Orphans of the Storm (1922)

78% of users liked it
(347 ratings)

Having turned the creaky old stage melodrama Way Down East into a money-spinning film, director D.W. Griffith set about to perform the same magic with the barnstorming theatrical piece The Two Orphans. Adolphe Philippe Dennery's play told the story of two orphaned girls, one blind, who are separated… More Having turned the creaky old stage melodrama Way Down East into a money-spinning film, director D.W. Griffith set about to perform the same magic with the barnstorming theatrical piece The Two Orphans. Adolphe Philippe Dennery's play told the story of two orphaned girls, one blind, who are separated early on and undergo innumerable deprivations before their tearful reunion. Though the play took place in France, it had nothing whatsoever to do with the French Revolution; this didn't stop Griffith from plunking the storyline smack dab in the middle of that late-18th-century maelstrom, allowing him full scope for the spectacular scenes which had brought him worldwide fame. Lillian Gish plays Henriette, the sighted sister, while Dorothy Gish is cast as the visually impaired Louise. Henriette brings Louise to Paris, in search of a surgeon who might be able to restore her sister's sight. Henriette is kidnapped by a lascivious nobleman, leaving Louise to wander helplessly about until she too is "stolen" by a family of beggars. Rescued by kindhearted aristocrat Chevalier de Vaudrey (Joseph Schildkraut), Henriette begins the arduous search for her lost sister. Just before the film's intermission, Henriette hears Louise begging on the streets. Before they can be reunited, Henriette is arrested by minions of the evil nobleman who'd earlier tried to seduce her. Released from the Bastille by the revolutionaries, Henriette resumes her search, only to be arrested again--this time because she has consorted with the aristocracy, and is therefore a candidate for the guillotine. The stage is thus set for a thrilling "race to the rescue" climax, and of course the reuniting of the two orphans. Orphans of the Storm was filmed at Griffith's east coast studio in Mamaroneck, New York, which explains why the exteriors are always so overcast. In an effort to be topical, Griffith took every opportunity possible to equate the French revolution with the recent Bolshevik rebellion in Russia, and to warn his audience of the dangers of mob rule (this from a man who glorified the Ku Klux Klan in Birth of a Nation!) The film opened to excellent reviews and great business; Griffith, who always placed art above commerce, poured virtually every penny of profit into his "smaller" project, Isn't Life Wonderful, which died at the box office. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 3 hr. 10 min.
Directed By: D.W. Griffith
Genres: Drama

In Theaters: Dec 28, 1921 Wide
On DVD: Jan 8, 1999

Critic Reviews

Jeremy Heilman, MovieMartyr.com
[T]he sheer amount of realized ambition on display in it makes it a sight to behold.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
D.W. Griffith, always the showman, set out to make an epic from a story about sisters in trouble.

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Featured Audience Ratings

AJ V

A fantastic, yet much too long, melodrama from the famous silent director D.W. Griffith. Forget about Birth of a Nation, this is the film to see. It stars the fabulous Gish sisters and they just melt your heart. The story is brilliant, the movie doesn't even look very old, it… More
A fantastic, yet much too long, melodrama from the famous silent director D.W. Griffith. Forget about Birth of a Nation, this is the film to see. It stars the fabulous Gish sisters and they just melt your heart. The story is brilliant, the movie doesn't even look very old, it has heart and drama. I recommend it.
Anthony L

A beautiful melodrama following two sisters on a journey of loss and recovery during the French Revolution. Historically impeccable and based on the novel by Adolphe d'Ennery & Eugène Cormon, Orphans of the storm could easily be made today to great success but finding a pair… More
A beautiful melodrama following two sisters on a journey of loss and recovery during the French Revolution. Historically impeccable and based on the novel by Adolphe d'Ennery & Eugène Cormon, Orphans of the storm could easily be made today to great success but finding a pair of sisters as wonderful as Lillian Gish & Dorothy Gish would be a much harder task. The set is amazing, it's hard to believe it was all filmed on a New York set. My favourite scene was when the peasant woman gets run over and killed by a carriage and the aristocrat that gets out pays her husband a penny and apologises for the inconvenience. It reminds me of Eisenstein's Battleship Potemkin in many ways although I should point out that Battleship Potemkin came out three years later but this must have been an influence. I watched the Alpha video version on DVD and while the visual quality is good, the music they have put to it is awful, although their soundtrack to Way Down East is much worse.
Cassandra M

Story takes place in France before and after the Revolution. Louise (Dorothy Gish) and Henriette (Lillian Gish) are brought up together but are not really sisters--Louise was left on church steps as a baby and Henriette's parents took her in. Both are orphaned when their parents… More
Story takes place in France before and after the Revolution. Louise (Dorothy Gish) and Henriette (Lillian Gish) are brought up together but are not really sisters--Louise was left on church steps as a baby and Henriette's parents took her in. Both are orphaned when their parents die and Louise is struck blind. Henriette takes her to Paris in hope of finding a cure. There they are separated--Louise is forced to work with villainous beggars and Henriette falls in love with Chevalier de Vaudrey (drop dead handsome Joseph Schildkraut). The story is wildly implausible with some twists that had me smirking. It's also overlong and VERY melodramatic...but it still works. It was made on a large scale with beautiful settings, costumes and a cast of hundreds. D.W. Griffith did a wonderful job of directing--especially when the peasants revolt and overthrow the government. I usually hate historical movies but I loved this one! The cast overacts wildly (especially Monte Blue as Danton) except for Schildkraut who underplays--and it works. Throroughly engrossing and highly recommended