The last silent film directed by Cecil B. DeMille is also the last done under the auspices of his independent production company which he had founded a few years earlier after leaving Paramount. By far and away the most successful film his studio did was King Of Kings. DeMille relates in his autobiography that the coming of sound doomed his silent film to box office losses and the studio as well. Thus ended DeMille's brief attempt at being another Sam Goldwyn.
If you're a member of the 700 Club, The Godless Girl is the film for you. It concerns young high school coquette Lina Basquette and her attempt to start an atheist society in her school. The story one must presume is set in a red state because it's going against the community mores and laws. You heard me, laws. The school principal threatens to send the atheists to prison, but Tom Keene as head of the Christian group says they'll handle it in their own way.
Handle it they do when they break up the meeting like storm troopers, but unfortunately Mary Jane Irving one of the atheist kids is killed. The one who actually pushed her down a flight of stairs, Eddie Quillan is arrested and sent to prison and so are Basquette and Keene.
But the brutal conditions in the juvenile reformatory make allies of Christian and non-believer. Keene and Basquette do see each other through an electrically wired fence. And Cupid takes his course even in a prison.
DeMille who grew up in the 19th century's last years acts as a spokesperson for the other generation, appalled at the hedonistic attitudes of the Flapper era. He also knew that hedonism spelled s-e-x is good box office. Basquette is properly seductive looking though frankly at the atheist meeting all the audience sees is talk. But it's the lack of morals implied that DeMille gets over.
One other curious thing that got me is that at no time do you see any of the families of Basquette, Keene, or any of the other juvenile offenders.
DeMille also related in his autobiography that the film was enormously popular in the Soviet Union. But the reason was that scenes of religious redemption were cut out and the film was exhibited as an example of capitalist decadence. Personally that might have made me want to defect.
The master of spectacle gave his audience a real doozy of a prison fire at the end. It's really exciting stuff, possibly the best thing about The Godless Girl.
Unless you are a fundamentalist Christian and this is how you would like to see public schools run today, The Godless Girl is one terribly outdated film. Questions like academic freedom and liberty of conscience are not even raised here. But the special effects are in keeping with Cecil B. DeMille's reputation and The Godless Girl stands as an example of some old fashioned ideas that could never be sold to today's movie audience.
If you're a member of the 700 Club, The Godless Girl is the film for you. It concerns young high school coquette Lina Basquette and her attempt to start an atheist society in her school. The story one must presume is set in a red state because it's going against the community mores and laws. You heard me, laws. The school principal threatens to send the atheists to prison, but Tom Keene as head of the Christian group says they'll handle it in their own way.
Handle it they do when they break up the meeting like storm troopers, but unfortunately Mary Jane Irving one of the atheist kids is killed. The one who actually pushed her down a flight of stairs, Eddie Quillan is arrested and sent to prison and so are Basquette and Keene.
But the brutal conditions in the juvenile reformatory make allies of Christian and non-believer. Keene and Basquette do see each other through an electrically wired fence. And Cupid takes his course even in a prison.
DeMille who grew up in the 19th century's last years acts as a spokesperson for the other generation, appalled at the hedonistic attitudes of the Flapper era. He also knew that hedonism spelled s-e-x is good box office. Basquette is properly seductive looking though frankly at the atheist meeting all the audience sees is talk. But it's the lack of morals implied that DeMille gets over.
One other curious thing that got me is that at no time do you see any of the families of Basquette, Keene, or any of the other juvenile offenders.
DeMille also related in his autobiography that the film was enormously popular in the Soviet Union. But the reason was that scenes of religious redemption were cut out and the film was exhibited as an example of capitalist decadence. Personally that might have made me want to defect.
The master of spectacle gave his audience a real doozy of a prison fire at the end. It's really exciting stuff, possibly the best thing about The Godless Girl.
Unless you are a fundamentalist Christian and this is how you would like to see public schools run today, The Godless Girl is one terribly outdated film. Questions like academic freedom and liberty of conscience are not even raised here. But the special effects are in keeping with Cecil B. DeMille's reputation and The Godless Girl stands as an example of some old fashioned ideas that could never be sold to today's movie audience.