Product Details

• Actors: Colleen Moore, Hardie Albright, Henry B. Walthall, Cora Sue Collins, Alan Hale
• Directors: Robert G. Vignola
• Format: Black & White, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Alpha Video
• DVD Release Date: September 9, 2003
• Run Time: 70 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0000A0DTE
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #66,523 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The Scarlet Letter" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The Gish/Hanson Version Rules, April 2, 2003

By	mwreview "mwreview" (Northern California, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Scarlet Letter [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I have seen two motion picture renditions of the Hawthorne classic, this one starring Colleen Moore in her final role and the 1926 silent classic starring Lillian Gish and Lars Hanson. This 1934 film is very different than the silent version. The courtship between Hester Prynne and Pastor Dimmesdale that made up a major portion of the Lillian Gish version is skipped entirely. The absence of this background causes the scene where Prynne receives her 'A' to be less dramatic. Henry B. Walthall plays Roger Prynne in both of these films. As a Walthall fan, I was happy to see the silent star have much more significant air time here than in the 1926 film. Walthall is seen right from the beginning and his character is given the opportunity to explain his feelings more than in the earlier rendition. Roger Prynne "Chillingworth," who makes Hester promise not to admit to being his wife, almost shows sympathy towards Hester's plight. Still, Roger will not grant her request to leave Pastor Dimmesdale (played by Hardie Albright) to his own personal guilt. Roger insists on sadistically contributing to the adulterer's slow torment. As the other reviewers have noted, the Laurel and Hardy wannabe team of Alan Hale and some other guy really fall flat. It is not that humor was inappropriate for the Scarlet Letter. The silent film had Karl Dane as the dopey fellow who speaks to his prospective wife through a courtship trumpet only to get slapped for his "unbridled passions" when he steals a kiss before he leaves. This humor worked because it was subtle. Many of the early talkies offered comedy relief which was often excessive. The Scarlet Letter of 1934 is another example. Despite the silly humor, it is not a bad film. The acting is very good. It is just not an emotionally powerful film like the Gish/Hanson version.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Scam , December 18, 2008

By	Richard D. Papp (Nashville, TN) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Scarlet Letter (1926) (DVD)

Buyer beware before ordering this! If you're a fan of Lillian Gish, D.W. Griffith and great films in professional high quality, you're getting none of the above with this scam, this absolute sham. Instead, you get the 1934 version with Colleen Moore. Why the seller doesn't present it as such (even the horrible packaging doesn't) is beyond me... I hope this product gets dropped immediately.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Wrong film, January 7, 2008

By	F. P. Horne (London) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Scarlet Letter (1926) (DVD)

The film on the disc in the box is NOT as the box claims Victor Sjostrom's wonderful silent version of The Scarlet Letter, which I have seen, but the very poor sound version from the 1930s. I suggest that Amazon ceases to advertise it as the 1926 version.