The Girl Who Stayed at Home

D.W. Griffith places his 17-year-old mistress, Carol Dempster, in the leading female role for this somewhat overlooked 1919 film, opposite sturdy Richard Barthelmess, although both are outshined by the secondary leads, Robert Harron and Clarine Seymour, as Griffith is providing his customary surfeit of sub-plots during the telling of a romantic drama concerning the Great War, just concluded at the time of filming. Griffith's systematic skills with flashbacks, montage and editing, along with the as ever creative camerawork of his loyal cinematographer, Billy Bitzer, combine to produce a very tightly-made film, with no loose ends in evidence after its fast-moving 60 minutes. The scenario involves, among so many other elements, the experiences of two brothers, portrayed by Barthelmess and Harron, who are drafted into the United States Army, experience combat in France, each stimulated by a left-behind love affair founded upon, and developing for the most part from, hope alone. A dark aspect of the work stems from the deaths not long after its completion of Harron (a freak gun accident at 27) and Seymour (intestinal illness at 21) with the petite actress who made only a handful of films just having signed a four year contract for two million dollars, an enormous sum at the time; she was that good, and Harron was an actor whose humanity and subtle comic skills were as fine as could be found.

The Girl Who Stayed Behind is one of Griffith's minor works. A programmer that he hoped would raise some money after the financial disaster of Intolerance. It was part of a group of films that were made with some original footage and some left over footage from Hearts of the World. The main plot is quite predictable. The scenes of the lost patrol holding on despite hunger and thirst are poorly done to the point of embarrassment. Mixed with actual war footage the Griffith took when he was in France, the staged scened look rather - staged, and badly staged at that. They fail to convince.

But even a poor Griffith film has its surprises and rewards. In this case the sub-plot with Robert Harron and Clairine Seymour is quite good. Although they both start out as stereotypical young characters from the beginning of the jazz age, they both develop outside their shallow types into real and unique individuals.

The real problem is not so much the plot, Griffith's plots were often very predictable, it is the main actors. Richard Barthelmess never develops a real presence in the film. But Griffith does not give him much to work with so I can't really blame him. However, Carol Dempster has no such excuse. In this film she acts very woodenly and although she learned to act well in some of her later films ("Isn't Life Wonderful" for example) she never had the screen presence needed to be a star, even in her best roles. Her performance here is flat and lackluster, almost like a department store dummy. On the other hand, Robert Harron and Clairine Seymour both had presence to burn. They command the screen and they invest their roles with life. It is a pity that Robert Harron and Clairine Seymour did not live to become the legends that they could have. The film rates a 5 for their performances.

THE GIRL WHO STAYED AT HOME (Paramount/Artcraft, 1919), directed by D.W. Griffith, is only a movie title. It doesn't reflect upon a widowed housewife caring for her children but mostly about two brothers off to war, with the girls they love left behind. Following the current Great War trend of Griffith's earlier two hour production of HEARTS OF THE WORLD (1918) starring Lillian and Dorothy Gish, the great director attempts to do another, but on a lesser scale minus the Gish Sisters but honorable support of Griffith stock players. While the movie might have or should have been titled "The Men Who Went to War," in all essence, the "girl who stayed home" in the story is basically on a secondary character with a promise to remain loyal to her soldier of war.

Before the individual character introduction begins, an opening passage to what is to be presented ensues: "On a June day, gold with spring and blossoms in an old château in the pleasant valley of the Marne, Monsieur France sits dreaming. It is his boast that he is the only citizen of the confederate states of America who has never surrendered. At the end of the Civil War he escaped to his father's home in France rather than submit to the Yankees." The man in question is Monsieur France (Adolphe Lestina), a veteran of the Civil War who has purchased a run-down home of his forefathers where hangs on the wall his flag of the Confederacy. With the passing of a generation, he is again alone, with the exception of his granddaughter, Atoline (Carol Dempster), "A young blossom from the old stock." Coming for a visit is Atoline's New York chum (Frances Parkes) at the Paris School who visits while touring Europe with her family, consisting of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Grey (George Fawcett and Kate Bruce), and their elder son, Ralph (Richard Barthelmess). While Ralph shows love and compassion towards Atoline, she happens to have a favored suitor, Count de Brissac (Syn De Conde). James (Robert Harron), Ralph's younger brother, better known as "The Oily Peril" (translation: "Heartbreaker"), is both college boy and a weakling. He shows his cowardice by refusing to defend himself towards a drunken German while entertaining Atoile in the park during her visit in America. James loves Cutsie Beautiful (Clarine Seymour), a Broadway café entertainer with a reputation for the men. As war breaks out in Europe, Ralph enlists while his father keeps James behind in his shipping business "juggling time-cards." Although drafted, Grey's influence with the draft board fails to influence them in keeping him home, thus, becoming a soldier of war. While Cutsie Beautiful becomes the girl who stayed at home, avoiding a past suitor (Tully Marshall), will she remain faithful to James?

