''The Sin Flood'' is a

lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

1922 American silent

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

Frank Lloyd Frank William George Lloyd (2 February 1886 – 10 August 1960) was a British-born American film director, actor, scriptwriter, and producer. He was among the founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and was its preside ...

and starring

Richard Dix Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'strong ...

and

Helene Chadwick Helene Chadwick (November 25, 1897 – September 4, 1940) was an American actress in silent and in early sound films. Early life and career Chadwick was born in the small town of Chadwicks, New York, which was named for her great-grandfather ...

. It was distributed by

Goldwyn Pictures Goldwyn Pictures Corporation was an American motion picture production company that operated from 1916 to 1924 when it was merged with two other production companies to form the major studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was founded on November 19, 1 ...

.The AFI Catalog of Feature Films 1893-1993: ''The Sin Flood''
/ref> The story was remade by First National and Warner Brothers in 1930 as the early talkie ''

The Way of All Men ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'', now lost as well. Frank Lloyd again directed and William Orlamond returned as Nordling.

Plot

As described in a

film magazine Film periodicals combine discussion of individual films, genres and directors with in-depth considerations of the medium and the conditions of its production and reception. Their articles contrast with film reviewing in newspapers and magazines whi ...

, Bill Bear (Dix), a cotton broker's clerk in the Mississippi river town of Cottonia, is in love with a chorus girl named Poppy (Chadwick). He learns that his crabbed employer Fraser (Lewis) is attempting to corner the market and uses this knowledge to enter into a partnership with Fraser's enemy Swift (Steppling). They grow rich and Bill becomes engaged to Swift's daughter. On the day of the wedding, however, Bill, Poppy, Fraser, Swift, a street preacher with a taste for alcohol, a plain drunk (King), stranded Swedish engineer Nordling (Orlamond), an out-at-elbows actor, corporate lawyer Sharpe (Davies), saloon keeper Stratton (Walling), and a bartender are imprisoned in Stratton's cafe by a sudden flood. The Stratton had water-tight doors and shutters installed on his cafe due to a previous flood, and these are shut. The electric lights, telephone, and market price ticker are soon cut off. Nordling figures that they have twenty hours before the oxygen in the air will become exhausted and cause their lingering death. With candles lit and the air becoming more difficult to breath, street preacher O'Neill (Kirkwood) tells them that the last day has come and exhorts them to repentance. They join hands in a circle. Fraser forgives Fill and Swift for their efforts to ruin him financially. O'Neill discovers in attorney Sharpe the man who stole his wife and drove the preacher from his pulpit to the street, and in the presence of death he forgives him. Sharpe admits that he bribed the contractor building the levee that has burst and flooded the city to use faulty material. Bill finds his love for Poppy returning and they agree to meet death in each other's arms. The bartender admits to taking money from the till while his employer admits to underpaying him. Stratton brings out his choicest wine and invites all to partake. With the candle flame becoming feeble and the prisoners having more difficulty in breathing, they decide to bring death more quickly by opening the doors and letting in the water. When the doors are forced open, sunlight bursts into the room. It is found that the freak flood has diminished and Cottonia is resuming its normal business life. The market ticker starts up, and Fraser sees that Swift and Bill are still hammering him on the cotton exchange, causing his bitter enmity to return. Stratton demands that his guests pay him for the wine he provided and tells the bartender that he will dock his pay until the money taken from the till is paid. The bartender throws out the drunk, the Swedish engineer, and broken down actor, and preacher O'Neill again surrenders to his appetite for alcohol. Bill has ignored Poppy as he watches the market ticker, but, when he sees her accosted on the street by a man inviting her to have a drink, he rushes forward to grab her to take her to the license bureau. The experience with the flood has taught him to value Poppy's love and to see the mistake he was about to make in marrying his partner's daughter.

Cast

as Bill Bear *

as Poppy *

James Kirkwood Sr. James Cornelius Kirkwood Sr. (February 22, 1876 – August 24, 1963) was an American actor and director. Biography Kirkwood debuted on screen in 1909 and was soon playing leads for D. W. Griffith. He started directing in 1912, and became a fa ...

as O'Neill * John Steppling as Swift * Ralph Lewis as Fraser *Howard Davies as Sharpe *

Will Walling William Walling (June 2, 1872 – March 5, 1932) was an American actor of the silent era. He appeared in 60 films between 1921 and 1932. He is known for his role as the railroad president in the 1926 film '' The Great K & A Train Robbery'', ...

as Stratton *

William Orlamond William Anderson Orlamond (1 August 1867 – 23 April 1957) was a Danish-American film actor. Orlamond appeared in more than 80 films between 1912 and 1938. Partial filmography * '' A Rogue's Romance'' (1919) * '' Elmo the Mighty'' (191 ...

as Nordling *

Darwin Karr Darwin S. Karr (1875-1945) was an American stage and silent film actor. He appeared in over 140 films up to 1922. He began appearing in films by the Vitagraph company. He was married to Florence Bindley. Personal life and death Karr was marr ...

as Charlie *

Otto Hoffman Otto F. Hoffman (May 2, 1879 – June 23, 1944) was an American film actor. He appeared in almost 200 films between 1915 and 1944. He was born in New York City and died in Los Angeles, California, from lung cancer. Hoffman's Broadway credit ...

as Higgins *Louis King as A Drunk

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sin Flood, The 1922 films American silent feature films Lost American films Films directed by Frank Lloyd Goldwyn Pictures films American black-and-white films Silent American drama films 1922 drama films 1922 lost films Lost drama films 1920s American films