''The Four Feathers'' is a 1921 British silent

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...

directed by

René Plaissetty René Plaissetty (1889–1955) was an American film director. Son of Achille Plaissetty, chemist and businessman and Corinne Bonnecaze, professor of singing, René Plaissetty was born on March 7, 1889, in Chicago. In 1907 he came to live in F ...

and starring

Harry Ham Harry Ham (25 May 1886 – 27 July 1943) was a Canadian actor from Napanee, Ontario. He died in 1943 in Beverly Hills, California. Selected filmography Actor * ''Betty in Search of a Thrill'' (1915) * ''Nearly a Lady'' (1915) * '' 'Twas Ever ...

, Mary Massart and

Henry Vibart Henry Vibart (25 December 1863 – 30 August 1943) was a Scottish stage and film actor, active from the 1880s until the early 1930s. He appeared in many theatrical roles in the UK and overseas, and featured in over 70 films of the silent era ...

. The film is an adaptation of A. E. W. Mason's 1902 novel of the same name. The film was made on location and at

Cricklewood Studios Cricklewood Studios, also known as the Stoll Film Studios, were British film studios located in Cricklewood, London which operated from 1920 to 1938. Run by Sir Oswald Stoll as the principal base for his newly formed Stoll Pictures, which als ...

by Stoll Pictures, at the time the largest British film studio. It was the second film version of the story, following a 1915 American film. The film was shot on location in

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

. It was reasonably successful on its release.Low p.126

Synopsis

When a British army officer, Harry Faversham, resigns his commission on the eve of his regiment's departure for service in

the Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

he is sent four

white feather The white feather is a widely recognised propaganda symbol. It has, among other things, represented cowardice or conscientious pacifism; as in A. E. W. Mason's 1902 book, '' The Four Feathers''. In Britain during the First World War it was of ...

s of

cowardice Cowardice is a trait wherein excessive fear prevents an individual from taking a risk or facing danger. It is the opposite of courage. As a label, "cowardice" indicates a failure of character in the face of a challenge. One who succumbs to cowa ...

by his comrades and fiancée. In an attempt to redeem himself, Faversham travels out to the Sudan where he saves the lives of his former comrades.

Cast

as Harry Faversham * Mary Massart as Ethne Eustace *

Cyril Percival Cyril Percival (1889–1948) was a British film actor of the silent era.Goble p.122 Selected filmography * '' Love in a Wood'' (1915) * ''The Princess of Happy Chance ''The Princess of Happy Chance'' is a 1917 British silent romance film dir ...

as Jack Durrance *

as General Faversham * Tony Fraser as Abou Fatma * Robert English as Lieutenant Sutch * Harry Worth as Major Willoughby * Gwen Williams as Mrs. Adair *

M. Gray Murray M. Gray Murray (1871 – 10 February 1937) was a British actor of the silent era. Selected filmography * '' Jobson's Luck'' (1913) * '' The Lure of London'' (1914) * '' The Troubles of an Heiress'' (1914) * ''The Loss of the Birkenhead'' (1914) ...

as Dermond Eustace * C. W. Cundell as Lieutenant Trench *

Roger Livesey Roger Livesey (25 June 1906 – 4 February 1976) was a British stage and film actor. He is most often remembered for the three Powell and Pressburger, Powell & Pressburger films in which he starred: ''The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp'', '' ...

as Harry as a child

References

Bibliography

* Low, Rachael. ''History of the British Film, 1918-1929''. George Allen & Unwin, 1971.

External links

* * Films based on The Four Feathers 1921 films 1920s historical adventure films British black-and-white films 1920s English-language films British historical adventure films British silent feature films British epic films Films set in the 1880s Stoll Pictures films Films directed by René Plaissetty Films shot at Cricklewood Studios 1920s war adventure films British war adventure films 1920s British films Silent historical adventure films Silent war films Films about the British Army {{war-film-stub