One of the most significant, but rarely explored, stages in David Wark Griffith's career was his entry into the feature film.
Strongly influenced by Italian epics, he sought to create a cinematic spectacle of his own, contrary to Biograph's wishes. To circumvent his superiors, Griffith secluded his crew from his studio's eyes and set about making a film of Thomas Aldrich's respected stage pageant, Judith of Bethulia, with lavish sets, costumes, and a brigade of extras. Even though Judith's $32,000 budget is infintessimal by today's standards, in 1913 it was enough for the heads of Biograph to call for the director's resignation. In spite of the fact that Judith cost Griffith his job, it was a great success and a boon to his reputation.
The story revolves around the plight of the people of Bethulia. Captain Holofernes lays siege to the fortified village but is unsuccessful in permeating its immense stone walls. However, he does cut them off from their supply of water, forcing the people to slowly die of thirst. By divine inspiration, Judith, revered by the villagers, formulates an unholy plan to foil Holofernes' campaign -- even at the risk of martyrdom.
Another of Griffith's early experiments in the feature film was Home, Sweet Home, in which he combined four mini-narratives end-to-end, to pay homage to the life and music of John Howard Payne. Griffith structured Home, Sweet Home so that it could be released as four separate pictures, yet the multiple story threads are a clear harbinger of his incumbent masterpiece Intolerance, in which the plots were interwoven rather than played sequentially.
When Griffith left Biograph, he took with him his regular company of actors, and thus Home, Sweet Home features a cast of four young actresses who would come to rank among the greatest stars of the silent screen: Lillian and Dorothy Gish, Blach Sweet, and Mae Marsh. |
