Broken Blossoms

dir. D.W. Griffith
U.S. 1919.
90 min. B&W

Griffith's cinematic eloquence reached its peak in this tender, tragic tale of love and suffering in the seedy Limehouse district of London. Stars Lillian Gish and Richard Barthelmess.

Richard Barthelmess gives a sensitive portrayal of a Chinese man who travels to England to spread the pacifist teachings of the Orient. Lillian Gish, in the most heart-rending performance of her career, plays a fifteen-year-old street urchin who longs to escape her miserable existence. Emotionally scarred by the torment of her abusive father (Donald Crisp), the girl collapses outside the shop of the lonely and disillusioned "yellow man." As he tenderly nurtures her back to health, an unspoken romance flowers between them, awakening in each of them feelings of love they thought themselves forever denied.

Available in 35mm & 16mm