"Enoch Arden" is a re-working of director D.W. Griffith's previous "The Unchanging Sea". It is very strange that Mr. Griffith would re-work such a recent film; but, early silent films came and went very quickly. Even stranger, the film doesn't really improve on the earlier version. Here are the main differences: A "love triangle" is added; which ultimately has Ms. Arvidson marrying the other man, after her first husband is lost at sea. There are more children. And, instead of amnesia, our hero is stranded on a dessert island. The ending is quite different.
Lost is the image of the lonely wife staring out at the sea; the subsequent scene's poignancy, with Arvidson carrying her newborn, is not possible. The "Unchanging" element is gone. Robert Harron and Florence La Badie are good additional children, but they don't have a lot to do; and, the leads actors aren't quite as good in "Enoch Arden" as they were in "The Unchanging Sea".
A good film, but less was a little more.
****** Enoch Arden (6/12-15/11) D.W. Griffith ~ Wilfred Lucas, Linda Arvidson, Francis J. Grandon
Lost is the image of the lonely wife staring out at the sea; the subsequent scene's poignancy, with Arvidson carrying her newborn, is not possible. The "Unchanging" element is gone. Robert Harron and Florence La Badie are good additional children, but they don't have a lot to do; and, the leads actors aren't quite as good in "Enoch Arden" as they were in "The Unchanging Sea".
A good film, but less was a little more.
****** Enoch Arden (6/12-15/11) D.W. Griffith ~ Wilfred Lucas, Linda Arvidson, Francis J. Grandon