Blu Ray Review: Kino Lorber releases two from Lois Weber

One of the great pioneer filmmakers of silent era cinema, Lois Weber’s work has become more readily available for our enjoyment and assessment. This double feature blu ray from Kino Lorber offers two of her strongest features, including her last for Universal studios.

A CHAPTER IN HER LIFE (1923)

Screen version of of Clara Louis Burnham’s novel which had been filmed previously as Jewel (1915) by Lois Weber and husband Phillips Smalley. This version was filmed by Weber not long after her divorce from Smalley. Claude Gillingwater had been in movies for about two years when he took on the role of the angry, difficult grandfather to Jewel, the patient spirit whose Christian Science beliefs bring a calm and understanding to a bickering family. Jewel is played by Jane Mercer in only her second film (and first substantial role). Because the 1915 version is lost, we can’t do a comparison/contrast, but this film on its own is quite fascinating in its message. The love and understanding that is claimed to be the basis of the Christian faith is augmented by the Christian science of Jewel refusing the care of a doctor and medicine when ill. It is subjective as to how 21st century viewers will respond to the film’s underlying message, but as film history it is an interesting look at Lois Weber’s past work as a street corner evangelist influencing the tenets of her narrative. Kino Lorber’s 2K restoration allows us to see the nuanced performances with clarity and precision, enhancing the viewing experience.

SENSATION SEEKERS (1927)

In what would be Lois Weber’s last film for Universal studios, Sensation Seekers also features some of her best work, and can be considered something of a culmination. She made a couple more silents (including the troubled Topsy and Eva, as well as a lost film) and one talkie before her 1939 death. Sensation Seekers is, arguably, the last of her truly great films. It really is a quintessential example of 1920s cinema, exploring issues like infidelity, moral judgement, alcoholism, and the privileges of the wealthy. The acting is strong, from a good cast that includes Billie Dove in the lead role of a 20s flapper whose romances include one with a minister, who succumbs to his own infatuation. This film is capped with an exciting conclusion where a small yacht crashes in a rainstorm. The way Lois Weber films this peril, the action she keeps within the frame and her succession of shots, is quite remarkable and it is unfortunate that she did not proceed to explore her filmmaking prowess beyond this point. As with most of Lois Weber’s films, there is an underlying moral message. But the film’s presentation of the jazz age lifestyle, the judgmental attitudes of small town citizens, and moments of character introspection, make it a very layered and compelling melodrama. The Kino Lorber 2K restoration also offers an audio commentary by film historian Shelley Stamp, author of Lois Weber in Early Hollywood. Ms. Stamp enlightens and informs us about the film and the filmmaker.

A Chapter in Her Life has musical accompaniment by Alexandra Harwood, and Sensation Seekers is accompanied by Arthur Barrow. Both films are welcome examples of Lois Weber’s work, while the filmmaker herself is one of the finest and most visionary filmmakers during the silent screen era; a pioneer director responsible for some of movie history’s most significant achievements.

The films are together on one blu ray and are available at this link: Lois Weber/Kino