''The Real Adventure'' is a 1922 American silent drama film directed by King Vidor, based on the best-selling novel by Henry Kitchell Webster that was serialized in 1915 and published as a book in 1916. A print of the film is held by the

Cinémathèque de Toulous A cinematheque is an archive of films and film-related objects with an exhibition venue. Similarly to a book library (bibliothèque in French), a cinematheque is responsible for preserving and making available to the public film heritage. Typica ...

. In February 2020, the film was shown at the

70th Berlin International Film Festival The 70th annual Berlin International Film Festival took place from 20 February to 1 March 2020. It was the first under the leadership of new Berlin Film Festival heads, business administration director Mariette Rissenbeek and artistic director C ...

, as part of a retrospective dedicated to King Vidor's career.

Plot

As described in a film magazine, impetuous and headstrong Rose Stanton (Vidor) accidentally meets famous attorney Rodney Aldrich (Fillmore) when a conductor rudely accosts her for her streetcar fare. It is love at first sight and, after a brief courtship, they are married. Rose becomes cross at Rodney while on their honeymoon at his mountain lodge when he studies from a law book for an hour. He saves her after she dashes out into a snow storm. Back home, after her husband ridicules her for attempting to study law, she determines to leave him and, using the name Doris Dane, she becomes famous in New York City as the designer of stage dresses. Her husband follows her to the city and, following a reconciliation, they have a complete understanding. The film ends as a child arrives at the Aldrich residence and the real adventure begins.

Cast

* Florence Vidor as Rose Stanton * Clyde Fillmore as Rodney Aldrich * Nellie Peck Saunders as Mrs. Stanton * Lilyan McCarthy as Portia * Philip Ryder as John Walbraith

Theme

Film historian John Baxter identifies ''The Real Adventure'' (as well as his Woman, Wake Up, also from 1922, as early feminist films: “ oth filmshave earned a place in the history of feminist cinema with their picture of a woman struggling to succeed in a male society. In ''Woman, Wake Up'', Florence Vidor becomes involved in society to please her husband and is so successful at it that he becomes jealous, while in The Real Adventure, she is transformed after her marriage to a wealthy husband: she studies law, goes on stage as a chorus girl, designs costumes, opens a salon but realizes home and family must come first” Baxter 1976, p. 14

Footnotes

References

*Baxter, John. 1976. ''King Vidor''. Simon & Schuster, Inc. Monarch Film Studies. LOC Card Number 75-23544.

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Real Adventure 1920s American films 1920s feminist films 1922 films 1922 drama films American black-and-white films American silent feature films Associated Exhibitors films Films directed by King Vidor Silent American drama films 1920s English-language films