''The Bride's Awakening'' is a 1918 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 ...

released by

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

and produced by their Bluebird production unit.

Robert Z. Leonard Robert Zigler Leonard (October 7, 1889 – August 27, 1968) was an American film director, actor, producer, and screenwriter. Biography He was born in Chicago, Illinois. At one time, he was married to silent star Mae Murray with the two formin ...

directed the film and his then-wife

Mae Murray Mae Murray (born Marie Adrienne Koenig; May 10, 1885 – March 23, 1965) was an American actress, dancer, film producer, and screenwriter. Murray rose to fame during the silent film era and was known as "The Girl with the Bee-Stung Lips" and "Th ...

was the star. A print of the film is housed at the EYE Institute Nederlands.

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 ...

, believing he loves her, Elaine Bronson (Murray) at the death of her uncle marries Richard Earle (Cody). Before long, she discovers that he is more interested in her fortune, and so she accepts the attentions of Jimmy Newton (Dearholt). Richard has been having an affair with a married woman but tires of her, and comes to appreciate the beauty of his wife. However, she will have nothing to do with him. The other woman comes back to Richard and when she finds out about his marriage, she kills him, leaving Elaine and Jimmy free to pursue their happiness.

Cast

as Elaine Bronson *

Lew Cody Lew Cody (born Louis Joseph Côté; February 22, 1884 – May 31, 1934) was an American stage and film actor whose career spanned the silent film and early sound film age. He gained notoriety in the late 1910s for playing "male vamps" in films ...

as Richard Earle *

Clarissa Selwynne Clarissa Selwynne (26 February 1886 – 13 June 1948) was a British stage and film actress.Kear & King p. 143 She settled in the United States, working in Hollywood where she appeared in around 100 films. Partial filmography * '' Hearts in Exi ...

as Lucille Bennett * Harry Carter as George Bennett * Joseph W. Girard as Frederick Bronson *

Ashton Dearholt Ashton Dearholt (April 4, 1894 – April 27, 1942) was an American actor of the silent film era. He appeared in 75 films between 1915 and 1938. He was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and died in Los Angeles, California. He was sometimes billed ...

as Jimmy Newton

Reception

Like many American films of the time, ''The Bride's Awakening'' was subject to cuts by city and state film censorship boards. For example, the Chicago Board of Censors issued an Adults Only permit for the film. On a re-review, the Chicago board cut, in Reel 1, the entire incident of married woman in man's room and all intertitles pertinent to same, Reel 3, the two intertitles "We've had much wine — let's have some wild women" and "I'll go and call some up on the telephone", Reel 4, husband locking door of wife's room, two closeups of man's face as he comes towards his wife, all scenes of husband advancing towards wife and wife shrinking against wall of room, the intertitle "I always thought of you as a child", all except first struggle scene of couple, Reel 5, two intertitles "Dear boy — come to me" and "I sent for you tonight", and, Reel 6, woman shooting man.

References

External links

* *
Mae Murray in a lantern slide to the film ''The Bride's Awakening''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bride's Awakening, The 1918 films 1918 drama films Silent American drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films Films directed by Robert Z. Leonard Universal Pictures films Surviving American silent films 1910s American films