''East Is East'' is a 1916 British

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...

drama directed by Henry Edwards, who also starred in the film with

Florence Turner Florence Turner (January 6, 1885 – August 28, 1946) was an American actress who became known as the "Vitagraph Girl" in early silent films. Biography Born in New York City, Turner was pushed into appearing on the stage at age three by he ...

. The film is an early example of the plot premise which would prove very popular in the British silent film canon: that of a character (almost always a pretty young girl) from the working-class East End of London being suddenly thrust by circumstance into the daunting milieu of West End high society. The full print of ''East Is East'' survives, and is well regarded by historians of British silent film. Writing for the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

, Bryony Dixon notes: "Edwards seems to have had an innate or instinctive understanding of cinema space both as an actor and director, and despite being hampered as everyone else at that early date by rather fixed sets and camera positions, he uses himself and the other actors to convey the space beyond the

fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...

, creating the illusion of a satisfyingly convincing world." She also notes: "The locations are well chosen and evocative of a bygone era, particularly the lovely scenes in the

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

ish hop fields", and that Edith Evans in a very early screen role "outrageously upstages everyone at every opportunity".''East Is East''
Dixon, Bryony. BFI Screen Online. ''Retrieved 05-10-2010'' Although largely a serious drama, the film also includes scenes of visual humour arising from the awkward collision of East End and West End manners and habits.

Plot

Victoria Vickers (Turner) lives with her aunt and uncle in Poplar and is being courted by Bert Grummett (Edwards), who aspires to one day marry Victoria and open up his own

fish and chip Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...

shop. For the time being, Victoria is happy for them just to remain friends. The Vickers family and Bert go off on their annual summer jaunt to pick hops in Kent. Unknown to them, Victoria is being desperately sought by a solicitor to pass on the good news that she has inherited a fortune from the estate of a recently deceased distant relative. There is a deadline for her to claim her bounty, but happily the solicitor tracks her down in Kent in the nick of time and rushes her back to London. Under an unusual proviso in the will, Victoria must spend three years under the guidance of a society guardian in order to acquire the social polish and sophistication to go with her new wealth. She is sent to live with the wealthy Mrs. Carrington (Ruth Mackay) and her son, but quickly starts to find the high life more restrictive and dreary than she had bargained for. She is thrilled to receive a visit from Bert, but Mrs. Carrington is appalled by his lack of savoir faire and decides to send Victoria abroad for two years to finish her transformation away from Bert's poor influence. Before she is packed off, Victoria lends Bert a sum of money. Victoria returns to London when the two years are up, now to all outward appearances the finished article. Bert meanwhile has used the money wisely to build up a thriving and profitable business. Now prosperous and respectable, he calls to repay the loan to Victoria, who admits that she is stifled in her new life and wishes she could return to her former East End happiness but in the circumstances does not think it possible. She subsequently accepts a surprise marriage proposal from the Carrington son. Bert reads of Victoria's engagement in a newspaper, and is so upset that he decides to retire from active business and buys a cottage in the Kent countryside, to which he withdraws in solitude. On the night of her engagement party, Victoria overhears her fiancé telling a female acquaintance that the only reason he wants to marry her is to get his hands on her money to pay off large gambling debts. Horrified, she announces that she intends to break the engagement and give up her claim to the fortune, as she has realised that high society is not for her. She returns to Poplar to look for Bert but cannot find him. She travels to Kent, feeling nostalgic for the carefree times she spent there. She happens to pass Bert's cottage and he spots her from his window. He rushes out to her and they are reunited with the promise of a happy future together.

Cast

as Victoria Vickers * Henry Edwards as Bert Grummett *

Ruth Mackay Ruth Mackay (9 May 1878 – 31 March 1949) was a British stage and silent film actress. She was married to actor Eille Norwood. She was born in Kennington in London in 1878, the daughter of David McDonald MacKay (1839–1910) and Florence ''née ...

as Mrs. Carrington * W.G. Saunders as Dawson * Edith Evans as Aunt

References

External links

* {{Henry Edwards 1916 films 1916 drama films British silent feature films Films directed by Henry Edwards British black-and-white films British films based on plays Silent British drama films Films set in London Butcher's Film Service films 1910s British films 1910s English-language films English-language drama films