Product Details

• Actors: Lillian Gish
• Format: Black & White, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Image Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: August 28, 2007
• Run Time: 151 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000QFAFQS
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #38,586 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

In 1918-1919 D. W. Griffith turned from spectacles such as The Birth of a Nation Intolerance and Hearts of the World to smaller films which he called his "short story series." Among these is True Heart Susie. "There are those of us who consider True Heart Susie to be Griffith's masterpiece" writes Tom Gunning in his notes for a 2006 screening at the Pordenone Silent Film Festival. He goes on to praise the "narrative structure and point of view as well as the fine details of performance framing and even the use of intertitles that makes a seemingly modest film such as this appear nearly incandescent in its confessional and emotional power." In an almost mythical American arcadia Lillian Gish portrays a pure prim girl who so loves her childhood sweetheart (Griffith's most charming boyish hero Robert Harron) that she sells the family cow to anonymously finance his higher education only to lose him to a more "modern" woman (Clarine Seymour) when he comes home. Gish's performance is among her best her face what Gunning calls a "battleground of emotions staging complete and progressive dramas of realization recognition and despair."As a bonus feature we offer Hoodoo Ann. This light comedy is Griffith-supervised and scripted (using the pseudonym Granville Warwick) although the actual direction is by Lloyd Ingraham. Mae Marsh is paired with Robert Harron; the actors had been often partnered since Biograph days concurrently were in the modern story of Intolerance and continued to play leads together until Miss Marsh left the company at the end of 1916. Although the plot is a tangle of unlikely coincidence the performers make it work and "it is filled with those little touches for which Fine Arts pictures are famous" in the words of an original review.System Requirements:Running Time: 86 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: NR UPC: 014381384628 Manufacturer No: ID3846DSDVD

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Charming old-fashioned double feature, September 13, 2007

By	Barbara Burkowsky (Manly, NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

This DVD is a special treat for silent film enthusiasts and anyone who longs for some good old-fashioned, sentimental and charming love stories of days gone by. Both "True Heart Susie" and the second film on this disc, "Hoodoo Ann" were written and produced by `the father of film' D.W. Griffith who is generally remembered today as the director of landmark epics such as "Intolerance" and "Birth of a Nation", so it might come as a pleasant surprise to some to see this other side of Griffith's work. "True Heart Susie", which Griffith also directed, is completely different from his historic epics of only a few years earlier, showing that he also had depth, sensitivity and compassion in filming this story of a simple country girl's unwavering love for her childhood sweetheart. The simple essence of the story is about true love, and that the girls who use "paint and powder" are only temporary flirtations or mistakes men make, but true hearts like Susie's remain faithful and wait for their one and only true love. Along with superb acting by screen legend Lillian Gish whose face and demeanour suit innocent girl roles so well, Griffith brings out many delicate details and touching moments in the film, making it one of his best ever films next to another 1919 production also starring Lillian Gish, namely "Broken Blossoms". It is fitting, therefore, that this DVD presents a beautiful, near-perfect remastered print of "True Heart Susie" along with a wonderful orchestral musical score by the highly-acclaimed Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra, which greatly adds to the overall charm and tender mood of the story.

The second film, "Hoodoo Ann" also features experienced actors regularly used by Griffith in many earlier films, namely Mae Marsh and Robert Harron, who both starred in "Intolerance" in the same year, 1916. In this light-hearted story of another sweet and innocent country girl, Mae Marsh is just as convincing as Lillian Gish with her girly manner, and Robert Harron is dependable and reliable as usual, playing Hoodoo Ann's suitor who is puzzled when Ann says she can't marry him. But her reasons are all an amusing set of circumstances and misunderstandings, which make "Hoodoo Ann" simply a joy to watch. Once again, attention to detail is important in this clever, light comedy romance, and everything fits together smoothly along with Mae Marsh's fine performance making Hoodoo Ann a believable character. Picture quality is again extremely good, and it has a standard but very good piano accompaniment. For anyone who'd like to escape to a simpler, idyllic past without heavy drama, these two easy-to-watch early silent films won't disappoint, and in fact, might increase appreciation for both D W Griffith's varied works and silent films generally.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Bobby Harron Double Feature., August 29, 2007

By	Chip Kaufmann (Asheville, N.C. United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

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While the focus of this DVD is on actresses Lillian Gish and Mae Marsh, it is Robert (Bobby) Harron who is of prime interest to me after watching these two films. Harron is best known for his role in Griffith's INTOLERANCE as the young man who is falsely imprisoned in the Modern Story (also with Mae Marsh). He also appears briefly but memorably in BIRTH OF A NATION as Lillian Gish's younger brother. Having recently rewatched that along with these movies I have come away with a much greater appreciation of his talent which makes his tragic death in 1920 at the age of 27 even more so. Harron whether conciously or not was a master of body language. Watch his character in SUSIE as he goes from awkward schoolboy to small town minister. The awkwardness remains but he subtly changes throughout which fits the role perfectly. Then check out his turn in HOODOO ANN where he's still shy but not awkward at all.

Actresses Gish and Marsh are given the opportunity to really inhabit their characters which they do with an ease and naturalness that belies their years of experience. They make it seem fresh even though they have played these types of roles many times. There are many great scenes throughout SUSIE which also features the ill-fated Clarine Seymour who would also die in 1920 at the age of only 21 and we get an early glimpse of Carol Dempster who would dominate Griffith's films (and his private life) in the 1920's. Several scenes in HOODOO including the burning of the orphanage and Harron and Marsh at the movies are quite memorable. The prints while not restored are in very good shape (especially SUSIE) although it's something of a puzzle that I have yet to see a fully restored D.W. Griffith film.

My one minor quibble is Rodney Sauer's score for TRUE HEART SUSIE. It's well performed but is just a little too quaint and old-fashioned in some scenes which undercuts some of the story. The score for HOODOO ANN enhances the film quite nicely. So let this DVD be your introduction to the wonderfully gifted but tragically short-lived actor Bobby Harron. Once you've seen him here it'll make you hungry for more. Aside from INTOLERANCE check out the Griffith BIOGRAPH SHORTS and HEARTS OF THE WORLD for an opportunity to see what he could do. Thanks to David Shepard and Film Preservation Associates for making this available.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nice minor Griffith work, April 24, 2008

By	Burritoman "burritoman" - See all my reviews

I've never understood why "True Heart Susie" has been held in such high esteem by some silent movie fans. It's a very good film, no doubt about it, but director D.W. Griffith made much better pictures, many in fact. Even from this period - "The Greatest Question", for example (and that's not even considering "Broken Blossoms"). This film tells a sweet story and Gish is at her near-best, but it seems like Griffith isn't terribly interested. At any rate, this is a terrific quality print and certainly worthwhile. "Hoodoo Ann", the other film on offer here, wasn't directed by Griffith, which is probably a good thing, as it's not much of a movie. Entertaining, yes, but not one you'll want to watch over again.
Image has done great work in delivering excellent quality prints of silent classics, and they have done right by us here too. Hopefully though they'll release the great Griffith films which aren't available on dvd yet (including "Isn't Life Wonderful", "Judith Of Bethulia", "Drums Of Love", "Sorrows Of Satan", "Lady Of The Pavements", etc.)