Pegeen is a 1920 American silent drama film based on the 1915 novel of the same name by Eleanor Hoyt Brainerd.[4][5] It was produced by Vitagraph Studios[1] and directed by David Smith.[1] It stars Bessie Love in the title role. The film is presumed lost.[6]
Pegeen | |
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Directed by | David Smith |
Screenplay by | William B. Laub[1] |
Based on | Pegeen (novel) by Eleanor Hoyt Brainerd |
Starring | Bessie Love |
Cinematography | Charles R. Seeling[2] |
Production company | Vitagraph Studios[1] |
Release date |
|
Running time | 5 reels[4] |
Country | United States |
Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
Recently widowed Danny O'Neil (Stanley) has the belief that his wife will return to him by way of fire, and sets fire to buildings around town in hope that she will return to him. For her safety, his daughter Pegeen (Love) is sent to live with neighbor. When her father is to be arrested, Pegeen's friend Ezra (McGuire) helps hide her father, who dies shortly thereafter.[1][7]
Reviews for the film were mixed.[10][11][12] Its "worst criticism" is that "it is not a thriller, nor a spectacle. Neither is it a heavy digest of a weighty social or economic problem. It is just a simple story of every day people, told in simple, direct continuity, intelligently and coherently."[7]
Scenes involving a hanging and a shoot-out were recommended for removal when showing the film to family audiences.[13]
well-handled Vitagraph picture. … Saccharine story on a 'Pollyanna' theme. … Pegeen is one of the most charming pictures that ever graced the screen.
… qualifies as good every-day entertainment, the sort of entertainment that must be provided for every exhibitor. Bessie Love is the star, and she takes full advantage of a role fashioned after the model with which her name has come to be associated.
This picture positively the worst I ever had. Nothing to it. People walked out on it telling me I never ought to pay for such a picture.
A terrible picture.
Pegeen has about as much plot as a travelogue.
Films directed by David Smith | |
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