after both her mother and the baby die. Her past later catches up with her after she has established herself as a beloved maid in the Bartlett household, where son David (matinee idol Richard Barthlemess) is in love with her. It is when her past is revealed and Squire Bartlett (Burr McIntosh) throws her out into a blizzard that the famed ice flow sequence takes place.There are some faults in 'Way Down East.' It is long – probably a bit longer than it needs to be. Plenty of time is spent in establishing the various characters, both major and minor, and the locales. There are a few spots where things seem to drag a bit. Of course Griffith strongly moralizes as usual, too. One fault that some critics have flagged that I do not necessarily agree with is Griffith's insertion of comedy relief. In many films of the era this did indeed mar films. In 'Way Down East,' though, the bumbling minor characters have a charm of their own and are naturally enough melded into the story that their actions do not seem to be at all intrusive to me. Vivia Ogden as the gossip Martha Perkins is quite good and her interaction with Seth Holcomb (Porter Strong), a goateed old goat who always seems to be at the Bartletts, is enjoyable. We are told Seth has followed her around for 20 years and she doesn't seem to mind his attention. Shy 'Professor' Creighton Hale is amusing at times, flirting clumsily with both Martha and the squire's niece Kate (Mary Hay.) Perhaps rolly polly hired hand Hi Holler (Edgar Nelson) could be dispensed with, but his screen time is limited and not a distraction. The music is at times heavy handed, but is appropriate in mood setting – including the forays into comic relief.True, this is a potboiler melodrama with some heavy-handed Griffith preaching. Still, it also includes Griffith's famed build-up of intensity and speed as the climax is neared. It is also pictorially attractive, with snow-covered New England countrysides and landscapes. Also, Gish and Barthelmess never looked better. As other have noted, Gish by 1920 had fully come into her own as an actress and could make a very strong argument for being the best of all silent screen actresses.There are other silent films much easier to sit through in their entirety. This one is worth the effort, though. Griffith, warts and all, could tell a good story.

TheMovieCritic_83 Lillian Gish is regarded as probably the best actress of the silent era, and there's a good reason for that. As Elsie Stoneman in 'The Birth of a Nation', she appears as a reasonably serious and strong woman. As Anna Moore in 'Way Down East', she is a much more fragile and vulnerable character. This versatility is the mark of a good performer, and Lillian Gish has got it. It is mostly her presence that makes this a memorable film.Anna Moore is a young naive girl who lives with her mother. When they begin to experience financial difficulties, Anna goes to visit some rich relatives, hoping to get assistance. During the visit, she meets the womanising Lennox Sanderson. To her, it's love. To him, it's just another adventure. Lennox deviously organises a mock marriage ceremony, and after Anna becomes pregnant, the truth comes out and he abandons her. Anna then leaves home and finds work on a farm. She doesn't know it, but Lennox lives close by and, inevitably, the two cross paths again.'Way Down East' is not a classic, but is worth a look. The emotional elements in the film aren't given quite enough attention to leave any real impact, and the film does drag in certain spots and is about half an hour too long. The characters are well defined though, and D W Griffith punctuates the film with some amusing comical moments.