Of a handful of silent features directed by D.W. Griffith, THE GIRL WHO STAYED AT HOME, which fortunately survives intact, ranks one of his lesser known works. Credited as part of his "short stories" collection, this is definitely a small movie (69 minutes) compared to his earlier two hour plus epics of THE BIRTH OF A NATION (1915) and INTOLERANCE (1916). Yet, this little movie demonstrates how a good film doesn't have to be lengthy to become great. Though the film is far from great, it's quite satisfactory. The Griffith ingredients are all there: flashbacks extreme close-ups on the principles, last minute rescues, etc. Battle scenes are well staged and photographed, although by today's standards, heavy melodramatics appear primitive, but for film scholars, acceptable for what it is.

While Richard Barthelmess' career extended to talkies before retiring in 1942, Robert Harron's performance stands out in the early scenes through his physical resemblance to both comedian, Charlie Chase, and John Gilbert during his battle scenes which makes one think of Gilbert's scenes from the epic war movie, THE BIG PARADE (MGM, 1925).

Piano scored, with no known possibility of ever been televised, THE GIRL WHO STAYED AT HOME, from the Killiam collection, has been both distributed to home video (1990s) and DVD a decade later. For silent film enthusiasts, viewing the performances of both Robert Harron and Clarine Seymour would make one wonder had they both not died so young in 1920, would their movie careers have been successful and extended through decades ahead? This is a question that will never be answered. (***)

The Girl Who Stayed At Home (1919) : Brief Review -

DW Griffith's homage to the War heroes and the girls who stayed home waiting for them is a well-made contemporary drama. Watching Griffith's films having a simple storyline isn't as exciting as watching his controversial amd hard-hitting films but still it's a Griffith Film afterall. You just can't ignore it. You have to give it a chance for the better understanding of Non-Griffith contemporary flicks. It reminds you how simple yet watchable films others were making and if Griffith made the same stuff once in a while, then it's not a big thing to scream at. From the title i thought The Girl Who Stayed At Home will be about a girl or girls but it isn't just about them. The film is about two brothers who go to War and their sweethearts (not one actually) who wait at home. The one who is not sweetheart yet is attacked by Germans while second one, a bar singer, isn't bothered much except for one marriage proposal which she eventually rejects to remain faithful to the man who has gone to war. Maybe that elder brother's love story could have been better as it didn't look much convincing from the start only. The war scenes are surely worthy and it wasn't a new thing for DW Griffith. It was quite like going for a morning walk to him. And yes it is great indeed. The performances are good. Some supporting characters are surprisingly well written. You see that propaganda touch there and also confederate nature. At last, it's all about America's pride and that's perfectly fine for a Hollywood movie. Moreover, it's about patriotism and family values attached to it so it can relate to anybody. Overall, The Girl Who Stayed At Home is a nice American War Saga made by the greatest director from the country and how can he go wrong even with his simple one. That's still greater than what others did in entire career.

RATING - 7/10*

By - #samthebestest.

At the end of the U.S. Civil War, the well-named "Monsieur France" (Adolph Lestina) moved to his father's home in France, rather than submit to the Yankees. Boasting he is "the only citizen of the Confederate States of America," he sits by his old Confederate flag, dreaming of a time gone with the wind. Mr. Lestina lives with his exuberant granddaughter Carol Dempster (as Atoline France). Ms. Dempster catches the eye of Richard Barthelmess (as Ralph Grey), the older brother of a school chum; but, Mr. Barthelmess is too late in his courting -- and, so, Dempster gets herself betrothed to Syn De Conde (as the Count de Brissac). Then, Dempster goes to visit the "Grey" family in New York.

In New York, Dempster meets Barthelmess' younger brother, Robert Harron (as James Grey). Mr. Harron is more interested in continuing a partying lifestyle than settling down; he gives Dempster the once over, but finds singer-dancer Clarine Seymour (as Cutie Beautiful) more fetching. Ms. Seymour shares Harron's interest in youthful Ragtime fun. Although their father is against the Great War (aka World War I), Barthelmess and Harron eventually join in the fighting. Will the two brothers get out of the war alive, and return to the women they left behind?

Harron effortlessly steals the film, with his portrayal of the slouching, partying brother who becomes a war hero; Seymour is also delightful as his 31st conquest, and true love. That Harron's performance so outdistances the other players may be why director D.W. Griffith, as the film progresses, devotes more screen time Harron's character. In hindsight, a re-titled, re-edited "The Girl Who Stayed at Home" would have been improved by scenes from Harron's college days, and his contrasting relationship with brother Barthelmess. Old Confederate rebel Lestina's final acceptance of the United States of America is a nice touch.

******** The Girl Who Stayed at Home (3/23/19) D.W. Griffith ~ Carol Dempster, Richard Barthelmess, Robert Harron, Clarine Seymour