The White Sister

i was speechless and stunned by such an unknown early silent film being so utterly amazing. i haven't seen the 30's adaptation of the book, but i doubt that anything could out do this one. it's got some great romance, awesome drama without being melodramatic (although gish tends to always make stuff melodramatic). once it gets down to the wire this has an awesome wrap up, an action filled sad ending that forgoes cliche by seeming inevitable.

While a bit overly long compared to the plot, this is still a very nice showcase of Lillian Gish's talents. Not to mention why Ronald Colman was so popular among the female movie goers. All there is to this is two people fall in love, then the man gets kidnapped and reported dead, the girl becomes a nun.... and they meet again.... oh, and there is some inheritance scam leaving Gish penniless. The movie lasts almost 2 1/2 hours and that's a story that only fills an hour in movie-time.